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Created by Chef Remy
A free-form tart that forgives every wrinkle and fold, filled with bourbon-kissed blackberries that bubble into jam at the edges and hold their shape in the center, all wrapped in the flakiest butter pastry you'll ever make.
The galette is the most honest dessert I know. No fancy tart pan, no perfect crimping, no stress about whether your edges look like a magazine cover. You roll out your dough, pile on the fruit, fold up the sides however they want to go, and bake until everything turns golden and bubbling. That's it. My grandmother Evangeline would have called this a lazy pie, and she would have meant it as a compliment.
The secret to a great galette lives in your pastry. Cold butter, ice water, and restraint. You want to see pieces of butter in your dough because those pieces create steam in the oven, and steam creates flakes. Work the dough too much and you've made a cracker. At Lagniappe, we serve a version of this with whatever fruit the farmers bring us that morning, and I've watched it convert people who swore they couldn't bake.
Now, the bourbon isn't there to get you tipsy. It's there because alcohol evaporates faster than water, which means the filling thickens quicker and your bottom crust stays crisp. The flavor it leaves behind is warm and round, like vanilla's wilder cousin. Use something you'd actually drink. If it's not good enough for a glass, it's not good enough for your galette.
Blackberries and bourbon belong together the way crawfish and butter do. The berries bring that deep, almost wine-like sweetness with just enough tartness to keep things interesting. Fresh or frozen work equally well here, so don't let the season stop you. This is comfort food that looks impressive, tastes like summer, and forgives every imperfection you throw at it.
Quantity
1 1/4 cups (160g)
Quantity
1 tablespoon
Quantity
1/2 teaspoon
Quantity
8 tablespoons (1 stick/113g)
very cold and cubed
Quantity
4-6 tablespoons
Quantity
4 cups (about 1 1/4 pounds)
Quantity
1/2 cup (100g)
Quantity
2 tablespoons
Quantity
2 tablespoons
Quantity
1 tablespoon
Quantity
1/2 teaspoon
Quantity
pinch
Quantity
1
beaten with 1 tablespoon water
Quantity
2 tablespoons
for finishing
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| all-purpose flour | 1 1/4 cups (160g) |
| granulated sugar (for dough) | 1 tablespoon |
| fine sea salt | 1/2 teaspoon |
| unsalted buttervery cold and cubed | 8 tablespoons (1 stick/113g) |
| ice water | 4-6 tablespoons |
| fresh blackberries | 4 cups (about 1 1/4 pounds) |
| granulated sugar (for filling) | 1/2 cup (100g) |
| bourbon | 2 tablespoons |
| cornstarch | 2 tablespoons |
| fresh lemon juice | 1 tablespoon |
| vanilla extract | 1/2 teaspoon |
| fine sea salt (for filling) | pinch |
| large eggbeaten with 1 tablespoon water | 1 |
| turbinado sugarfor finishing | 2 tablespoons |
Whisk together the flour, one tablespoon sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Add the cold butter cubes and work them into the flour using a pastry cutter or your fingertips, pressing and smearing until you have a mix of pea-sized pieces and flattened shards. This takes about three minutes. You want to see the butter. Those visible pieces are your ticket to flaky pastry.
Drizzle four tablespoons of ice water over the flour mixture and toss with a fork until the dough starts to clump. Squeeze a handful: if it holds together, you're done. If it crumbles, add another tablespoon of water and toss again. The dough should look shaggy and rough, not smooth. Smooth means you've overworked it.
Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and gather it into a rough mound. Press it into a disk about one inch thick. Wrap tightly in plastic and refrigerate for at least one hour, or up to three days. This rest lets the gluten relax and the butter firm up again. Both make rolling easier and the finished crust more tender.
In a large bowl, gently toss the blackberries with half cup sugar, bourbon, cornstarch, lemon juice, vanilla, and a pinch of salt. Let this mixture sit while you roll out the dough, about fifteen minutes. The sugar will draw out some juice and the cornstarch will start dissolving. Taste a berry. The sweetness should be just slightly more than you want because it mellows during baking.
Remove dough from the refrigerator. If it's rock hard, let it warm for five minutes. On a floured sheet of parchment paper, roll the dough into a rough circle about twelve to fourteen inches across and an eighth inch thick. Don't fuss over perfect circles. This is a galette. Imperfection is the whole point. Transfer the parchment with dough onto a baking sheet.
Pile the blackberry filling onto the center of the dough, leaving a two to three inch border. Use a slotted spoon if the berries have released a lot of juice, saving that liquid for later. Fold the edges of the dough up and over the fruit, pleating as you go, leaving the center exposed. Each pleat should overlap the one before it. Press gently to seal the folds against themselves.
Brush the folded edges with egg wash, making sure to get into every crease. Sprinkle the turbinado sugar generously over the egg-washed pastry. The coarse crystals will catch the light and add crunch to every bite. Return the assembled galette to the refrigerator for fifteen minutes while your oven preheats. This final chill prevents the butter from melting before the structure sets.
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Bake the galette for 40 to 45 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through, until the crust is deeply golden brown and the filling is bubbling thickly in the center. The edges of the fruit may look jammy and caramelized. That's perfect. If the crust browns too quickly, tent loosely with foil.
Let the galette cool on the baking sheet for at least twenty minutes. This isn't optional. The filling needs time to set up or it will run like soup when you slice. Serve warm or at room temperature with vanilla ice cream or fresh whipped cream. If you saved that extra blackberry juice, drizzle it over the ice cream.
1 serving (about 120g)
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