Apple and Pear Crostada

A Crostada is a rustic Italian tart. Don't worry about rolling this into a perfect round pie crust because you are just going to free form it anyway. The original recipe called for just pears but I had apples too so you really can mix and match this fruit tart with almost any seasonal fruit. And, I din't make a crust from scratch....pre-made baby pre- made...so much easier to do.

So here is the short cut version....

Place a piece of parchment paper onto a cookie sheet....unwrap a pre-made pie dough circle and place onto parchment paper.

Pre-heat at 400 F.

4 firm-ripe pears or apples or a combo - peeled and sliced
2 tsp fresh lemon juice
1/2 tsp vanilla
2/3 cups sugar divided
2 tbls all- purpose flour
1/4 tsp cinnamon
freshly ground nutmeg
1 tbls unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

Toss pears/apples/fruit with lemon juice and vanilla in medium sized bowl. Add 1/2 cup sugar, flour, cinnamon and nutmeg: toss gently.

Arrange filling in center of pastry to within 1 1/2 inches from the edges. Fold edges of dough up and over the filling.

Dot filling with butter and sprinkle the remaining sugar over pastry and filling.

Bake 40 minutes at 400*

Let sit for about 10 to 15 minutes to cool before serving.

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You can add pumpkin spice if you wish, that's always good too.

Excellent with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream or both.

Have fun making it. It takes about maybe 10 minutes to make and put together. So it is a fast dessert to make if you are in a pinch.