Serves: 4 –
6 as a main, 8 as appetizer
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| Vegetable Galette |
Galette is a French term that refers
to a variety of flat round cakes, usually made with flaky pastry dough of some
kind that can be sweet or savory. I love them. These “tarts” are not molded in
tart pans. Instead, filling is placed directly on top of a sheet of rolled out
pastry and the edges of that pastry are folded up and around the filling. The
tart becomes crisp during baking and the galette, as a whole, manages to be
both rustic and elegant at the same time. There are no galette rules or galette
police – so feel free to shape them however you want and fill with what is left
in your refrigerator. There are so many possibilities. I will share one today –
based on what is left in my refrigerator – and also give some suggestions for
other combinations.
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| A few veggies from my 'fridge. You can use whatever is in there! |
Today I was faced with a pile of
wonderful cherry tomatoes from the farmers market. And, though I said you could put anything
into your galette – one does have to be careful with wet things…like tomatoes.
Tart crusts need to stay dry. Hence, my dilemma. But this has never stopped me
from trying again, and I’m glad, because it led me to this rendition. Because
it is a mixture of vegetables, and not exclusively tomatoes, there is not as
much moisture fighting its way out. Cherry tomatoes are smaller and less wet
than say, big heirlooms, plus they were cooked a bit first, letting out some of
their juiciness and also concentrating their flavor in the pan.
For the pastry:
- 1¼ C all-purpose flour
- ¼ tsp salt
- 8 Tb (4 oz) cold butter, cut up & chilled
- ¼ C plain yogurt or sour cream
- 2 tsp fresh lemon juice
- ¼ C ice water
Filling:
- 1 Tb Extra-virgin olive oil
- ½ tsp salt
- Red pepper flakes
- 3 C cherry or grape tomatoes
- 1 small zucchini, diced
- 5-6 cremini mushrooms, quartered
- 1 ear corn, cut from cob
- 1 bundle scallions, thinly sliced
- ½ C grated Parmesan cheese (divided) and 1 tsp more for crust
- ½ caramelized onion – optional
- Glaze: 1 egg yolk beaten with 1 tsp water
- Coarse finishing salt
To make pastry dough: Whisk flour and salt in large bowl. Sprinkle the small cold butter cubes and using fingers or pastry blender – work the butter
into the flour until it looks like a coarse meal. Whisk yogurt, lemon juice and ice water in a small bowl. Add to the butter-flour mixture. With fingers or a wooden spoon, mix, rubbing
the butter cubes into the pastry dough so it looks like streaks of butter
scattered throughout the pastry. Once blended, form into a ball and refrigerate
for at least one hour and up to 2 days.
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| Early stage batter with butter chunks |
To make filling: Heat sauté pan with
olive oil, add cherry tomatoes, salt and
red pepper flakes in pan, close with tight lid, and heat on high. Shake pan
and allow tomatoes to roll around so they cook evenly and lightly brown. You
will hear the cherry tomatoes pop as they burst! When most have popped, decrease heat, remove
lid and add zucchini chunks and mushrooms. Sauté for 2-3 minutes. Add corn, sauté 1 minute. Add scallions, stir in and turn off heat.
Check seasoning, adding salt and pepper as desired. Add caramelized onions if desired. Pour into a large colander to allow
excess liquid to drain and filling to cool.
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| Cooking the cherry tomatoes until they POP. |
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| After adding all of the veggies |
Take dough out of refrigerator. Allow
it to warm slightly (few minutes) but just long enough so you can easily roll
it out into a 12” round. Put on parchment lined baking sheet. Leaving drained
liquid behind put tomatoes, zucchini, corn, and mushroom mixture with ¼ C Parmesan in center of dough.
Sprinkle the remainder of Parmesan on top. Roll up pastry edges, pleating to
make it fit and leaving the center open. Brush crust with egg yolk glaze. Sprinkle glaze with a small amount of Parmesan
cheese and coarse finishing salt.
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| 12 inch round dough |
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| Adding the veggies and folding the dough |
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| After glazing with egg and cooking, it looks like this! |
Preheat oven to 400-degree F. Bake in warmed oven for 30-40
minutes until puffed and golden. Let stand 5 minutes before serving. It is
wonderful served warm or room temperature. There are also so many other
possibilities to explore. For example try wild mushrooms and Stilton blue
cheese, or roasted butternut squash (love them!!) with sage and caramelized
onions. Just peek in your refrigerator; I am sure there are some amazing
possibilities. It begs for a big green salad and a glass of dry white wine and
frankly, so do I.
Bon Appetit!
Larue
