P
Corsican
Imbrucciata — Open Brocciu Tart
Imbrucciata is Corsica's open-face brocciu tart — a shortcrust pastry case filled with fresh brocciu, eggs, caster-sugar, lemon or cédrat zest, and a splash of eau-de-vie, then baked at 170°C until the filling is just set and the pastry golden. It is structurally a simpler preparation than fiadone (which needs no pastry case) and closer to a conventional tart or tartlet, but the brocciu filling distinguishes it from any mainland French tart. The pastry case is a basic pâte brisée — plain-flour, lard or unsalted-butter, water, sea-mineral-salt — rolled thin and blind-baked before the filling is added. The blind-bake is essential: brocciu's high water content would make a soggy base without a pre-set pastry. Imbrucciata is the everyday version of fiadone — found in every Corsican boulangerie and pâtisserie, sold by the slice at room temperature, the standard afternoon pastry of the island.
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I
The Market List
The benchmark for each ingredient, and who stocks it near you. Tap a stockist to go straight to the product.
For the pâte brisée
200 g
plain flour
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
100 g
lard or unsalted butter
cold, cut into small pieces
Your own market
1 pinch
sea salt
Your own market
40 ml
cold water
added gradually
Your own market
For the filling
500 g
fresh brocciu
well-drained, minimum 48 hours
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
3
eggs
Your own market
80 g
caster sugar
Your own market
1
lemon or cédrat
zest only, finely grated
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
1 tbsp
eau-de-vie
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
Optional — pro finish
1 tbsp
brocciu passu
aged, finely grated; stirred into filling
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
II
The Method
1
Combine the flour and salt in a bowl. Rub in the cold lard or butter until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs with no large fat pieces remaining. Add cold water gradually, bringing the dough together with minimal working. Wrap and rest in a cool place for at least 30 minutes. The dough is ready when it holds cleanly without sticking and shows no elasticity when pressed.
2
Roll the rested pastry thin on a lightly floured surface and line a 24 cm tart tin. Trim the edges, prick the base with a fork, line with baking parchment, and fill with baking weights or dried pulses. Blind-bake at 170 °C until the pastry is set and the exposed rim is pale gold. Remove the weights and parchment; return the case to the oven for a further few minutes until the base is dry to the touch and very lightly coloured. This is where the dish lives or dies: a pastry case that is not fully pre-set will collapse to a sodden base under the weight and moisture of the brocciu filling.
3
Break the eggs into a bowl and whisk lightly with the caster sugar until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture is pale but not aerated. Work the well-drained brocciu through a sieve or break it down with a fork until smooth, then fold into the egg-sugar mixture. Add the lemon or cédrat zest and the eau-de-vie. If using, stir in the finely grated brocciu passu. The filling should be cohesive, lightly scented with citrus, and carry no pooling liquid — if water weeps from the brocciu as you work, pour it off.
From the canon — Brocciu passu is the aged form of brocciu — the same whey curd, salted and set aside for a minimum 21 days, during which a dry rind forms and the interior fi… Brocciu Passu — Aged Brocciu and Rind Development →
4
Pour the filling into the blind-baked pastry case and level the surface gently with a spatula. Bake at 170 °C until the filling is just set: the centre should tremble very slightly when the tin is moved but show no liquid motion, and the surface should be pale ivory with no cracking. Remove from the oven and allow to cool to room temperature in the tin before slicing.
5
Serve at room temperature. The filling should taste of clean brocciu dairy, lightly sweet, with a clear citrus-zest note and the faint warmth of eau-de-vie. Pastry provides the textural contrast. Refrigerator temperature suppresses the brocciu flavour; do not serve cold.
III
Quality Hierarchy
01
Reserve — Fresh brocciu from a single Corsican shepherd, drained 48 hours minimum; cédrat zest from the island; aged brocciu passu grated into the filling; lard-based pâte brisée.
02
Estate — AOC-labelled fresh brocciu, well-drained; unwaxed lemon zest; a sound Corsican eau-de-vie; butter-based pâte brisée made the same day.
03
Market — Fresh brocciu from a reputable affineur; standard unwaxed lemon; commercial eau-de-vie; good-quality unsalted butter in the pastry.
04
House — Fresh ricotta as a substitute where brocciu is unavailable; standard lemon; any neutral spirit; shop-bought shortcrust pastry case, blind-baked before filling.
IV
Sensory Tests
◇Sight. Pastry case is golden and dry before filling is added; no raw, pale or damp patches on the base.
◇Sight. Baked filling is pale ivory and set; centre trembles very slightly but shows no liquid motion; surface carries no cracks.
◇Touch. Pastry base is firm and crisp beneath the filling when a slice is lifted — not pliable or wet.
◇Smell. Warm tart carries a clean dairy note underpinned by citrus zest; no sour or watery off-note.
◇Where it lives or dies. The blind-bake is the one step the dish cannot survive without: brocciu's high water content will render any un-pre-set pastry base irreparably sodden.
Pillar V
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VI
What to Pour
The pairing
Buffalo Trace Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Buffalo Trace Distillery · Kentucky Bourbon Country
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
Whisky
From British Columbia
Wine
Without alcohol
GT's Synergy Organic Kombucha — Gingerade
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
Non-alcoholic
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The whole pairingPillar VII
Origin and lineage are part of membership.
Where the dish comes from and how it came to be — on every recipe.
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