Double-crust Blackberry Tart and a Trip to the Farm

A couple weekends ago my family and I made a trip up to Moorpark to Underwood Family Farms. See, I’ve been dying to take A berry picking and I’d heard from several other families who’d been to Underwood that you could pick all kinds of things there. They have tomatoes, blackberries, strawberries, peaches, cucumbers, even pumpkins… all sorts of wonderful produce, all available for anyone to pick. Yes, there’s a fee to enter the farm and you have to pay for all the produce you pick, but boy was it a good time.

If you’re worried that your children will be bored, don’t be. This farm is seriously geared toward the kids. They have a train, tractor rides, bounce houses, face painting… hours of fun that can begin and end with picking your favorite fruits and vegetables, taking them home, and making something delicious.  Since all we picked that day were blackberries, I made a tart. And it was delicious. But even better than that, it was probably the healthiest tart I’ve ever made thanks to Andrew and his annual October Unprocessed.

Yes, I took the pledge again this year, and since I already had two pounds of blackberries that A and I picked by hand (which means they were definitely unprocessed), I thought I’d make a tart using the least amount of processed ingredients I could.  Bob’s Red Mill helped with that thanks to their unprocessed flours. That’s right, I said flours. Unlike other crusts I’ve made in the past, this crust was made with both pastry flour and cornmeal. The cornmeal gave the crust a nice crunch which only added to the luscious flavor of the tart as a whole.

But it was really those fresh-from-the-farm blackberries that made this tart one for the books. They were plump and sweet and tasted so good, even A couldn’t stop from popping those fresh-picked berries right into his mouth. The whole family had so much fun, and the tart was so yummy, I can’t wait to head back to Underwood for more picking. As a matter of fact, there’s only one regret I have in this whole experience: that we only picked enough berries for one nine-inch tart. Oh well. I guess that means we’ll just have to head back ASAP.

Double-crust Blackberry Tart

Ingredients:

• 1 cup butter
• 1-1/4 cups sugar
• 2 egg yolks
• 2-1/2 cups pastry flour
• 2/3 cup yellow cornmeal
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 pounds blackberries
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon Amaretto

Directions:

1. Sift together the pastry flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt in a small bowl and set aside.
2. Beat the butter and 3/4 cup of sugar together in a large bowl until smooth. Add the egg yolks one at a time. Gradually add the flour mixture and mix until well blended.
3. Divide the dough in half. Press one portion of dough into a well-greased 9-inch fluted tart pan with a removable rim. Place the other portion on a lightly floured piece of wax paper and roll out into a 10-inch circle. Slide the circle onto a baking sheet. Chill the dough and tart shell until firm, about 30 minutes.
4. Preheat the oven to 375°F.
5. While the dough chills, mix together the blackberries, 1/2 cup of sugar, flour, lemon juice and amaretto in a bowl. Lightly mash the blackberries and let sit for at least 10 minutes.
6. Scrape the berry mixture into the chilled tart shell and spread level. Invert the dough circle over the tart. Press the edges into the rim of the tart pan, making sure to pinch off any excess. Place the tart on an uninsulated baking sheet and bake for 35-40 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.