Blood Orange Marmalade Tartfeatured

I learned how to make this beautiful Blood Orange Marmalade Tart from Joyce Goldstein, who adapted it from a recipe she learned from the Trappist nuns at the Vineria Cozzi in Bergamo Alta, Italy. Originally called Crostata di Marmellata delle Suore Trappiste, the tart is filled with orange marmalade made by the nuns. In our version, blood oranges are used in place of regular oranges for their gorgeous color and flavor, “like an orange mixed with a rose,” as Joyce aptly described.

This tart has become a staple in my bag-of-baked-goods-tricks. Some of you may remember it from last year when I made it for the Online Bake Sale for Japan. With a certain romantic holiday around the corner, I thought now would be a good time to repost this dessert with step-by-step photos…just in case you wanted an alternative to the slew of red velvet hitting the waves.

This blushing tart starts with a blood orange marmalade. Since we’re working with a lot of zest, a peeler rather than a microplane or grater is used to remove the zest in big strips, which is then finely chopped. The oranges are segmented and then placed in a saucepan along with the chopped zest, sugar, lemon juice, and water. The mixture is brought to a boil, simmered for about 20 minutes until thickened, then cooled.

Meanwhile, the tart crust is made and chilled. Tip: I always roll out my pastry dough between two sheets of parchment paper to minimize sticking.

The cooled marmalade gets folded into a mixture of sugar, cornstarch, butter, and eggs. A splish splash of Grand Marnier keeps it high class.

The filling gets poured into the tart crust, and a lattice top is the crowning touch. If you’re really anal detail-oriented you could make a real woven lattice, but it’s not really necessary in this case. Plus, it could get messy fast since the filling is wet. My vote here is to just lay down the strips and get on with it.

And there you have it, a brazen tart for your Valentine.

*****

For more recipes that’ll be sure to land you some smooches, check out last year’s round up of 10 Valentine’s Day Recipes (bonus soundtrack included, because i <3 u!). [caption id="attachment_12342" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Blood Orange Marmalade Tart"] [/caption]

Blood Orange Marmalade Tart
Jam filled lattice-topped tarts are popular all over Italy. In Rome they prefer cherry jam. Some tarts are prepared with apricot or berry preserves. At the Vineria Cozzi in Bergamo Alta they serve a Crostata di Marmellata delle Suore Trappiste, filled with jam made by the Trappist nuns. This recipe takes a home made orange marmalade and binds it with eggs and cornstarch. Blood oranges, now available at our markets, would add their special perfume and color, to the tart.
— Recipe and notes courtesy of Joyce Goldstein, from Perfect Pairings.

Prep Time: 45 minutes
Cook Time: 50 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 35 minutes

Yield: 8 servings

Ingredients:
Pasta Frolla for two crusts:
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
pinch salt
4 to 6 tablespoons sugar
12 tablespoons chilled unsalted butter
3 to 5 tablespoons ice water, as needed

Filling:
3 large navel oranges or 5 to 6 blood oranges
1 1/3 cups sugar
juice of 1 lemon
1/2 cup water
3 tablespoons cornstarch
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
3 eggs
3 tablespoons Grand Marnier or other orange liqueur

Preparation:
For the Crust:

1. Put the flour and salt and sugar in the container of a food processor or mixing bowl. Cut in the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles cornmeal. Gradually beat in the ice water. Turn dough out onto work surface and form into 2 flattened discs, one slightly larger than the other. Wrap in plastic and chill for at least an hour.
2. Roll out the large disc between very lightly floured sheets of baker’s parchment until you have a circle that is 13 inches in diameter. Carefully ease it into a 9 inch pie plate or 10 inch tart tin with a removable bottom. Chill the crust.

For the filling:

1. Wash and dry the oranges. With a sharp peeler carefully remove all of the zest from all 3 oranges and chop finely. Separate the oranges into segments and put them in a medium saucepan along with the chopped zest, 1/3 cup sugar, the lemon juice and the water. Bring to a boil and simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring form time to time. Let the mixture cool to room temperature. The filling can be made a day ahead of time and left at room temperature.
2. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
3. Place remaining sugar in a mixing bowl with the cornstarch and mix with a fork. Add the butter and beat until smooth and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time. Fold in the cooled marmalade and the Grand Marnier.
4. Pour the filling into the pie crust. Roll out the remaining pastry between lightly floured sheets of baker’s parchment into a rectangle about 9 by 12 inches. Remove the top piece of parchment and cut into strips with a pastry wheel. Moisten the edge of the crust with a bit of water and then arrange the strips like a lattice on top of the filling.
5. Bake 10 minutes then reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F and continue to bake the tart for 30 to 40 minutes or until filling is set and crust is slightly colored.
6. Cool and serve with whipped cream.

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