A galette is a type of French pastry made with a rich, flaky crust, and traditionally served at Epiphany, on the 6th day of January. Many bakeries also offer galettes year round, in both savory and sweet incarnations. In general, a galette is rounded and flat, and it tends to be very crusty because of the type of pastry used to make it. A galette can be made at home with minimal effort.
Depending on the region and the chef, a galette may be made plain, but it is more usually filled with something. The traditional sweet filling includes almond paste mixed with eggs and slivers of orange peel. This filling is often used for an Epiphany galette, to which the cook also adds a small feve, or charm. The Epiphany galette is known in French as the galette des rois, or “King Cake,” and the consumer who gets the slice with the charm is crowned the king or queen.
Serves 8
Ingredients:
Dough:
All-purpose flour – 1 3/4 cups
Granulated sugar – 1/3 cup
Coarse cornmeal – 1/4 cup
Salt – 1/4 teaspoon
Cold butter – 1/2 cup; cut into small pieces
Fat-free buttermilk – 1/3 cup
Fruit Filling:
Plums – 10-12; stoned & chopped
Peaches – 3 cups; thinly sliced (about 3-4 large)
Granulated sugar – 1/2 cup
Light brown sugar – 1/4 cup
Ground cinnamon – 1 teaspoon
Pure vanilla extract – 1 teaspoon
Fresh minced ginger – 1 teaspoon
Cornstarch – 3 tablespoons
Egg white – 1
Fat-free milk – 2 tablespoons
Turbinado sugar – 1 tablespoon
To make the dough:
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Combine flour, sugar, cornmeal, and salt in a processor; pulse 2-3 times. Add butter and pulse 4-5 times, or until mixture resembles coarse meal. With the processor running, slowing pour the buttermilk through the chute, processing until the dough forms a ball.
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Remove the dough ball and adhere any remaining pieces of dough to it, then wrap in plastic wrap or parchment paper. Refrigerate for 30-35 minutes. (I did it for almost an hour because the weather was HOT)
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Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
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To make the fruit filling, combine all ingredients in a large bowl, and toss gently, making sure that the cornstarch is coating the fruit. (This will prevent too much juice from leaking out while the galette bakes.)
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Remove the dough from the refrigerator and place on a sheet of parchment paper. Starting at the center of the dough, roll out, forming a 14-15-inch wide circle.
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Place the dough with parchment paper on a baking sheet. Add the fruit mixture to the center of the dough, leaving a 2-inch border.
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Fold the border over the filling, overlapping where necessary and pressing gently to adhere the folds.
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Lightly whisk the egg white and milk in a small bowl. Brush dough with egg wash, and sprinkle with turbinado sugar.
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Bake for 1 hour, or until crust is golden brown and the filling is bubbly. Transfer the baking sheet to a wire rack to cool for at least 20 minutes. (Cutting it too quickly will cause the dough to crack).
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It’s best served at room temperature or slightly warm. Optional garnishes include vanilla ice cream, a dollop of creme fraiche, or freshly whipped cream.
Waiter There’s Something In My Picnic Basket…& it’s a scrumptious galette!
I did some more with the pastry…I nicked a bit of dough to experiment. You can see a sneak preview in the background below. Will post that in the next post…
