Sheet Pan

Strawberry Lime Crostata

by:
April  8, 2012
4.5
4 Ratings
Strawberry Lime Crostata
Photo by James Ransom
  • Makes 9-inch crostata
Author Notes

Inspired by preserves I made out of Kim Boyce’s Good to the Grain last spring, lime stands in for the usual rhubarb to brighten the strawberries in this rustic tart. For the crust, I adapted Joanne Chang’s pate brisee recipe, adjusting the proportions slightly for a thinner shell. I like her use of egg yolks (I used just one here), which makes the dough more forgiving. I baked this free-form on a parchment-lined sheet pan, but I’d suggest a pie dish if your berries are super juicey. I threw in a handful of blackberries, just cause I had them lying around. Any berries or combination of them would work great. —Midge

Test Kitchen Notes

WHO: Midge is a journalist living in Charleston.
WHAT: Strawberries cozy up to an unexpected partner -- lime -- and get heaped into a rich, forgiving crust.
HOW: Make a pate brisee, and while it's resting, macerate your berries. Roll out the dough, fill it, gather up the edges, and bake.
WHY WE LOVE IT: We love that Midge turns to lime instead of rhubarb to edge out the strawberries' sweetness -- it's a pairing we'll turn to all summer long. The combo of fresh strawberries and strawberry jam makes for a rich filling; wrapped up in an easy pate brisee, it's a dessert that's unforgettable.
—The Editors

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • Tart Crust (makes 2)
  • 2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 2 teaspoons sugar
  • 1 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into uniformed-sized cubes
  • 1 large egg yolk
  • 3 tablespoons heavy cream, divided
  • small glass ice water
  • 1 tablespoon sanding sugar, granulated sugar is fine if you don't have the fancy stuff on hand
  • Filling
  • 4 cups strawberries, rinsed, hulled, and halved (quarter the honkin ones)
  • 1/4-1/3 cups sugar, depending on the sweetness of your berries
  • 2 tablespoons strawberry jam, preferably homemade
  • 3 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 1 lime, zested and juiced
Directions
  1. Sift flour, salt, and sugar together by hand or in bowl of standing mixer.
  2. Add butter to flour mixture. Mix on low speed (or cut into flour quickly by hand) just until it becomes a pebbly mixture, about 30 -45 seconds.
  3. Whisk together egg yolk and two tablespoons of the cream and mix into lour mixture.
  4. Sprinkle 2-3 tablespoons of ice water into mixture and gently combine until the dough starts to hold together. Add more water as needed.
  5. Gather up the dough and form into two one inch-thick disks. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or up to four days. The recipe makes double the amount you need; freeze the other half or roll it out and cut it into strips for a lattice topping.
  6. Meanwhile, mix berries with sugar, lime zest and juice, cornstarch, and jam. Let sit for about 20 minutes.
  7. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
  8. On a floured surface, roll out one disk of dough to about 1/8 inch-thick. Carefully fold the dough in half and then in quarters to transfer to a pie dish or parchment-lined sheet pan.
  9. Fill the crust with the berry mixture. Gently gather and fold the overhanging crust over the pie. Brush with the remaining cream and sprinkle generously with sugar.
  10. If you’re using a pie dish, consider sticking a sheet pan underneath it to catch spills.
  11. Bake for 50-60 minutes until crust is golden and the filling, bubbling.
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Midge

Recipe by: Midge

I’m a journalist who’s covered everything from illegal logging in Central America to merit pay for teachers, but these days I write mostly about travel. I’ve been lucky enough to find myself in some far-flung locales, where poking around markets and grocery stores is my favorite thing to do. Cooking, especially baking, is my way of winding down after a long day; there’s nothing like kneading bread dough to bring you back to earth.

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19 Reviews

SPurcell
SPurcell June 10, 2020
It wasn't the prettiest dessert (my fault entirely) but my dinner guests raved about it and even brought me strawberries the next day to make it again! The lime is what sets it apart -- just perfect.
 
Sixblade K.
Sixblade K. June 21, 2019
Delicious and easy. Skipped the jam and it was fine.
 
prash.cant.shush
prash.cant.shush January 22, 2019
"Carefully fold the dough in half and then in quarters to transfer to a pie dish or parchment-lined sheet pan." I don't understand this bit. Could someone please explain? Is this just to help with the transfer of the dough and then it has to be unfolded before ladling the strawberries on top?
 
Mike D.
Mike D. May 14, 2017
Cheated with a pre-made dough from Trader Joe's and it made a super fast and delicious desert.
 
AntoniaJames
AntoniaJames June 20, 2016
Lime + strawberries . . . . my mouth is watering just imagining it. Definitely putting this on our summer special occasion ideas list. ;o)
 
Laurie
Laurie August 7, 2015
Made this today. I was skeptical about using so much butter but the end product was excellent. I used half whole wheat pastry flour and half almond flour and maybe added a few tablespoons extra of the whole wheat. Delicious.
 
jenkaa55
jenkaa55 July 28, 2014
Made this last night, had to substitute raspberry jam (homemade) as I didn't have strawberry. It was wonderful! The crust was tender and delicious! It is nice to know that another crust is waiting to be filled!
 
Midge
Midge August 1, 2014
Yay! I love that feeling of having a pie crust waiting in the freezer!
 
twinjadojo
twinjadojo July 20, 2014
Baked this up on what turned out to be National Daiquiri Day. Strawberry Daiquiri Pie! I loved the crust. Despite the obvious acidic nature of this pie, I melted some butter and brown sugar in my trusty cast iron pan and built the pie up from there. Living dangerously. Baked it at 400 for 20 mins, then turned down the temp to 350 for 37 more mins. My acid:sugar ratio was a bit off (too tart), but that began to resolve itself as the pie cooled. I'd love to try a version of this pie with my favorite strawberry enhancers-honey and lemon. And for sure a blueberry lemon one, as you suggested below. Thanks so much for this recipe!
 
Midge
Midge August 1, 2014
Sounds great! btw, for the blueberry-lemon version, I cooked half my blueberries (2c) with a little cornstarch and sugar and mixed them in with fresh ones, a la classic double-good blueberry pie recipe, to firm up filling.
 
Dina M.
Dina M. June 30, 2014
This is simply delicious! The lime is the perfect foil for my just-picked little strawberries, which are like little sugar bombs all by themselves.
I happened to buy a local whole wheat flour at the farmer's market this week, so I substituted half a cup of that. It worked just fine--a bit of texture to the crust, but really, no need to change a thing here. This is strawberry perfection. And it's beautiful too! Thank you, Midge!
 
Midge
Midge June 30, 2014
Thank you Dina! I just made this with blueberries and lemon, which turned out great.
 
Midge
Midge June 30, 2014
Must try your whole wheat addition next time.
 
Arrxx
Arrxx June 8, 2014
Sanding sugar. I've never come across that ingredient. Can you explain please.
 
Midge
Midge August 1, 2014
Just granular sugar, not necessary though.
 
Jessica L.
Jessica L. July 26, 2013
how do i store the finish product? in fridge?
 
Dina M.
Dina M. June 30, 2014
You had left overs?! Like any tart, I'd just leave it on the counter, out of the sun. It's delish for breakfast.
 
za'atar
za'atar July 4, 2013
The lime-strawberry combination works really well and I especially enjoyed the pastry. A keeper!
 
Midge
Midge July 12, 2013
Thank you za'atar! So glad you enjoyed it.