I love having a stash of all sorts of food items squirreled away in my freezer. Not just any old things, but homemade edibles safely packed and put down for a chilly nap, to have on hand for any emergency, and to be woken up when needed. Different kinds of stock and soup, cookie dough, small batches of béchamel, meatballs and burger patties already formed, apportioned tubs of slow-cooked meat sauce, pie dough, and anything else homemade and freezable.
Oh the smug contentment of knowing you have these nourishing provisions at the ready! Set to be whipped out at a moment’s notice. Perhaps when you are too busy to get a proper dinner on, or you have sudden surprise visitors….or you are just in the mood for some pie.
Apple Galette
(pie dough recipe adapted from Dorie Greenspan’s Baking: From My Home to Yours as adapted by Cenk of Cafe Fernando, filling adapted from Cenk’s recipe)
For the pie dough:
For the filling:
– Pulse flour, sugar and salt in a food processor using a metal blade.
– Remove butter from freezer, add it in the processor, and pulse until it resembles a coarse meal. Do not over mix! The pieces don’t have to be uniform. Dorie says some can be the size of fat peas and some the size of barley.
– Add ice water little by little, pulsing once in between each addition, until the dough forms clumps and curds (I lessened the water from 1/2 cup to 1/3 due to the moisture already present in my air). Again, do not over mix! Chunks of butter in the dough are fine (yum!) 🙂
– Turn the dough out onto a work surface and very lightly and sparingly, knead just to incorporate dry ingredients.
– Divide the dough into two even balls. Flatten balls into disks and wrap individually in plastic.
– Refrigerate dough for at least an hour (at this point you can stash one disc in the freezer for future use if you are not going to use all the dough).
– Remove the dough from the refrigerator. Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough between two sheets of baking parchment (you can roll dough directly on a floured work surface or between two sheets of plastic wrap but parchment works best for me) into a rough 11-inch circle. When rolling, turn dough over frequently and lift the parchment so it doesn’t form creases. Trim the edges to form a clean circle (I didn’t, oops!).
– Place your flattened dough (covered in the parchment) back in the fridge for about 20 minutes to chill again.
– Remove dough from fridge, peel of top layer of parchment, and transfer the dough, on the bottom layer of parchment, to a sheet pan or pizza pan (I used one of those pizza pans with holes on the bottom).
– Mix 1/2 tablespoon of the cornstarch and 2 tablespoons of the sugar in a bowl and spread on the bottom of the dough.
– Toss apples with the rest of the cornstarch, sugar, lemon juice, and cinnamon.
– Arrange the fruit on the bottom of the dough, leaving 2 inches of dough left outside.
– Fold up and pleat the dough (as best you can) over the top of the fruit, leaving the center uncovered.
– Lightly brush the top of the pastry with the beaten egg and sprinkle both the dough and the fruit with sugar (I used Demerara sugar with large crystals).
– Place the galette in 400F oven and cook for 40-45 minutes until golden brown and bubbly.
– Remove from oven and transfer to a cooling rack immediately.
This isn’t a pie per se but a free-form tart, or galette if you want to sound cute and French (which I must admit I sometimes do). Unlike a pie you don’t need a special tin or even a top crust to make this. Just roll out the dough, nestle the fruits in the middle, pull up the edges (as neat or as messily as you want), and place on any flat baking pan. Pop in the oven and that’s that!
I have made this before using plums and nectarines and it is just as charming with apples, although of a different charm altogether. While the plums and nectarines were bright and tart and cheery, the cinnamon-perfumed apples are pure cozy comfort. I like both and I’d be hard-pressed to choose one over the other but I think it does say something that both C and my mom liked this one better.
I didn’t peel the apples when I made this as I thought it would add some color, and, truth be told, I was lazy. I do recommend you peel them though (and have indicated peeled apples in the recipe) as it can be a bit awkward when trying to cut your slice with a fork.
