Rustic Stone Fruit Galette

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Pastry blender or your hands
• •Rolling pin
• •Parchment paper
• •Rimmed baking sheet

Instructions

1. 1

   Make the dough

   Combine flour, one tablespoon sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Add the cold butter cubes and work them into the flour using your fingertips or a pastry blender. You want irregular pieces, some the size of peas, others like flattened oats. This unevenness creates flaky layers. Drizzle four tablespoons of ice water over the mixture and stir with a fork until the dough begins to clump. Add more water by the teaspoon if needed. The dough should hold together when you squeeze a handful but still look shaggy.

   Cold butter is everything. If your kitchen runs warm, freeze the cubes for ten minutes before starting.
2. 2

   Shape and chill

   Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and gather it into a rough mound. Press it into a flat disk about one inch thick. Do not knead. Wrap tightly in plastic and refrigerate for at least one hour. The dough needs this rest. Gluten relaxes, butter firms, and the pastry becomes workable without tearing.

3. 3

   Prepare the fruit

   While the dough chills, halve your stone fruit and remove the pits. Slice each half into wedges about half an inch thick. Place in a bowl and toss gently with two tablespoons of sugar, the cornstarch, vanilla, and a pinch of salt. Let this sit for fifteen minutes. The sugar will draw out juices that mingle with the cornstarch, thickening naturally during baking.

   Taste a slice before adding sugar. Perfectly ripe fruit at peak season may need less. Let the fruit guide you.
4. 4

   Roll the dough

   On a lightly floured sheet of parchment paper, roll the chilled dough into a rough circle about twelve inches across and an eighth inch thick. Do not worry about perfection. The irregular edges are part of its beauty. Slide the parchment with the dough onto a baking sheet.

5. 5

   Fill and fold

   Arrange the fruit slices in the center of the dough, leaving a two-inch border. Overlap them slightly, working in loose concentric circles or whatever pattern pleases you. Sprinkle the remaining tablespoon of sugar over the fruit. Fold the dough border up and over the edges of the filling, pleating as you go. Each fold should overlap the last. Press gently to seal. The center stays open, the fruit visible and proud.

   If the dough tears, press it back together. This is a forgiving pastry. Imperfect folds are authentic.
6. 6

   Finish and chill again

   Brush the exposed dough with egg wash, then sprinkle the turbinado sugar over the crust. The coarse crystals will catch the light and shatter between your teeth. Transfer the baking sheet to the refrigerator for fifteen minutes. This second chill firms the butter and prevents the dough from slumping in the oven.

7. 7

   Bake until golden

   Preheat your oven to 400F. Bake the galette for forty to forty-five minutes, rotating halfway through. The crust should be deep golden brown, almost caramelized at the edges. The fruit will slump slightly and bubble at the seams. If the edges darken too quickly, tent loosely with foil.

8. 8

   Cool and serve

   Let the galette cool on the baking sheet for at least twenty minutes. The juices need time to settle and thicken. Serve warm or at room temperature, sliced into wedges. A spoonful of cold crème fraîche alongside is welcome but not required. The fruit, when it is right, needs nothing else.

Chef Tips

• •The best galette dough has visible streaks of butter running through it. If your dough looks homogeneous, the butter has warmed too much. Chill it and try again.
• •Mixed stone fruit makes for a more interesting galette than a single variety. Three peaches, two plums, and a handful of apricots create layers of flavor and color.
• •Stone fruit season runs roughly June through September. In winter, make this galette with firm pears or apples, adding a pinch of warming spice if you like.
• •Do not pour off the juices that collect while the fruit macerates. They contain pectin and flavor. Everything goes into the galette.

Advance Preparation

• •The dough can be made up to three days ahead and refrigerated, or frozen for up to two months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before rolling.
• •An assembled, unbaked galette can be frozen on its baking sheet until solid, then wrapped and stored for up to one month. Bake directly from frozen, adding ten minutes to the baking time.
• •A baked galette is best the day it is made but keeps, loosely covered at room temperature, for two days. The crust softens but the flavor remains.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 150g)