Rustic Apple Galette

Oh how I wish I had a piece of this apple deliciousness right now.  Most average week nights, after little K is finally asleep, I have a little bowl of ice cream as a treat to myself and a yay that I have a moment to just sit and relax. So of course tonight, I am completely out of ice cream and I am sitting here practically drooling looking at these apple galette pictures. A slice of this would certainly satisfy the massive sweet tooth craving that I have going on right now and would be way more exciting than my usual ice cream!  Hmm maybe a scoop of ice cream on top a slice of this, now we are talking :)  

If you are going to make this dessert or do any type of cooking with apples, I highly recommend getting on of these babies.  These peeler, corer, slicer thingies are an amazing time saver and definitely worth the approximate $20.  I'm not usually a big fan of single purpose kitchen tools but this one is well worth it.  It only took about 5 minutes to prep all six cups of apples for this recipe and I didn't even use the slicing option because I was in the mood for a diced apple this particular day.  Whether you decide to slice or dice is completely up to you and it only creates a slightly different texture when the apples get baked.    

 I was really hoping to slice this dessert for you but this is what kept happening while I was trying to take pictures and by the fifth time of moving little K back from the dessert, I decided the few shots I had of the galette as a whole would do.  Plus I took this over to my mom's and its not so easy to transport pre-sliced pie.  A galette is basically a free form pie; it has all the same elements, just no pie plate.  You could also probably call this a tart, but I'm not really sure if there is a technical difference between these terms.  Whatever you call it, you absolutely have to try it.  All of the steps are easy and it came together really fast too because I didn't even have to wait for the dough to chill, like most pie crust recipes call for.  Try using a variety of apples for a nice mix of sweet and tart.  Some apples, like Granny Smiths, hold their shape and texture more as they bake so try mixing a few of those with something sweeter and softer such as Macintoshs. The crumble topping is crunchy, buttery, sugary; the perfect compliment to the flaky dough and tender apple filling.  

I also wanted to share a few updated pictures of little K, since it has been a few months.  Here we are enjoying the afternoon sun on a lovely and warm autumn day.

 This is his first Halloween picture.  He has a bit of a turtle theme going on in his life, so his Auntie B found him this cute Squirt costume, from Finding Nemo.

He just turned 8 months old last Friday and I attempted his 8 month pictures but he really wanted to just climb right out of the gilder and do a face plant into the floor, so we are going to have to figure something else out.  In the meantime, here was his 7 month shot.

And here he is enjoying his first snow fall.  Well actually I'm not sure if he enjoyed it or not, he seemed fairly miffed about this whole snow thing, especially trying to crawl around in his fluffy snowsuit.  His first snow storm was a doozey.  We got over 12 inches of mostly heavy, wet white stuff.  That sure was fun to clean off the cars with this little man strapped to my back!  At least he was entertained :)

I hope you enjoy this recipe.  It would definitely be a wonderful addition to your holiday table this year!

Rustic Apple Galette

Galette Dough
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp salt
7 tbsp cold butter, diced
4-8 tbsp ice water

Combine the flour, sugar, and salt in a medium bowl and then cut the butter into the dry ingredients, using a pastry cutter or two knives, until the mixture looks crumbly and the butter pieces are the size of small peas.  Add the water one tablespoon at a time until the dough just barely comes together.  It will actually look more like wet sand and when you pinch a piece in your hand, it will hold together.  Set the dough aside while you make the apple filling and crumble topping.

Apple Filling
6 cups apples, peeled and sliced or diced
1/2 cup white sugar
1 tbsp cornstarch
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

Combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl and mix well.  Make sure the cornstarch is well distributed into the apples.  Whether you slice or dice the apples is your preference. The galette will have a slightly different texture depending on which you choose.  Set the apples aside while you mix the crumble.

Crumble Topping
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup oats
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup pecan or walnuts, chopped
3 tbsp melted butter

Combine all of the ingredients in a small bowl and mix well.  Set aside for assembly

Egg wash
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 tbsp water

To assemble the galette, roll the dough out on a piece of parchment or silicone mat into about a 14" circle.  Pile the apples onto the middle of the dough and arrange in a flat layer.  Leave about 2" of dough around all sides of the apples.  Carefully fold the dough edge up over the edge of the apples.  Brush the dough with egg wash and sprinkle the entire galette with the crumble topping.  Make sure to cover both the apples and part of the galette dough.  Slide a baking sheet under the parchment paper or silicone mat and bake at 350°F for 50-60 minutes.  Let the galette cool for at least 30 minutes before serving, but best if served at room temperature.  I would recommend using the parchment paper if you want to transfer this dessert to a plate for serving.  I couldn't transfer my galette off of the silicone mat in one easy movement, so I served it from there.

Enjoy!

Inspired by Kitchen Simplicity