Sweet Cherry Galette

Name: Sweet Cherry Galette
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 50 min
Total time: 60 min
Ingredients: 3 1/2 C (500g) Pitted Bing Cherries ((about 1lb)); 1/3 C + 2 Tbs (90g) Packed Light Brown Sugar; 3 Tbs Organic Corn Starch; 1 tsp Almond Extract; 1 Lemon (zested); 2 tsp Lemon Juice; 1/4 tsp Fine Sea Salt; 1 Recipe of Single Crust Pastry for Coconut Oil Pie Crust* (Or use my butter, buttermilk pie dough - see note); Nut Milk of Choice (I use homemade cashew); 1-2 Tbs Turbinado Sugar

By Traci 33 Comments

A hint of lemon, almond and brown sugar bring out the season’s best in this rustic Sweet Cherry Galette. Use an all butter pastry, or go dairy free with a vegan pastry.

Pastry: a Work in Progress

Working with pastry will forever be a work in progress. Although the recipe may be the same each and every time, temperature control, creativity and patience, are factors that always seem to vary when working with it.

Knowing when the dough is too warm, too cold, or sticky or how long you can push for that golden color in the oven to get it dark, but not too dark, takes hands on experience.

This is why I crave working with pastry. The more I work with it, the more familiar it becomes.

Yet it challenges me.

It forces me to be patient, creative and to pay attention to what I’m doing in the moment.

Cherry Season

Since cherry season has arrived, I’ve been pitting and freezing them at a feverish pace. But for those that don’t make it to the freezer for now, I’ve been adding them to oatmeal, smoothie bowls, chia pudding, topping waffles and making and freezing plenty of fresh cherry limeade.

I hadn’t made a cherrie pie since last Thanksgiving when my dad requested it. It was the last of my frozen cherries from the previous summer’s stash. I was hesitant to give them up for pie. But he come to Whidbey all the way from Texas, so I made pie.

A Free Form Pie

This summer I’ve been making galettes because I’m feeling lazy lately and they’re beautiful anyway, in their own rustic right.

A galette is considered a rustic pie. It’s much simpler then a traditional pie in that its shape is free form. There’s no cutting, pinching, crimping, par baking and/or latticing. Simply roll out the dough, fill it, chill it, milk-wash the crust, sprinkle with sugar then bake.

Galettes are a perfect way to ease into pastry if it’s something that seems daunting. Or if one is simply feeling a little lazy.

Patience. Practice. Breathe…

Butter or Coconut Oil Pastry

For the galette pictured here, I opted for a coconut oil pastry. I find it easier to work with than an butter-buttermilk pastry simply because I don’t have to refrigerate it prior to rolling and it’s luxuriously pliable. Because of this, it comes together quicker and produces a just as flakey and delicious crust as its counterpart. Rob even gives it a thumbs up. Shocking (!!).

If you’re just starting out with pastry, this dough is a good one to ease into. But either pastry will do… even a store bought pastry in a pinch.

A Few Recipe Notes

For this recipe, my coconut oil pastry (pictured) or butter-buttermilk pastry can be used.
Because the bake is long, this galette can head to the oven as dinner is getting underway and be ready just in time for dessert.
Most importantly, enjoy this rustic pie warm with your favorite ice cream or give my vegan bourbon vanilla bean ice cream a go.

Sweet Cherry Galette topped with ice cream and several spoons digging in.

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5 from 5 votes