Nectarine and Blackberry Free-Form Tart
By Julia Collin DavisonPublished on April 1, 2024
Time
2 hours, plus 1½ hours chilling and cooling
Yield
Serves 6
Ingredients
Dough
1½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour (7½ ounces/213 grams), plus additional for work surface½ teaspoon table salt 10 tablespoons unsalted butter (1¼ sticks), chilled, cut into ½-inch cubes3–6 tablespoons ice waterNectarine-Blackberry Filling
1 pound nectarines, halved, pitted, and cut into ½-inch-thick wedges1 cup blackberries (about ½ dry pint)½ teaspoon vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste5 tablespoons (2¼ ounces/64 grams) demerara sugar, divided1 tablespoon waterBefore You Begin
If at any point the dough becomes soft, sticky, and difficult to work with during rolling, chill it until it becomes workable. Granulated sugar can be substituted for the demerara sugar if necessary. Once baked, the tart is best eaten warm, or within 3 or 4 hours, although leftovers do reheat well in a 400-degree oven. Vanilla ice cream, lightly sweetened whipped cream, or crème fraîche are excellent accompaniments.
Instructions
- Process flour and salt in food processor until combined, about 5 seconds. Scatter butter over top and pulse until mixture resembles coarse sand and butter pieces are about size of small peas, about 10 pulses. Continue to pulse, adding ice water 1 tablespoon at a time, until dough begins to form small curds that hold together when pinched with fingers, about 10 pulses.
- Transfer mixture to lightly floured counter and gather into rectangular-shaped pile. Starting at farthest end, use heel of hand to smear small amount of dough against counter. Continue to smear dough until all crumbs have been worked. Gather smeared crumbs together in another rectangular-shaped pile and repeat process. Form dough into 6-inch disk, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 2 days.
- Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Line rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Let chilled dough sit on counter to soften slightly, about 10 minutes, before rolling. Roll dough into 12-inch circle on lightly floured counter, then transfer to prepared sheet (dough may run up lip of sheet slightly; this is OK).
- Gently toss nectarines, blackberries, vanilla, and 3 tablespoons sugar together in bowl. Mound fruit in center of dough, leaving 2½-inch border. Carefully grasp one edge of dough and fold up outer 2 inches over fruit, leaving ½-inch area of dough just inside of fold free of fruit. Repeat around circumference of tart, overlapping dough every 2 to 3 inches; gently pinch pleated dough to secure. Brush dough with water and sprinkle evenly with remaining 2 tablespoons sugar. Bake until crust is deep golden brown and fruit is bubbling, 50 to 55 minutes.
- Transfer sheet to wire rack and let tart cool for 10 minutes. Using metal spatula, loosen tart from parchment and carefully slide onto wire rack and let cool at least 20 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.
for the dough
for the nectarine-blackberry filling
Time
2 hours, plus 1½ hours chilling and coolingYield
Serves 6Ingredients
Dough
Nectarine-Blackberry Filling
Ingredients
Dough
Nectarine-Blackberry Filling
Ingredients
Dough
Nectarine-Blackberry Filling
Why This Recipe Works
To create a rustic and summery free-form tart, we started with a juicy combination of nectarines and blackberries. We wrapped the fruit in a simple, buttery tart dough and found it crucial to leave a ½-inch border of folded crust around the filling in order to prevent the juices from leaking out. To boost the flavor of the fruit just a little, we added some vanilla extract and a bit of demerara sugar. Sprinkling a couple tablespoons of demerara sugar over the crust before baking added a welcome crunchy texture, and a 400-degree oven worked best to produce an evenly baked, flaky crust and juicy, warm fruit.
Before You Begin
If at any point the dough becomes soft, sticky, and difficult to work with during rolling, chill it until it becomes workable. Granulated sugar can be substituted for the demerara sugar if necessary. Once baked, the tart is best eaten warm, or within 3 or 4 hours, although leftovers do reheat well in a 400-degree oven. Vanilla ice cream, lightly sweetened whipped cream, or crème fraîche are excellent accompaniments.
Instructions
- Process flour and salt in food processor until combined, about 5 seconds. Scatter butter over top and pulse until mixture resembles coarse sand and butter pieces are about size of small peas, about 10 pulses. Continue to pulse, adding ice water 1 tablespoon at a time, until dough begins to form small curds that hold together when pinched with fingers, about 10 pulses.
- Transfer mixture to lightly floured counter and gather into rectangular-shaped pile. Starting at farthest end, use heel of hand to smear small amount of dough against counter. Continue to smear dough until all crumbs have been worked. Gather smeared crumbs together in another rectangular-shaped pile and repeat process. Form dough into 6-inch disk, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 2 days.
- Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Line rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Let chilled dough sit on counter to soften slightly, about 10 minutes, before rolling. Roll dough into 12-inch circle on lightly floured counter, then transfer to prepared sheet (dough may run up lip of sheet slightly; this is OK).
- Gently toss nectarines, blackberries, vanilla, and 3 tablespoons sugar together in bowl. Mound fruit in center of dough, leaving 2½-inch border. Carefully grasp one edge of dough and fold up outer 2 inches over fruit, leaving ½-inch area of dough just inside of fold free of fruit. Repeat around circumference of tart, overlapping dough every 2 to 3 inches; gently pinch pleated dough to secure. Brush dough with water and sprinkle evenly with remaining 2 tablespoons sugar. Bake until crust is deep golden brown and fruit is bubbling, 50 to 55 minutes.
- Transfer sheet to wire rack and let tart cool for 10 minutes. Using metal spatula, loosen tart from parchment and carefully slide onto wire rack and let cool at least 20 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.
for the dough
for the nectarine-blackberry filling
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