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A yummy winter galette recipe is below. You can serve it at brunch, lunch or dinner.
But first, some words about galettes (the term in Italian is crostata).
Galette (from the Norman word gale, meaning “flat cake“) is a French term for a flat pastry, usually round—i.e., a rustic pie.
The filling can be sweet or savory.
THE FIRST GALETTES
Galettes preceded pies.
Before pie pans became available and affordable, cooks would roll out a large circle of dough, placing the filling in the center. A large border of dough remained to fold up, the folded crust creating a border that keeps the filling in place.
There was and is only a bottom crust.
While the aim was to create a round shape, galettes could be less than a perfect circle but more free-form.
TYPES OF GALETTES
Modern galettes often use puff pastry as the base; but can also be made from a yeast dough like brioche, or a sweet pastry crust.
Different regions make pastries called “galette” that are different in concept; for example:
Galette bretonne (Breton galette), a buckwheat crêpe with a savory filling.
Galette des rois (King cake), is a puff pastry filled with a creamy almond filling, eaten in January for Epiphany. A variation is made in New Orleans for Mardi Gras.
Southern galettes are skillet biscuits (fry bread) served in the Deep South.
Canadian galettes are large, soft cookies.
Galettes campinoises (Kempense galetten) are a type of waffle cookie popular in Belgium: made in a waffle iron, round and crunchy.
Galette complète is a square buckwheat crêpe, often filled with ham, Gruyère and a fried egg. The four edges of the galette are folded up over the ingredients to leave only the egg visible in the center.
And there are other variations called galette, no doubt [source].
THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN GALETTES PIES & TARTS
We’ve just defined a galette: a free-form single-crust flat filled pastry made without a pie pan. Here’s how it differs from a:
Tart. A tart is defined by the pan in which it is baked (a.k.a., a tart pan). The pan can be circular, rectangular or square and is typically shallow; the edges are straight and usually fluted. The bottom should be removable. The single crust is thicker than a pie or galette, enabling it to be freestanding outside of the pan. The filling is firm and doesn’t run (think cheesecake and custard textures). Thus, unlike pies, tarts are usually served unmolded and freestanding; the filling doesn’t run.
Pie. A pie can have top and bottom crusts, or just a bottom crust (as in Key lime pie and pecan pie). The sides of a pie pan are sloped. A pie crust is crisp and flaky traditionally, and the fillings are semi-loose. Pies are cut and served straight from the dish in which they were baked. The crust and filling wouldn’t allow them to stand alone.
As with galettes, pies and tarts can be sweet or savory.
Here’s the difference between pies and tarts.
RECIPE: WINTER GALETTE WITH ARTICHOKES & MUSHROOMS
This recipe is a “winter galette” because it uses vegetables that are easily available in the cold weather months: artichoke hearts, leeks and portabello mushrooms.
With lots of vegetables, salty parmesan cheese and a flaky crust, you can serve it for brunch, as a light lunch with a salad, as a bite with wine or cocktails, or as a first course at dinner.
Thanks to DeLallo for the recipe.
Ingredients For 4-8 Servings
2 (12-ounce) jars marinated* artichoke hearts, drained
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 white onion‡, sliced
1 bay leaf
½ teaspoon salt
2 leeks, cleaned and chopped
½ pound pancetta, diced (substitutes below†)
8 ounces baby portabello mushrooms, sliced
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped
1/3 cup dry white wine
1 cup chicken stock
1 tablespoon flour
1 tablespoon butter
¾ cup grated parmesan cheese
¼ cup ricotta cheese
1 sheet puff pastry
1 egg, whisked
Preparation
1. PREHEAT the oven to 375°F. Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, bay leaf and salt and cook gently until the onion is soft and aromatic, about 10 minutes.
2. ADD the leeks and cook, stirring, for three more minutes. Then add the pancetta, garlic, mushrooms and thyme. Cook for 5 more minutes.
3. ADD the wine and allow the mixture to simmer for 3 minutes. Then add the stock and simmer for another 3 minutes to reduce the mixture. Stir in the artichokes and simmer for 10 minutes. Meanwhile…
4. MAKE a roux by melting the butter in a separate pan over medium-low heat. Add the flour and stir constantly for 3-5 minutes, until the mixture thickens. Add the roux to the artichoke mixture and cook for another 3-5 minutes, until it thickens slightly.
5. REMOVE the skillet from the heat and stir in the ricotta and parmesan. Set aside to cool slightly.
6. TAKE the puff pastry from the refrigerator. Flour your work surface and roll the dough to about 1/8-inch thick. Cut into a 9” circle or keep rectangular. Transfer to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
7. TOP the dough with the artichoke mixture, leaving a 3-inch border around the edges. Fold the edges of the dough over the filling. Brush the crust with the beaten egg.
8. BAKE the galette for 45-55 minutes or until the crust is golden. Allow it to cool for 5 minutes, then slice and serve.
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[1] Artichoke, portabello and leek galette. The recipe is below (photo © DeLallo).
[2] Another winter galette combines onions and apples. Here’s the recipe (photos #2 and #4 © Good Eggs).
[3] More winter galette: Here, beets and sweet potatoes. Here’s the recipe (photos #3 and #5 © Vermont Creamery).
[4] A summer galette; here, an individual-portion galette of zucchini and yellow squash.
[5] Another summer galette: heirloom tomatoes and goat cheese.
[6] Many galettes are filled with fruit (photo of cherry galette © Uliana Kopanytsia | Unsplash).
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