Here’s the last of the single serve recipes you didn’t know you needed. So far we’ve made a single cinnamon roll, two giant chocolate chip cookies, and two lemon poppy seed muffins. Last weekend while visiting my parents in Los Angeles my very own mother said, “I don’t get these single recipes,” and fair enough mom – fair enough. She’s a double-batch, store-in-the-freezer mother and I respect it. BUT there’s something rather luxurious about taking the time to make something singular and special just for yourself. This is a little bit of self care and today’s bit of care takes the form of one single berry crostata.
As always, you can double this recipe for you and your babe or you can make this whole dang pie and live your very best life.
Here are the ingredients you’ll need to make this single serve Berry Crostata:
• all-purpose flour
• cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
• granulated sugar
• kosher salt
• cornstarch
• cold buttermilk (or ice water in a pinch)
• a spritz of lemon juice (and lemon zest for extra credit)
• blueberries and raspberries or any fruit you prefer. Peach and blackberry is another nice combination!
• turbinado sugar (but only if you have it in the pantry, a sprinkle of granulated sugar will work just as well)
We’ve made pie crust loads of times over the years, but if this is your first rodeo, here’s how to make pie crust by hand.
In a small bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, and salt. Use a pastry blender or your fingers to work cold butter into the dry ingredients making a crumbly dough with butter chunks the size of small peas and oat flakes.
Make a well in the center of the buttery mixture and add a few tablespoons of buttermilk. (And if you don’t have buttermilk, I get it – here are a few easy ways to make quick buttermilk substitutes or you can add 2 tablespoons of ice water in place of dairy.)
Combine the little pie dough ball into a shaggy but moist and cohesive disk. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator for 20 minutes or so. I usually leave pie crust to rest in the refrigerator for an hour but I feel like a single-serve recipe is also about urgency so we’re rushing the process along a bit.
While the crust has its little chill moment, whip up the berry mixture. In a small bowl toss together fruit, sugar, cornstarch, and a little squeeze of lemon. The cornstarch and sugar will all dissolve in the oven so don’t worry if they don’t completely dissolve.
Roll chilled crust on a lightly floured surface to a thick 1/4-inch round. Place the little dough round on a parchment paper lined baking sheet and spoon the fruit into the center of the dough round.
Fold the dough edges up and around the fruit, creating a nice little pocket filled with fruit. Instead of egg wash we’ll brush the outside of the crust with buttermilk or any dairy you have on hand. There’s no need to crack a whole egg for this little crostata baby.
Sprinkle with sugar and bake in the upper third of the oven until golden brown and bubbling. The cornstarch will thicken the berry juice as it bubbles so make sure the juices come to a bubble before removing the pastry from the oven.
Top the warm tart with vanilla ice cream or lightly whipped cream. Please please please enjoy this berry crostata while it’s still warm (just after it stopped bubbling for me), and sitting down at your kitchen counter (though I have the worst habit of eating standing over the sink). This is a perfect little moment.
Happy Micro-Batch Baking from me to you.
Now, if you’re in the mood for more (larger) summer pie ideas:
My Favorite Strawberry Crumble Pie
Tomato Pie with Blue Cheese Biscuits
PrintA Single Serve Berry Crostata Recipe
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (67 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt (skip if you used salted butter above)
- 2 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter cut into small cubes
- 2 tablespoons cold buttermilk (plus a splash more if your dough feels dry)
- 1/2 cup blueberries and raspberries
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- A pinch of kosher salt
- A squeeze of lemon (and lemon zest if you want)
- Turbinado sugar before baking, optional
- Vanilla ice cream or whipped cream for serving
Instructions
- Place a rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a small baking pan with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a small bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, and salt. Add the cold butter and use your fingers to break the butter up into smaller bits, the size of small peas and oat flakes. Create a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add buttermilk. Use a fork to bring it all together into a shaggy dough.
- Turn the shaggy dough out onto the counter and bring together into a small disk. Add a splash more buttermilk if the dough feels dry. Wrap in a piece of plastic wrap or waxed paper and refrigerate for 15-20 minutes.
- In a small bowl toss together berries, sugar, cornstarch, salt and a little squeeze of lemon.
- Lightly flour the counter and roll the crust into a 6 or 8-inch circle just thicker than 1/4-inch. Spoon fruit onto the crust and fold the crust up over the fruit. Brush the edges with buttermilk and sprinkle with turbinado sugar.
- Use a large spatula or bench scraper to transfer the crostata to the prepared baking pan. Bake for 22-24 minutes until golden and bubbling. Serve warm with a dollop of whipped cream or ice cream.