Crostata di Marmellata di Fichi alla Marchigiana

Ingredients

• For the pasta frolla
• 300 g plain flour
• 100 g unsalted butter, cold, cut into small pieces
• 50 g lard, cold, cut into small pieces
• 120 g caster sugar
• 2 eggs, whole, lightly beaten
• 1 pinch ground cinnamon
• 1 pinch anise seed, lightly crushed
• 1 pinch fine salt
• For the fig conserva
• 800 g black figs, whole or cut into rough pieces, skins on
• 400 g caster sugar
• 1 lemon, juice only
• For the egg wash
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 tsp whole milk

Method

1. 1
   Make the fig conserva. Combine the figs, sugar, and lemon juice in a heavy pan. Cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until the mixture thickens and pieces of fig remain visible but the liquid has reduced to a heavy, coating consistency. The conserva is ready when a spoonful placed on a cold plate sets firmly and does not run.
2. 2
   Transfer the conserva to a bowl and allow it to cool to room temperature. It must be fully at room temperature before use — cold conserva tears the uncooked pastry when spread.
3. 3
   Make the pasta frolla. Place the flour, cinnamon, anise seed, and salt in a wide bowl. Add the cold butter and cold lard. Rub the fats into the flour with fingertips — working quickly so the fats remain cold — until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs with no large pieces of fat visible. This is where the dish lives or dies: warm fat produces a greasy rather than crumbly result, and over-working the dough once the egg is added develops gluten, making the pastry tough and difficult to roll. Stop the moment the dough comes together.
4. 4
   Add the beaten eggs to the breadcrumb mixture. Bring the dough together with minimal kneading — press and fold only until a cohesive mass forms. Shape into a flat disc, wrap, and refrigerate for 30 minutes. The dough is rested when it is firm enough to roll without tearing and holds a clean edge when cut.
5. 5
   Divide the rested dough: two-thirds for the base, one-third for the lattice. On a lightly floured surface, roll the larger piece to a round approximately 3–4 mm thick and large enough to line a 24 cm tart tin with sides. Lift carefully and press into the tin without stretching; trim the excess flush with the rim.
6. 6
   Spread the room-temperature fig conserva evenly over the pastry base in a layer of approximately 1 cm depth. The filling must be thick and hold its shape — a fluid jam will make the base soggy.
7. 7
   Roll the remaining dough to the same thickness. Cut strips 1.5–2 cm wide. Lay them diagonally across the tart in a grid, pressing each strip firmly at the edges to seal. Strips narrower than 1.5 cm will shrink to thin lines during baking. Refrigerate the assembled tart for 15 minutes.
8. 8
   Heat the oven to 180 °C. Whisk the egg yolk with the milk and brush over the lattice strips. Bake until the lattice is deep golden and the base, when tested at the edge with a thin skewer, feels fully cooked through with no raw dough resistance. Pale pastry is undercooked.
9. 9
   Allow the tart to cool completely in the tin before unmoulding. The tart improves after 24 hours at room temperature — the jam sets further and the pastry absorbs a small amount of fig moisture.