I’ll be including plenty of gorgeous Italian recipes in classes this fall, and one of them is inspired by the air in this high spot of Tuscany, part of the Apuan alps, which smells like dessert. Walking along the lanes, climbing the trails, even cycling to the beach with cars whizzing by, the amber aroma of figs envelops in wafts that make me dream.

I enlisted a helper, Lorenzo de Leo, to harvest figs along one of our trails. Fat, oozy with their honey and their sticky milk, we made short order of grabbing a few pounds, eating our fill along the way. When we got home, I turned them into this crostata which did them justice and then some.

Crostata is a typical Italian dessert, simple and rustic, filled with the true flavor of the ingredients, like so many Italian dishes. There is no fuss or bother, just a simple pastry filled with gorgeous fruit.  You can get more recipes for crostata in my book, Italian Farmhouse.

Try to get your hands on some figs – they are nature’s honeyball and generally in season through September in the northern hemisphere  – and make this crostata.

You can use any seasonal fruit to make crostata, but right now and for the next month, I encourage you to use figs.

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