I used the Good For Almost Anything pie dough from Dorie Greenspan’s Baking: From My Home to Yours, as I did in the plum and nectarine version. I have typed out the recipe again here because this pie crust is truly so wonderful that I do believe it deserves repeating. For this galette I used some dough that had been sitting in the freezer for (the shame!) months. Aside from its old age, it was extremely hot in my kitchen making the dough too soft…I was sure it would be a disaster. But Dorie’s crust must be imbued with magical powers because from less than promising conditions it still emerged golden and flaky and absolutely delicious!
One batch of dough will give you enough for two galettes, so you can store one in the freezer for the future. And as far any homemade-goods-freezer-stash goes, this is definitely an excellent addition!
I just love having apple galette with a little vanilla ice cream. of late,I've been obsessing over baked-apple-anything.
Oh my goodness, that looks so heavenly. I love homemade frozen stuff and they're ready in minutes. Although not almost ready, I have some uncooked meatballs that have been shaped already. You know encouraged make this.
Oops, I meant, you now encouraged me to make this galette.
galettes are something so homey yet exquisite. i made savory ones this week but your apple version is beckoning me to come over!
That looks perfect, Joey! I can imagine serving it warm with a scoop of homemade vanilla ice cream. (Oh, and since mangoes are in season, I think it'd be great to use them to top galettes. ;))
Hi Jo! I too keep stock and burger patties in the freezer but never pie dough. Reason being I never had a trusty dough recipe! thanks for sharing Ms Greenspan's magical dough recipe! I am sure if you give it your blessing then it's good
oohh i love those apple goodness.
i always have frozen stuff but i'm notorious for not labelling them… so guess what? i get "freezer surprises" every once in awhile.
I always plan to have wonderful things at the ready in my freezer, but rarely get beyond stock.
Your galette is gorgeous, great job! I hope you and the little one are doing well!
I love galettes! Yours looks fantastic!
Cheers,
Rosa
Looks wonderful Joey. Perfect timing. I have loads of apples on the counter. I think I'll try mini galettes this time around.
Definitely think that apples are the way to go. Plums and nectarines don't sound good to me at all. Apples and cinnamon cannot be beat!
That is one beautiful galette. I need one now with a good cup of drip. Nice job.
Hi Purple Foodie! This would be fantastic with vanilla ice cream 🙂
Hi Divina! And now you’ve reminded me that I should make some meatballs! 🙂 Definitely great knowing you have good homemade food stashed away 🙂
Hi Meeta! You are welcome to some! And I must try savory galettes next time 🙂
Hi Midge! I really should have some ice cream the next time I make this! As for mangoes, although I love them to bits, I like them fresh and plain and chilled…I can’t seem to like them as much when baked!
Hi Trissa! I love this dough…this country does not foster the best environment for pastry making (it being hot and humid) but this dough seems to work well regardless of the weather! Let me know if you do give it a whirl 🙂
Hi Malou! Haha! I am sure they are good surprises though yes? 🙂
Hi Erin! We are doing great, thanks 🙂 Aside from stock, I really like having a stash of pie and cookie dough in the freezer…instant sweetness!
Hi Rosa! Thanks 🙂
Hi Cenk! Thank you 🙂 Mini galettes sound wonderful!
Hi Gary! You are in the same camp as my hubby and mom…although they did like the plum & nectarine version also, just not as much as this apple one 🙂
Hi Foodie! Thanks 🙂 And yes, definitely excellent with coffee!
you are amasing!!! you have a lil' one to take care of and still are able to make such a gorgeous pie!!!
Yum! I'd love to try this since I just bought some Fuji apples.
We will have some amazing apples soon (autumn is coming, finally!!). I will remember this recipe of yours!
I do think we use our freezer so very very wrongly as half of it is stashed with fishfood..! (my guy loves to go fishing and apparently those fishes need to be fed first..:)) This galette of yours looks gorgeous!
