This is a great dessert for Summer’s end and for our Labor Day celebration. Enjoy this French apple tart or apple galette with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.
Prepare the pastry dough first. As it chills, you will prepare the apples. Then, lay out the apple slices onto the rolled out pastry – et voilà! You’re all done and ready to enjoy the party. But heck – if you don’t want to make the pastry, just buy it ready-made in your grocer’s freezer section.
Prep time: 15 minutes for pastry; 15-20 minutes for apples
Bake time: 35 to 40 minutes
Serves: 8 to 10
Ingredients for Pastry:
2 cups all-purpose, unbleached flour
1 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
2/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons cold, unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch thick squares
1/3 cup plus 1 to 2 tablespoons water (room temperature or cold)
Prepare the Pastry:
1. Measure flour, salt and sugar into a large mixing bowl.
2. Using a pastry cutter, cut in the butter squares until mixture is coarsely blended and particles resemble peas.
3. Sprinkle 1/3 cup water over flour-butter mixture and blend in.
4. Mixture should amalgamate (stick together). If it does not amalgamate, add 1 more tablespoon water.
5. If dough still does not amalgamate, add 1 more tablespoon water.
6. Gather pastry dough into a ball; seal it in plastic wrap.
7. Place the wrapped pastry dough in freezer for 10 minutes.
8. After 10 minutes, take the cold pastry dough and unwrap it.
Rolling Out the Pastry Dough:
1. Working on a flat, lightly-floured surface, flatten the pastry dough to a 6 to 8-inch circle.
2. Place the flattened dough between two floured waxed paper sheets measuring 16 inches long.
3. Using a rolling pin, gently begin rolling the dough out from its center. Use even, rolling motions so the dough will not be bumpy.
4. Every once in a while, unpeel the top waxed paper sheet and LIGHTLY FLOUR THE DOUGH; place waxed paper sheet over top of dough.
5. Quickly flip the dough over; peel off the top waxed paper sheet and LIGHTLY FLOUR OTHER SIDE OF DOUGH. Place waxed paper sheet over top of dough again.
6. Continue rolling out dough until it measures 15-inch circle (approximately).
Placing Pastry Dough on Baking Sheet:
1. Gently lift off the top waxed paper sheet from pastry dough.
2. With one hand underneath bottom waxed paper and dough and other hand over baking sheet, make a quick flip.
3. Gently lift off the remaining waxed paper sheet from pastry dough.
4. Using a fork, poke holes intermittently on entire pastry dough.
5. Working inside the pastry and one-inch from border, crimp the edges. This means, roll the edges inside and with your fingers, slightly curl/crimp the edges. Set aside.
Meanwhile, prepare the apples:
Ingredients for Apples:
4 medium-large apples, any variety (you can mix apples varieties, as well)
juice from 1 lemon or lime
½ cup granulated sugar
aluminum foil strips measuring 2 inches wide
Preparing Apples & Assembling the Galette:
1. Preheat oven to 425°F.
2. Peel apples and cut them into fourths.
3. Core the apples.
4. Crosswise, cut apples into ¼-inch thick slices.
5. Set the pointed, small end slices aside for another use.
6. As you slice the apples, place the slices that are uniform in size in a medium-large bowl.
7. Immediately sprinkle lemon or lime juice over apples and gently stir.
8. Next, working on the inside edge of pastry, make a concentric, overlapping circle of apples.
9. Continue assembling apples in concentric circles until you reach the center.
10. Fill the leftover, small space at center of dough with overlapping apple slices.
11. Sprinkle the sugar evenly over apples.
12. Cover the pastry edges with aluminum foil strips that measure 2 inches wide.
Bake the Apple Galette:
1. Set the baking sheet with galette on a rack positioned in center of oven.
2. Bake the galette for 30 minutes.
3. After 30 minutes, remove aluminum foil strips from tart edges.
4. Bake for an additional 5 minutes or until pastry edges are light golden brown. Remove galette from oven and transfer to a wooden board to cool slightly.
5. Gently slide a long, flat spatula underneath galette so that it loosens.
6. You can leave galette on baking sheet or slide it onto a serving platter
7. Serve Apple Galette with whipped cream, vanilla ice cream or gelato.
Recipe & Text ©2018 Nancy DeLucia Real
Nancy DeLucia Real is an art historian and chef. She has led culinary courses at the Italian Cultural Institute, The Getty Center and The Getty Villa and is a former member of the Culinary Historians of Southern California. Nancy's gastronomy training took place in the heart of Italy under the tutelage of her grandmother. She has taught international cuisine at Williams Sonoma and Sur la Table Stores. Nancy's art history & culinary courses are ongoing at various institutions. She also teaches private cooking classes. 
