Mixed Berry Crostata

(WTNH) - Chef Barbara whips up a Spring recipe.

Mixed Berry Crostata

Pasta Frolla (Pastry)
1 ¾ cups unbleached all purpose flour
¼ cup sugar
½ t. baking powder
¼ t. salt
Zest from one lemon
4.5 oz. (9 Tablespoons) butter, cut into 1" pieces and chilled until very cold
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
½ t. vanilla
2 T. sour cream
1 T. milk
1 T. cold fresh lemon juice

To make to pastry dough:  Zest and juice one lemon. Place flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and zest of lemon in bowl of food processor.  Pulse 5 times to blend ingredients.  In a bowl mix egg, yolk, vanilla, sour cream and milk.  Add butter to dry ingredients in processor and pulse until the mixture is sandy and butter is incorporated.  Add wet ingredients and 1 t. lemon juice (reserve rest of juice for use in filling) and pulse until mixture just comes together.  Empty processor bowl into a large bowl and knead the dough lightly in the bowl just until it becomes a cohesive dough.  Shape into a disk and wrap in plastic.  Refrigerate for 1 hour or until firm.  Dough can be made ahead and refrigerated for a day or two or freeze for use in the next 2 months.
After the dough has chilled, roll it out into a 15" circle.  Trim the edges back to approximately a 14" diameter.  Place back in the refrigerator while you make the filling.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

For the filling:
1 ½ lb mixed berries (strawberries, blackberries, blueberries and raspberries.  Can use any of these but definitely have some of the combination come from strawberries), rinsed, drained and dried
¼ sugar
3 T. flour
Pinch of salt
1 T. fresh lemon juice
2 T. strawberry jam (optional, good addition if berries are off season)
¼ cookie or cake crumbs
1 T. heavy cream
Extra sugar

In a large bowl combine berries (cut strawberries in 2 or 3 pieces, leave other berries whole) with sugar, flour, salt, juice, and jam.  Stir together well and let sit for 5 minutes.
Sprinkle crumbs over center of rolled out pastry dough.  Mound berries on top of crumbs.  Fold up edges over the berries and brush pastry with heavy cream.  Smooth seams and sprinkle sugar over pastry.  Bake for 10 minutes then lower temperature to 375 degrees and bake for another 35 minutes or until the pastry is golden brown and the juices are thick and bubbling slowly.  Remove to a wire rack and let cool.  Serve warm or at room temperature.