Italian Recipe Collection

Butter-Free and Egg-Free Crostata

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. To make the butter-free and egg-free crostata, first prepare the shortcrust pastry: add the cane sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, then add the water and grated lemon zest.
  2. Add the grated orange zest and fine salt. Run the mixer on low speed for one minute to combine, then pour in the vegetable oil.
  3. Add the flour and baking soda, mixing with the paddle attachment until a soft, smooth, and cohesive dough forms. Transfer the dough to a work surface, shape it into a flat disk, and wrap it tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
  4. Once chilled, roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface to a thickness of 4–5 mm (about 1/5 inch). Alternatively, roll it out between two sheets of parchment paper. Gently roll the pastry onto your rolling pin and unroll it over a 20x28 cm (approx. 8x11-inch) rectangular tart pan. Press gently with your fingers to adhere it to the base and fluted sides, then trim off any excess dough using a small paring knife.
  5. Fill the pastry crust with the raspberry jam, smoothing it out with the back of a spoon. Quickly gather and re-knead the leftover dough scraps, roll them out again to a thickness of 4–5 mm, and cut out strips approximately 1.5 cm (about ½-inch) wide. Arrange the pastry strips diagonally over the jam in a criss-cross pattern to create a lattice.
  6. Trim away any overlapping excess dough at the edges and bake in a preheated conventional oven at 180°C (350°F) for 30 minutes. Once baked, remove from the oven and allow it to cool completely in the pan. Your butter-free and egg-free crostata is ready to serve!