tomato galette

My sister Elles Belles went to a dinner party recently. The host, Christine, who in her words “is a beautiful cook”, put on a magnificent spread; she sent me a photo and boy did it look good. From memory there was a bean dish, a loaf of homemade bread and a few scrummy looking salads. The thing that really caught my eye though was the beetroot galette.

The galette, being the French term for a free form pastry tart really is a show stopper. I’d always wanted to try making one and gosh I’m glad that I did. I’ve become obsessed.

Not only are they absolutely delicious and easy to make, the rougher the pastry looks, the better. So there’s no faffing around trying to get the perfectly formed pastry shell. Served simply with a fresh green salad and some pesto, you couldn’t get a tastier and more impressive Springtime meal if you tried.

To understand the recipe, you basically need to look at the humble galette in a few parts. Break it down..

1. The pastry shell

Once you’ve got this mastered, you can make any number of types of galettes, from sweet to savoury and with whatever is in season.

I like making the dough (in literally a couple of minutes) in the food processor, but failing one of those, you can make it just as well, kneading together with your hands.

And my recipe states that you need a rolling pin to roll out the dough, but if you don’t have one of those handy – a wine bottle (full or empty) works just as well.

2. The creamy/cheesy spread

I’ve found that the best filling for the tart is a mixture of both cream cheese and feta and flavoured with garlic and fresh herbs of choice.

This is the type of dish though that you can really play around with and make your own.

You can use cottage cheese, goats cheese, feta or ricotta, or a mixture of them all. Always make sure that you season this well with salt and freshly cracked pepper.

3. The vegetable topping

Fresh and juicy tomatoes make for the perfect galette but you can use any number of ingredients depending on what’s in season. Think zucchini’s, squash, beetroot or even apples or pears. I’m showing off here using fresh oregano from my herb garden but by all means, you can use dried if you prefer. Thyme works really well as does parsley.

So all hail the humble galette. See for yourself what the fuss is about. It’s good, honest, unpretentious tucker at it’s best.

You really can find food inspiration, anywhere you look.

tomato galette

Best served piping hot straight from the oven with homemade pesto dappled over the top.

400 grams (or thereabouts) of fresh tomatoes, sliced
Fresh pesto, to serve (my pesto recipe is here)

For the pastry

225 grams of plain flour
A good pinch of salt
100 grams of cold butter, cubed
2 x eggs
1 x scant dessert spoon of cold water

For the topping

100 grams of feta cheese, crumbled
250 grams of cream cheese
1 x tablespoon of natural yoghurt
1 x garlic clove, crushed
Fresh oregano, chopped (use dried if need be)
Salt and freshly cracked pepper
1 x egg (for the egg wash)

• Start by placing your sliced tomatoes into a colander and sprinkle with salt. Place over a mixing bowl and let sit whilst you get cracking on making the pastry. (By salting the tomatoes, it draws the excess moisture out of them so that they don’t make the pastry soggy).

To make the pastry:

• Add the flour, salt and butter to the bowl of a food processor and pulse until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
• Add two eggs and pulse again until combined and until you have a nice, soft dough. NB: Add a spoonful of cold water if the mixture is dry.
• Shape into a disc shape and cover in cling wrap. Throw in the fridge for 20 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees and line a large baking sheet with baking paper.

• Meanwhile, add the feta, cream cheese, dollop of yoghurt, garlic, oregano and salt and pepper into a mixing bowl and stir to combine using a fork. (This can be a bit tricky if the cream cheese is straight from the fridge and I have to admit – I mix it with my hands sometimes).
• Take the pastry from the fridge and roll out to make a nice flat circle-ish shape, approximately 30 cm wide (sprinkling the bench with flour so that the pastry doesn’t stick).
• Now spread the cheesy mixture out over the pastry, leaving about 5cm or so around the edges.
• Take the tomatoes and lay out in a single layer and then fold the edges of the galette in and crimp it together.
• Brush with beaten egg.
• Bake in a moderate oven for approximately 30 minutes or until nicely golden brown on the sides and bottom.

Happy cooking. Happy eating.

If you make this galette, please leave a comment below letting me know what you think. xx