Medium
6 to 8
Published 2014
This is my favorite peach pie transformed into a galette. A galette is made with pie dough, but instead of making two discs of dough, the dough is rolled large enough so that it can be draped over the filling to become either a narrow border or an entire top crust. It is designed to work with a less deep filling than a pie and it is my preference because the balance of fruit to thin crisp pastry is perfectly pleasing to me. A galette works for most fruit, but especially well for peaches, which, compared with nectarines and apples, are a little softer and don’t hold up as well in a thicker layer. The combination of buttery crust and luscious peach slices is truly a slice of heaven. For a larger crowd, make two or, if you’re a seasoned pie baker, double the recipe and roll the dough to 24 inches to make one very large galette.
VOLUME | WEIGHT | ||
dough for a 12 to 14 inch galette, see Notes | . |
VOLUME | WEIGHT | ||
sugar | |||
fine sea salt | . | . | |
lemon juice, freshly squeezed | . | ||
unsalted butter | |||
cornstarch | . | ||
pure almond extract | . | . |
One 10 to 12 inch pizza pan, preferably dark metal, or a baking sheet | A baking stone or baking sheet
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Remove it from the heat and add the peaches. Allow them to blanch for 1 minute. Empty the peaches into a colander and run cold water over them. If the peaches are ripe, the skins will slip off.
In a large bowl, place the sugar and salt. Cut each peach in half. Remove the pits and slice the peaches ¼ inch thick. As you cut the slices, place them into the bowl, sprinkle with some of the lemon juice, and toss to coat them.
Let the peaches macerate for a minimum of 30 minutes or up to 1½ hours.
Transfer the peaches and their juices to a colander suspended over a bowl to capture the liquid. The mixture will release at least
Empty the peaches into a large bowl, pour the syrup over them, and toss gently. (Do not be concerned if the liquid hardens on contact with the peaches; it will dissolve during baking.) Add the cornstarch and almond extract and toss gently until all traces of the cornstarch have disappeared.
Remove the dough from the refrigerator. If necessary, let it sit for about 10 minutes, or until it is malleable enough to roll.
The dough needs to be rolled very thin, so if the room is at all warm (above 72°F/22°C), chill the counter with ice packs and dry it well before rolling. If the dough softens while rolling, slip it onto a flat baking sheet, cover, and refrigerate it until firm.
On a well-floured pastry cloth or between overlapping sheets of lightly floured plastic wrap (preferably freezer weight), roll the dough into a disc. Make it as thin as possible—a minimum of
Scrape the peach mixture onto the dough and spread it in a single layer about
Cover the galette loosely with plastic wrap and put it in the refrigerator for 1 hour or up to 3 hours before baking. This will maintain flakiness.
Forty-five minutes or longer before baking, set an oven rack at the lowest level and place the baking stone or baking sheet on it.
For a delightfully crunchy crust, spritz or brush the pastry all over with water and sprinkle with about 1 teaspoon of superfine sugar. Brush away any sugar that may fall on the pan.
Set the pan directly on the baking stone and
Cool on a wire rack for about 3 hours until warm or room temperature before serving.
Room temperature, 2 days; refrigerated, 4 days.
Copyright © 2014 by Cordon Rose, LLC. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.