Well now, that's probably not a good thing for me — I'm always in the mood for pie 😉 Beautiful! And kinda season-appropriate, hehe 😉
Hi Gattina! Thank you 🙂 Having the pie dough ready in my freezer helped! 😉
Hi Alisa! Let me know if you do!
Hi Anh! Hope you give it a whirl 🙂 Sigh…it’s so hot here now, wish I had a little bit of autumn to go with my apples!
Hi Junglefrog! Hahaha! Fishfood? Well, I assume he brings his catch home so you can have fresh fish for dinner? That was it would all be worth it 🙂
Hi Manggy! I can imagine the desserts at your place…heaven! You always churn out the best sweets 🙂 Hmmm…whose season? Heehee 😉
That looks absolutely delicious! Will have to try it.
What wonderful blog, congratulations. Bring kisses from Brazil. Back often. Kisses. Carol
Hi Pippa! It is…we loved it 🙂
Hi Carol! Thanks for stopping by 🙂
I also use Dorie's recipe when I make apple pie 🙂
Whenever I bake, I try to make whole recipes then freeze the other half for future use. My husband complains that our fridge have lots of things in it. It is to his advantage since he has quite a few options to choose from whenever he is hungry 😉
this looks just lovely. I need to make one soon!
Your Apple Galette looks beautiful, I haven't made one in forever, you have inspired me. Funny, the first time I made a apple galette, I didn't peel the apples out of pure laziness and I agree, it's better to take the time and peel them, the overall texture is worth the few extra minutes. Great blog- I will be back!
That's a pretty awesome stash! And my that galette is GORGEOUS!
Hi Anne! I love this crust! And yes, I also like to freeze parts of recipes so I can whip them out easily at some future time 🙂
Hi Ash! Thank you 🙂 I hope you like it!
Hi Rhandi! Thank you for stopping by and for you nice comment 🙂 Yes, definitely worth the few extra minutes to peel them…that was the one thing both my mum and my hubs said could change!
Hi Ivonne! Thank you! 🙂
That looks like a perfect galette if I've ever seen one!!! I would love to have a slice ^_^
I always wish I could have more frozen food, unfortunately I have a small freezer that does not allow for that, but when I do freeze some pasta sauce or some chili I always feel a bit better knowing that I can reach comfort by just reheating them.
Hi Miss Ifi! Thank you 🙂 Any bit of homemade stash in the freezer is a comfort to have 🙂
A stunning galette.
Thanks MM! 🙂
That crust looks to die for!
Hi JS! It is to die for! Dorie Greenspan is a genius! 🙂
Hi JO! I'm a first time mom and an honest to goodness food lover. This is my first time reading your blog ever since I saw you on Yummy. I love to cook and bake but I don't always have the time. Although I am a stay-at-home mom, I don't have a nanny so the only time I can sneak out to the kitchen is if my son takes his nap and sometimes I'm just too tired to cook anymore.
I have baked a caramelized apple pie early this year and it turned out great except for the dough which was a little thick. For the pie dough recipe, what alternative can I use since I don't have a food processor or an electric mixer? I just use my hands and my trusty basic materials to bake my goodies.
Thanks!!
Hi Chicmom! Thank you for leaving a comment 🙂 I commend you taking care of your little one and try to cook at the same time…we all get tired now and then and deserve to put our feet up too! Dorie's pie dough is great! I'm sure it cam be made without gadgets, it may just take a little more elbow grease, but surely doable 🙂 Instead of using a food processor try "cutting" the butter into the flour mix with a pastry cutter or two knives until it resembles the crumbs Dorie describes. Then add the water as described until it forms a dough…after which you can turn out and the rest of the recipe is by hand 🙂 Hope this works!
Thanks for the reply JO! My little one may still be young but he isn't so "little" anymore. He just turned 15 months so he is currently in his "Oh! Everything looks so nice, I think I'll grab it, run away with it and throw it around somewhere" phase so I can't carry him with me while I cook just yet.
I will try your suggestion and hopefully it'll be great. Thanks again! I'll be reading more of your blog! =D