Peach and Plum Galette

Oh how I love Fall and all that it brings, it’s probably my most favorite season.   Warm, sunny days and cool nights – being able to sleep with the windows wide open to let the cool air in.  The slow yet steady pace of the leaves eventually turning, the anticipation of the brilliant hues all around, the clean up and eventually putting the garden to bed, just so much to look forward to.  Fall conjures up images of pumpkins, gourds, scarecrows, fall fruit, like apples and peaches, the latter juicy and succulent.    I just love to bake when the weather outside is less humid and I can finally turn on the oven (and not suffer from heat exhaustion).  Of course I try saving dessert-making just for company or when our girls visit, but with the cooler nights and beautiful warm days, fruit baked pies and bars just scream out my name.  I did make raspberry and blueberry oatmeal squares last week so I thought I’d make a Peach and Plum Galette this week.  The peaches and plums were sitting in the fruit bowl for a few days just  waiting to be used.  

A galette is a French term that refers to a flat, free-form, open-faced round, cake, usually made with a flaky pastry dough of some kind.  It is rustic and bold, with pretty fall colors, yet can be pretty elegant if you wish to serve it at a dinner party.  I was not serving this to anyone fancy, so I did not go the extra mile to make it elaborate nor elegant.  The best part about galettes, is you can be pretty innovative, choosing to use savory or sweet ingredients.   You don’t have to flute the edges, you do not need to cover the top, nor make slits to let out the air…….when you’ve mixed up all the fruit and spices, you just plonk it onto the pastry, turn up the edges and  just let your imagination be your guide.  I decided to make a smaller version of this galette, but the ingredients below should serve about 6-8.

Ingredients for Pastry

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• Pinch of salt and sugar
• 3/4 cup cold butter, cut into small pieces
• 1/4 cup ice water or more
• or you can use store bought Puff Pastry if time is short 

Filling

• 3 large peaches, sliced but not peeled
• 2 plums sliced, but not peeled
• a handful of blueberries for color variation 
• ½ cup brown sugar
• ¼ tsp. ground cinnamon
• ¼ cup all-purpose flour
• 2 tbsp. cold butter diced
• 1/4 tsp ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp ground cardamom
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice

Topping

• 1 egg lightly beaten
• 2 tablespoons coarse sugar

For pastry, place flour, salt and sugar in large bowl. Mix together, Add butter and cut into flour with a pastry blender or your fingertips. Add water and toss mixture until moistened. Lightly knead into a ball. You will probably need an extra few tablespoons of water. You can do all this with a food processor if you have one.  Roll dough out on a floured surface to a 12 inch circle. Transfer to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

The peaches are tossed with flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, ground ginger, cardamom and lemon juice to coat well and centered onto the rolled circle of dough. You must remember to place the dough on parchment paper before adding the filling or you’ll never move it onto the baking sheet.  The dough is then centered onto the pastry to encase the filling. Fold the edges over the peach mixture overlapping as you go, leaving the centre open.  It is then brushed with an egg wash which will give it that nice sheen and will be golden brown when done.  A sprinkling of turbinado sugar and your galette is ready for the oven.  Bake in a pre-heated oven at 400deg F for 20 minutes.  Lower the temperature to 375 deg F for 30 minutes or until golden brown in color. 

Here’s the finished product, a golden brown galette oozing with the juices and syrup that have formed, it has a nice crisp, crunch to it, I’ve served it with a dollop of vanilla yogurt and skipped the ice cream, so now I do not feel quite so guilt-ridden :)). Welcome Fall! I’m trotting off to Angie’s Fiesta Friday # 33.  Thanks to our co-hosts Andrea  and Sylvia  for helping today, make sure you check out their food blogs.