Libation: Strawberry Tart (Italy)

I was doing a little pantry cleaning today and couldn’t think of a thing to do with the quart of strawberries in my fridge.  So I went to epicurious.com, searched for strawberry recipes and came across this one.  When I read the recipe all I could think about was the flats of beautiful fresh strawberries I saw in a market in Florence.  

In the tradition of true Italian cooking, this recipe uses a few simple ingredients.  I imagine you can use various fruits from berries to stone fruits to apples depending upon what’s in season (make do with what you have!).  it was so good and worthy of the title of Yummy Eats.

Italian Strawberry Tart

Makes 6 to 8 servings

1 1/2 cups flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

3/4 cup sugar

2 eggs

2 tablespoons whole milk

1 pint strawberries, hulled and cut in half, plus additional whole strawberries for garnish (optional)

fresh whipped cream (optional)

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a spring-form pan.  Mix together the flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon in a bowl.  In a separate bowl, beat the butter and the sugar. Add the eggs and milk. Add the dry ingredients to the egg mixture and stir by hand until just moistened. Do not overmix.   

Spread the mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan. Press strawberry halves deeply into the dough in a circular pattern of 2 or 3 rings. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Serve warm with whipped cream and strawberries, if desired.