This Apple Pear Cranberry Crostata swaddled in a tender, buttery crust and served with a homemade pumpkin caramel sauce screams autumn, but it's a dessert you'll want to make well into winter!
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Why You'll Love this Recipe
I love how crostatas, aka galettes, are informal, rustic, and extremely versatile. They can be savory or sweet, and showcase whatever combination of flavors you can dream up. Here, we married the sweetness from apples and pears with the tartness of cranberries. Cinnamon and nutmeg are layered throughout to keep that fall flavor profile at the forefront.
Getting Started
You'll kick things off by making the crust first. The food processor makes life super easy when it comes to whirling up dough. Once the dry ingredients are combined and the ultra-cold butter pieces are blended in, it's time to drizzle in liquid to bring everyone together. I used white grape juice instead of typically used water for a touch of added sweetness.
The dough should ball up to one side of the food processor bowl, then turn out to a floured surface, shape into a disc and wrap her up in plastic to chill for a bit while you make the filling.
Prepping the Fruit
Let the apples, pears, and cranberries get happy in a large bowl with some brown sugar, lemon juice, flour, cinnamon and nutmeg before piling on to your rolled out dough. Keep a 1 ½-2 inch border so the edges will fold up easily to encase the fruit.
Assembling
Brush the crust with an egg wash and sprinkle it, along with the exposed fruit, with a cinnamon-sugar mixture for that extra golden flare.
After 40-45 minutes in the oven, the crust will be crisped and browned yet tender inside, and the fruit will have a beautiful caramelization without being too soft.
Serve this beauty up with a homemade pumpkin caramel sauce, freshly whipped cream or a big dollop of vanilla ice cream. Enjoy!
Still have a sweet tooth?! Check out more amazing desserts!
Nutty Irishman Cheesecake Swirled Brownies
Key Lime Bars with Shortbread Crust
Roasted Strawberry Lemon Cream Trifles
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📋 Recipe
Apple Pear Cranberry Crostata with Pumpkin Caramel Sauce
Equipment
Ingredients
Crust
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup cornmeal
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg
- teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 8 tablespoons very cold unsalted butter (1 stick), cubed
- 1 ½ teaspoons apple cider vinegar
- 5 tablespoons cold white grape juice , or water
Filling
- 2 apples , peeled, quartered, cored, cut into ¼-inch slices crosswise
- 2 pears , peeled, quartered, cored, cut into ¼-inch slices crosswise
- ½ cup fresh cranberries
- 3 tablespoons light brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon , divided
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 egg , slightly beaten
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- Whipped cream or ice cream , to serve
Pumpkin Caramel Sauce (optional, but to die for)
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter (½ stick)
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- ⅛ teaspoon ginger
- ⅛ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ cup canned pure pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)
Instructions
Crust
- Place flour, cornmeal, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking powder and salt into bowl of a food processor. Pulse until combined.
- Add cubed butter, and pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal.
- In a small bowl, combine vinegar and grape juice (or water). With machine running, slowly add the vinegar mixture.
- Dough will begin to pull away from the sides of the bowl when combined. Transfer to floured work surface and gently knead a few times to form into a 6-inch disc.
- Cover in plastic wrap and chill at least 30 minutes and up to 2 days.
Filling
- Let dough sit out on counter 30 minutes or so before assembling if it was refrigerated several hours.
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- In a large bowl, combine the apples, pears, brown sugar, flour, lemon juice, ½ teaspoon cinnamon, and nutmeg. Toss to blend. Let stand 15 minutes for juices to form.
- On a floured surface, roll out dough into a 12-inch circle, about ⅛-inch thick. Crostatas are meant to be imperfect so don’t sweat it if it’s not uniform.
- Transfer rolled dough onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet either via a rolling pin or gently folding into quarters then unfolding onto the pan.
- Pile fruit mixture on top of dough, leaving a 2-inch border. Gently pleat the crust over the filling as you go to seal the filling inside the dough. The center will be open.
- In a small bowl, combine sugar and remaining ½ teaspoon cinnamon. Brush crust with egg, then sprinkle crust and exposed fruit with sugar cinnamon mixture.
- Bake crostata 10 minutes at 400°F. Lower temperature to 375°F and bake another 30-35 minutes until crust is golden and thick juices bubble.
- Transfer baking sheet to rack and cool 10 minutes. Slide a spatula under the crust to loosen it from the parchment paper.
- Cool crostata to lukewarm and transfer to platter. Drizzle with Pumpkin Caramel Sauce and pass the rest separately. Serve with whipped cream or ice cream, if desired.
Pumpkin Caramel Sauce
- Melt butter in heavy small saucepan over medium heat. Add sugar and cook until mixture is deep amber, stirring constantly, 12-15 minutes (mixture will be grainy).
- Reduce heat to medium-low. Heat cream in microwave until lukewarm. Add warmed cream to sugar and butter mixture; it will bubble.
- Stir in spices and salt until well combined. Mix in pumpkin until incorporated.
- Remove from heat. Let cool, cover, and refrigerate at least 2 hours.
- Makes about 1 ½ cups. (Can be made ahead. Cover and keep chilled for up to 1 week.)
Nutrition
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