Almond Plum Mini Crostatas

This is a recipe I can’t wait to try. I haven’t seen any good-looking plums around lately, so I guess it will have to wait a while. But at the first sight of good plums I will be making this.

(recipe and photo courtesy of Have Cake will Travel. see original post here.)

Crust:

Nonstick cooking spray
1 1/4 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1/4 cup organic turbinado sugar or organic evaporated cane juice
Scant 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/4 cup neutral-flavored oil
Plain or vanilla-flavored vegan milk, as needed

Filling:

1/2 cup almond meal
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1/4 cup plus 1 heaping tablespoon organic turbinado sugar or organic evaporated cane juice, divided
1/2 teaspoon pure almond extract
2 teaspoons plain or vanilla-flavored vegan milk
14 ounces, or 4 medium quite firm plums, pitted and cut into thin wedges

To make the crust:

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Lightly coat 4 cups of a muffin top pan or 4 individual 4-inch pans with cooking spray.
2. Place the flour, sugar, and salt in a food processor. Process until no large sugar crystals remain, if using turbinado. Add the oil while pulsing to combine. Add just enough milk for the dough to stick together easily when pinched, 1 tablespoon at a time, as you hit the pulse button.
3. Form the dough into a ball, and divide it into 4 equal portions. Roll out each portion of dough into a circle measuring a generous 5 inches in diameter.
4. Transfer the disks of dough to the prepared cups. If the dough tears a little during the transfer, simply patch the holes with your fingers.
Note that if you aren’t in the mood to roll out the dough, you can simply press down each portion in the prepared pan(s).

To make the filling:

1. Place the almond meal, cornstarch, and 1⁄4 cup of the sugar in a food processor. Process until no large sugar crystals remain, if using turbinado. Add the extract and milk while pulsing to combine. Divide the filling among the 4 crusts, about 1 heaping tablespoon of filling per crostata.
2. Crumble it evenly on the bottom of each crust and press down a little.
3. Divide the plum wedges among the 4 crusts (one plum per crust, really), one pointy end of a wedge centered in the middle of the crust, and each wedge slightly overlapping the previous one. Carefully fold the crust overhang over the filling. Sprinkle each top with a scant teaspoon sugar.
4. Line the oven rack with aluminum foil or a baking sheet just in case the juice from the fruit should escape. Bake for 30 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown and the plums are tender. Carefully remove from the pan and transfer to a wire rack to cool, because the crostatas are at their best when fully cooled. They will also remain fresh and crisp when tightly wrapped and stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.

Makes 4 crostatas.

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