rhubarb, blackberry, & peach galette recipe
Soo I've been pretty terrible at this whole blogging gig recently, but what better way to get back into the swing of things than with a recipe. And a dessert recipe at that, because sweets.
It all started with an impulsive trip to whole foods which left me with two stalks of rhubarb.
When I think rhubarb, I think strawberry rhubarb pie. But sadly the idiom "easy as pie" is a big, fat, lie cause anyone who has made pie knows that it's quite a process. (Completely random tangent, according to wikipedia the phrase "easy as pie" actually refers to "easy as eating a pie" which also doesn't sound really easy unless you're Joey Tribbiani or that guy from Matilda, because holy smokes, that would be a lot of pie.)
Also, I didn't have a pie pan and didn't want to go out and buy one. That lead me to the more rustic, freestylin' cousin of the pie, the galette. Unfortunately, making a galette still requires making pie dough which isn't exactly my forte. Fortunately, reading a few tips and watching a few videos helped me conquer my dough making problems. If you're also pie dough challenged, here are links to some bits that I found helpful:
- 5 Steps to Master Perfect Pie Crust by the kitchn
- Easy Pie Crust Video on marthastewart.com
- Never Mess Up a Pie Crust Again on bonappetit.com
- The Galette Forgives You on nytimes.com
After the dough is made, it's smooth sailing from that point on. As far as fillings go, I wanted to veer away from the traditional rhubarb and strawberry combo. Rhubarb is supposedly good with all sorts of berries, hence the blackberries. And since I was working with two tart fruits, I added in the peaches to bring in some sweetness.
Overall, this isn't an overly sweet pastry-- it satisfies a craving for dessert without leaving you with a toothache. Plus, on the grand spectrum of desserts, it's definitely on the healthier end. The dough uses a minimal amount of sugar and most of the sweetness in the filling is thanks to the fruits.
This recipe makes an 8-10 inch round galette
Ingredients:
For the crust (from bon appétit's "basic tart dough recipe"):
- 1 cup all-purpose flour + more for surface
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 6 tablespoon cold, unsalted butter (straight outta the refrigerator)
- 1 large egg, beaten
For the filling:
Overall you'l need about 2 heaping cups of chopped fruit total. I used:
- 2 stalks rhubarb
- 1 6 oz. container of blackberries
- 2 white peaches
- 2 tablespoon sugar + extra according to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- pinch of salt
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
*Optional: 1 egg for an egg wash*
Directions:
1) Prepare the dough as directed by this basic tart dough recipe published by bon appétit.
* Remember to refrigerate your dough at least two hours before forming your galette.
2) Wash and then chop up your fruits.
* It's especially important to properly clean the rhubarb and remove any leaves as they are potentially poisonous.
* The smaller your pieces, the faster they will cook. While large pieces of rhubarb are visually appealing, they will also be more raw in the final product. Considering how tart rhubarb is, I chopped them up into relatively small pieces so they would become sufficiently soft and soak up some of the sweetness from the other fruits.
3) Toss your fruits in 1 tablespoon of sugar + 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon.
* 1 tablespoon is enough to macerate the fruit, but doesn't add much sweetness. If you want your filling to be sweeter, add more sugar, up to half a cup.
4) Let your fruits rest.
5) Pre-heat your oven to 400 degrees.
6) Remove your dough from the fridge to roll it out.
* Make sure to flour your surface before you start rolling out your dough.
* If you're like me and don't have a pastry board, you can just lay out plastic wrap or wax paper on a large, flat surface. This also makes for an easy clean up.
7) Transfer your rolled out dough to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
8) After your dough is rolled out and on the sheet, lightly place a 8-10 inch plate in the center to get the shape for the base of your galette.
9) Mix the 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour with 1 tablespoon sugar.
10) Sprinkle this mixture within the the imprinted circle; it'll help in soaking up the extra juices let out by your fruit and preventing the bottom of the galette from turning soggy.
11) Pour your fruit, juice and all, into the circle over the sugar + flour mixture.
12) Turn the edges up to complete your galette.
* Optional step: if you would like to do an egg wash, beat your egg, brush it onto the outer crust of the galette, and sprinkle with sugar.*
13) Bake for 30-40 minutes. When your galette is done, the crust should be a light brown color and the center filling should be bubbling.
14) Let cool, and then bon appétit!
