I had heard that freshly picked, sun-ripened blackberries were worth their weight in gold. Now I know why. Both tart and sweet, they have a perfume about them that far surpasses varieties bought in a store.

All summer I’ve been getting fresh berries from our local farmers’ market. They’ve been so juicy and delicious. So when a friend recently invited me to join her and her kids to go berry picking on a farm, I jumped at the opportunity. How fun; especially since my little one LOVES berries! I knew he’d have a blast, and that he did. Just as quickly as I could pick the berries, he ate them. Before long his little hands, mouth and t-shirt were stained with berry juice.

If you have a chance to go berry picking, go! Or, visit your local farmers’ market and take a few pints home to enjoy them. As they say, they are worth their weight in gold.
After our trip to the farm, I decided to try an easy to make at home dessert that has been “trending” in the food blogosphere this summer, le crumble. Fruit crumbles, a whole variety of them, are popular in the summer, and with good reason. Summer fruits make wonderful crumbles! Well, since I had never made a crumble before, I thought I should finally join in on the fun. And, to try something a little different, I made mine a crumble tart.

Blackberry and Raspberry Crumble Tart*
Adapted from David Lebovitz’s Apricot Crumble Tart in My Paris Kitchen

Dough
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2 large egg yolks
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
coconut oil or butter to coat pan

Crumble Topping
3/4 cup whole almonds
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoon unsalted butter, chilled

Filling
1 pound blackberries
1 pound raspberries
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 tablespoon potato starch (corn starch or tapioca starch will also do)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

To make the dough: Remove the butter from the refrigerator about 10 minutes before you plan to use it and let it soften slightly in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Add sugar and beat on medium. Add the egg yolks, then flour and salt. Mix until dough comes together.

Coat the bottom and sides of a 9″ or 10″ springform pan with coconut oil. Use your hands to press dough on the bottom of pan and about halfway up the sides, making it as even as possible. Put the pan in the freezer for 30 minutes.

To make the crumble topping: Pulse almonds, flour, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt in a food processor until the almond are broken to very small pieces. Add butter and pulse until your mixture resembles sand. If/when pieces start to clump together, stop pulsing.

Preheat oven to 375F

Line the chilled tart crust with aluminum foil and cover with a layer of pie weights or dried beans. Bake crust for 20 minutes. Remove foil and pie weights and bake for an additional 5-10 minutes, until tart shell is browned.

To make the filling: In a large bowl combine berries, sugar, starch, vanilla and lemon juice.

Evenly transfer the filling to the tart shell and evenly distribute crumble topping over the berries. Bake the tart until nicely browned, about 50 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack 5 minutes then run a sharp knife around the outside of the tart to separate it from the pan. Let rest for about 30 minutes then remove the sides of the springform pan and let the tart cool a little longer. Although the edges may appear dark, it should taste fine and not burnt. Serve at room temperature with or without a dollop of ice cream to top.

*Notes: I also tried a mixture of blackberries and apricots which was also quite good.