Crostata di Marmellata (Italian Jam Tart)

This crostata di marmellata (Italian jam tart) has a tender, buttery crust and a sweet and flavorful apricot jam filling. For ease, I've chosen to use high quality store bought jam, but you can use homemade jam or preserves if you have some! The tart uses an easy workable dough to make a simple lattice design. No intricate weaving required.

Crostata di marmellata is a traditional rustic dessert made throughout Italy. The shortcrust pastry dough (pasta frolla in Italian) is made with baking powder for a light and slightly soft texture. Pasta frolla is a sweet and buttery dough that is a staple in Italian baking.

I've used it in this pasta frola, an Argentine tart made with quince paste, and for another Italian crostata recipe with chocolate hazelnut filling, crostata alla nutella. I adapted the crostata dough slightly to make rich filled Nutella biscuits. It's a wonderfully easy dough to mix up, and handles beautifully.

Traditional recipes for Italian jam tarts usually features a filling of homemade jam made from the season's latest abundance, whether apricots, peaches, cherries, plums, or a myriad of other options.

Since this is a recipe that can be baked year-round, I opted to use a good quality jam from the store for ease. If possible, choose one with a limited amount of ingredients (fruit, sugar, pectin, and citric acid or lemon juice) and less sugar.

If you're in need of a visually enticing, no fuss recipe for a coffee get-together or dinner party, look no further than this easy jam tart!

For other Italian desserts, consider these Baci di Alassio, chewy flourless chocolate hazelnut sandwich cookies, shortbread canestrelli cookies made with hard boiled egg yolks, or torta tenerina, a flourless chocolate torte.

Ingredients

* See recipe card for full ingredient list and quantities.

Unsalted butter - Using unsalted butter allows you to control the total quantity of salt in the recipe. Salt content in salted butter varies by brand. The butter should be at room temperature.

Lemon zest - Zest provides a wonderful, bright citrus flavor and aroma. It smells so good when it's baking! I use a microplane to easily zest citrus fruits.

Baking powder - Baking powder is included in pasta frolla dough to give it a softer, lighter texture.

Eggs - I use large eggs in my recipes. The eggs should be at room temperature.

Apricot jam - For ease, this recipe calls for good quality store bought jam. If you have homemade jam, feel free to use it here! The jar I purchased contained 370 grams (13 ounces), but you could easily use up to 450 grams (16 ounces).

Instructions

All you need is an easy pasta frolla dough and a jar of jam. These photos will walk you through the process. See the recipe card for detailed instructions.

Beat butter and sugar on medium speed until well combined. Add lemon zest and mix again.

Add flour, salt and baking powder. Mix on medium low speed until mixture resembles fine sand.

Add egg and egg yolk. Mix on low speed just until mixture comes together. Do not overmix.

Gather dough into a rectangle. Divide dough into two uneven portions - ⅓ of the dough, and the other ⅔. Flatten both dough pieces into a round disc.

Roll out larger dough disc between two pieces of parchment paper. It should be ⅛" (3mm) thick. Loosen parchment on both sides.

Place dough into tart pan. Press dough into pan where the base meets the sides. Trim excess dough from edge of the tart pan with a knife held parallel to work surface. Place tart pan in refrigerator to chill for at least 30 minutes.

Roll remaining dough to ⅛" thick. Place on sheet pan and chill in refrigerator. After chilling, cut the dough into long ¾" wide strips. Place back on sheet pan into refrigerator to chill.

Spoon jam into the chilled tart shell.

Place half of the lattice strips on the tart in one direction. Press down gently on the edges to seal them.

Place the top layer of lattice strips at an angle to the bottom layer of strips to create an X shape. The holes between the lattice strips should resemble diamonds. Use a knife to trim the ends that overhang.

Place tart in freezer to chill for 10 minutes.

Bake for 32-34 minutes, until lattice and crust are golden brown and jam in middle of tart is bubbling. Place on a baking rack to fully cool.

Refrigerate tart for one hour prior to serving in order to slice cleanly. Sprinkle with powdered sugar directly before serving.

Variations

• Other jam flavors - While apricot is the most traditional flavor of jam, feel free to substitute any good quality jam in your pantry or fridge, whether store bought or homemade.
• Reduced sweetness - If you are concerned that the apricot jam alone will be too sweet for your palate, consider substituting ⅓ of the apricot jam with orange marmalade. The tart orange flavor of the marmalade will help temper the sweetness of the apricot jam.
• Citrus zest - Pair the zest in the pasta frolla dough with the flavor of the jam. You might try lime zest with strawberry jam, lemon zest with blackberry or raspberry jam, or orange zest with plum or fig jam. Be creative!
• Spiced crust - Add ¼ to ½ teaspoon of spices to the dough (when you add the flour) to compliment the jam. Here's a great list of flavors to pair with different fruits. For example, apricot jam might pair well with cinnamon and ginger, while cardamom and nutmeg would complement blueberry jam.

Equipment

For my tart recipes, I use this nonstick carbon steel tart pan with a removable base.

A half sheet baking pan (18 x 13 inches) keeps the base of the tart from browning too quickly and catches any drips or spills. Sometimes a bit of butter leaks from the bottom of the tart. Save yourself the work of cleaning the oven and use a baking sheet underneath!

Parchment paper is great for lining the baking pan to catch any drips.

A pastry wheel makes cutting lattice strips easy. It has two wheels with a plain side and a fluted side. The fluted side makes the pretty scalloped edge you see on the lattice in this recipe.

Storage

This apricot jam tart is easiest to slice when chilled. Chill in the refrigerator until closer to serving time, but give the crust about 20-30 minutes to warm up.

Store: Keep this tart (well wrapped) in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

Freeze: To freeze leftovers, wrap with plastic wrap and place in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months. To thaw, unwrap to avoid condensation making the crust soggy. Defrost in the refrigerator prior to serving.

Frequently asked questions

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