“We must have a pie. Stress cannot exist in the presence of a pie.”
— David Mamet
Baking a pie isn’t stress-free. Good bakers aren’t born, they are made and grow with every experience….bad experience that is. Good bakers are seasoned and conditioned slowly and tediously from negative experiences.
Lucky for us, Galette is a low-maintenance French pastry with all the class and pizzazz of a pie, but none of the stress. Also known as the Italian crostata, this piquant dessert is typically free-form and rustic, its dough is rolled out into a large circle and the edges are folded up around a fruit filling. It tastes sweet and savory and the moment your eye catches a glimpse of the vivacious and colorful fruit toppings, they flirt their way right to your hands. Resistance is futile.
While trying your darndest to actualize the “easy as a pie” in your kitchen, notice that the dough isn’t as thick as that of a pie and can’t contain layer after layer of fruits, so keep the fruit stack short and sweet. While there is plenty of room to personalize this recipe, take note that blueberries, with their naturally high pectin, are the ideal fruit for the galette and are preferred traditionally.
If you were born to break with tradition with ripe juicy fruits like strawberries, mangoes, and peaches, you may need to add a thickener like cornstarch, just so your crust stays crispy. Eat straight away. Leftovers don’t keep. This dessert is meant to be baked and devoured.
Our recipe not only features summer fruits but is also baked on a pizza stone to get an exceptionally dark rustic crust. The same recipe features a craft beer. To clarify we are not rolling out the dough with one hand while holding a beer in the other. We decided to materialize our love for craft beer and deliciousize ( I just made up that word) our baked goods beer’s wild flavors.
Montana’s own Raspberry Blonde Ale, from Big Sky Brewing Co, is our guest of honor for electrifying our galette for the ultimate treat for all foodies and craft beer enthusiasts.
The jury is still out on the exact amount of beer that actually made it into our mixing bowl.
Cheers.
