Here’s a treat that’s showy but requires little to no special equipment or expertise to whip up. It’s a galette! This rustic French tart is the ideal way to make dessert with whatever seasonal fruit you have on hand. Whip up a simple dough, pile on the fruit, and fold over the crust into a rough pie shape. Bake until golden brown and it’s something everyone goes crazy for. Use the fruit of your choice, or you can even make a savory galette! Here’s how to do it.
What is a galette?
A galette is a rustic French tart: a round, flat freeform pie. A common form of the galette uses a single crust that’s piled with a seasonal fruit filling and folded up to form an edge. It’s rustic and unfussy: nothing precise about it! Galettes can have fruit fillings like strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, apples, pears, peaches, plums, or cherries. They can also be savory, with fillings like tomatoes, cheese, sauteed mushrooms, and more.
How to make a galette: basic steps
A galette is simple and fun to make at home. The key? The flaky buttery pastry crust that encases the filling. Once you’ve whipped it up, you’ll need to let it chill before assembling the pie. Here’s an outline of the basic steps for making a galette recipe:
Ingredients for a galette
A galette works with any type of seasonal fruit: and even frozen fruit works too. Our favorite galettes are this Peach Galette and Blueberry Galette, but you can use any of the fruits listed below with great results. You can also make the filling savory like in this Savory Tomato Galette, or turn it into a Mushroom Galette with sauteed mushrooms. Here’s what you’ll need for a galette recipe:
3 cups fruit like strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, apples, pears, peaches, plums, cherries (or go to Savory Galette). You can use fresh or frozen fruit. Tip: you may want to add a bit more sugar if using frozen fruit, since it often is not naturally as sweet as ripe fresh fruit.Granulated sugar and raw sugarLemon zestCornstarchCinnamonButter: For vegan, vegan butter works as a substitute! FlourSaltBaking powderEgg
Tips on working with galette dough
Galette pastry dough is very easy to work with: and you don’t need to shape it like you would for a pie. However, there are a few things to note about the method. Here’s what to keep in mind:
Spoon and level the flour, or weigh it in grams. The most accurate way to measure flour is weighing it! If you don’t have a food scale, do this: spoon the flour into the measuring cup, then level it with the back of the spoon. This provides a more accurate measurement: scooping flour right out of the container can result in more flour in a cup. Use a pastry cutter or fork to cut the butter into the dough. Mash the butter into the dry ingredients until a pebbly texture forms.Add just enough water for the dough to come together. Usually it takes us about 5 tablespoons, though this depends on the exact flour amount (again; grams is most accurate).Chill 1 hour. This is important so that the butter can chill again: otherwise, the crust can melt in the oven.Roll into a 12-inch circle on a floured surface. Pick up the dough and add more flour to the surface as necessary if it’s sticking.Add the topping, then gently fold it up to create a 2-inch crust. You’ll need to overlap the folds to make a circle: see the photos.Brush with an egg wash and sprinkle with sugar. An egg wash makes a nice golden sheen on the crust! If you have it, chunky turbinado sugar makes a nice crunch on the crust; but granulated sugar works too.
Galette recipes
Want specific recipes to make your galette recipe? Here are our favorite recipes: or, just make your own with any fruit using this recipe below.
Peach Galette: This seasonal tart stars juicy ripe peaches and browned butter filling encased in a flaky pastry crust.Blueberry Galette: Easy and irresistible, with a flaky crust and sweet tart berries.Savory Tomato Galette: A fun spin that’s like a quiche! It’s topped with juicy ripe tomatoes and a ricotta filling.Mushroom Galette: A hearty savory galette filled with cheese and sauteed mushrooms.Chocolate Cherry Galette: The combination of sweet tart cherries and dark chocolate is heaven. Rustic Apple Galette: An easy version of apple pie, starring apple slices and pomegranate.
This galette recipe is…
Vegetarian. For vegan, use vegan butter. 4.5 from 2 reviews
1 ½ cups [210 grams] all-purpose flour 1 tablespoon granulated sugar ¾ teaspoon kosher salt ¼ teaspoon baking powder 10 tablespoons cold unsalted butter (or vegan butter) 5 to 6 tablespoons cold water 1 egg, for the egg wash Turbinado sugar, for sprinkling
For the filling:
3 cups seasonal fruit (or make a Savory Galette) ½ cup granulated sugar (or more to taste*) ½ teaspoon lemon zest 1 tablespoon cornstarch ½ teaspoon cinnamon ⅛ teaspoon salt
