Fig and Raspberry Crostata

Restaurant: Rockpool (NSW)

Recipe from Chef Catherine Adams  (appears on Gourmet Traveller website)

2009 Rating: 3rd, 3 Stars

Before we went away to Queensland my mum had HEAPS of ripe juicy figs on her tree. When I was a kid I didn't quite understand the joy's of eating a perfectly sun ripened fig, now in my older age I can certainly appreciate it. So I collected a real bounty of the little parcels of softness, once I got them home I realised I needed to do something with them...and quick. And then I saw this recipe, and boy was I excited! So, following tradition, here is the recipe and of course...the results are to come.

Serves 8 

Cooking Time Prep time 20 mins, cook 50 mins (plus chilling) 

INGREDIENTS

10 figs, halved or quartered, depending on size

1 tbsp vanilla sugar (see note)

120 gm raspberries (about 1 punnet), plus extra to serve

To serve: crème fraîche

Sweet pastry

200 gm flour

150 gm cold butter, coarsely chopped

100 gm caster sugar

40 gm egg (about ¾ egg), lightly whisked

Frangipane

50 gm butter

50 gm pure icing sugar

50 gm almond meal

1 tsp plain flour

1 egg, lightly whisked

20 ml dark rum

 

METHOD

1. For sweet pastry, place flour and butter in the bowl of a food processor and freeze until well chilled (30-35 minutes). Meanwhile, combine sugar, egg and 1 tsp salt in a bowl, whisking until sugar dissolves. Refrigerate until required. Process flour and butter in a food processor until coarse crumbs form. Gradually add chilled egg mixture, pulsing to combine. Turn onto a lightly floured work surface, bring pastry together with the heel of your hand, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm (1½-2 hours). Roll pastry out between 2 sheets of baking paper to a 30cm-diameter circle and place on a baking paper-lined oven tray. Refrigerate overnight.

2. Preheat oven to 170C. For frangipane, beat butter in an electric mixer until pale and fluffy. Combine icing sugar, almond meal and flour in a separate bowl and, with motor running, gradually add to butter until completely combined. Add egg, beating well to combine, then slowly beat in dark rum.

3. Spread frangipane over prepared pastry, leaving a 3cm border. Lay figs on top, cut-side up, fold in pastry border, pleating as you go, then scatter with vanilla sugar. Bake until light golden (25-30 minutes). Reduce oven to 160C, scatter with raspberries and bake until golden (15-20 minutes). Serve with extra raspberries and crème fraîche.

Note Vanilla sugar is available in the baking section of most supermarkets.