Sweet cherries are one of my favorite summertime fruits and I take full advantage of the season each year it is here. It turns out that Washington State grows more sweet cherries than any other region in the nation. Here in my state, you will find varieties such as Lapins, Bings, Rainiers, Chelans, and many more. Cherry season is about three months long, which peaks in late June/early July, so this past weekend, aside from Fourth of July parades and barbecues, cherry picking was on the agenda.
After lots of ladder climbing and a few stained shirts and hands, I am now happily sitting on 12 pounds of fresh sweet cherries and lots of ideas swirling in my head as to how to enjoy them. Fresh is the obvious first choice; a pie is my second choice. But, instead of a traditional pie, I thought I’d make a rustic pie instead. My Sweet Cherry Galette is not only beautiful and rustic, it’s quite simple to make too. Juicy, plump red cherries are stuffed into a flaky, sweet pie dough that’s haphazardly folded and crimped at the edges to keep the cherries and their juices contained. The galette is baked on a sheet pan, rather than in a pie dish, allowing the crust to crisp and caramelize while it bakes. I like to serve this galette with vanilla ice cream, but it’s wonderful on its own too. One recipe serves 8 small pieces of galette (from about a 9-inch pie). If feeding a crowd, you may want to double the recipe and make two pies. This dessert will go quickly.
To make the galette, start by making and chilling the pie dough. Finely slice one stick (½ cup) of unsalted butter into thin shavings. Place the butter in a bowl and pop it into the freezer for 30 minutes. In a food processor, mix together 1⅓ cup of all-purpose flour, ½ teaspoon of salt and one tablespoon of granulated sugar. Next, add the frozen butter to the food processor and pulse until the butter is broken up into small pieces and well incorporated throughout the flour. Add 4-5 tablespoons of ice water to the flour and pulse until a dough starts to form. Dump the dough (it may be crumbling and that’s okay) out onto a counter that has been lined with plastic wrap, and using the sides of the plastic wrap, pull the rough dough together and into a disc. Completely wrap the dough and place in the refrigerator for two hours or overnight.
Prior to rolling out the dough, make the pie filling. Wash, pit and halve 3 heaping cups of fresh sweet cherries. Place the cherries in a bowl along with ¼ cup of granulated sugar, 1 teaspoon of almond extract, ¼ teaspoon of salt and 2 tablespoons of cornstarch. Stir until the ingredients are well mixed and you can no longer see the white from the cornstarch.
Place a large piece of parchment paper onto a hard surface, dust with flour and roll the pie dough out onto it and into a 12-inch circle. Slide the pie dough (including the parchment paper) onto a short-rimmed baking sheet. Sprinkle the center of the pie dough round with ½ tablespoon of semolina flour, leaving a 2-inch border free from flour. Scoop the cherry pie filling into the center of the pie dough and overtop of the semolina flour. Gently fold the edge of the galette in, crimping the edges as you work your way around the outer edge of the pie. Brush the edge of the galette with an egg wash (one egg whisked together with one tablespoon of cold water), then sprinkle both the edge and top of the galette with one tablespoon of coarse sugar. Bake the galette for 32-36 minutes at 400 deg F until the crust is golden brown and the cherries are hot and bubbly. Cool the galette on a wire rack completely before slicing and serving.
Sweet Cherry Galette
Ingredients
Pie Dough
- 1⅓ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tbsp granulated sugar
- ½ cup (one stick) very cold unsalted butter
- 4-5 tbsp ice water
Sweet Cherry Pie Filling
- 3 cups fresh sweet cherries (such as Bings)
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp almond extract
- 2 tbsp cornstarch
- ¼ tsp salt
Remaining Ingredients
- ½ tbsp semolina flour
- 1 egg
- 1 tbsp cold water
Instructions
- First, make the pie dough. Thinly slice ½ cup (one stick) of butter. Add shavings to a bowl and freeze for 30 minutes.
- To a food processor, add flour, salt and sugar and pulse to mix. Add the butter and pulse until the butter is broken up and well distributed throughout the flour. Add 4-5 tablespoons of ice water and pulse until the dough just comes together.
- Tip the course pie dough out onto a hard surface that has been lined with plastic wrap. Using the sides of the plastic wrap, pull the dough together and into a disc. Wrap the pie dough completely in plastic wrap and refrigerate the pie dough for 2 hours or overnight.
- When ready, make the cherry pie filling. Wash, pit and halve 3 heaping cups of fresh sweet cherries. Add to a bowl, along with the sugar, almond extract, cornstarch and salt. Stir to mix. Set aside.
- Place the cold pie dough onto a large piece of parchment paper that has been dusted in flour. Roll the dough out into a 12-inch diameter circle. Slide the pie dough (and parchment paper) onto a short-rimmed baking sheet. Dust the interior of the pie dough circle with semolina flour, leaving a 2-inch border around the pie round. Dump the cherry filling into the middle of the pie round and fold the border in on itself, crimping the edges as you work around the pie dough.
- Brush the edges of the galette with an egg wash (one egg whisked together with 1 tablespoon of cold water), then sprinkle the entire pie and edges with coarse sugar.
- Bake the galette at 400°F for 32-35 minutes or until golden brown and bubbly.
- Let cool on a wire rack completely before slicing and serving.
- This recipe makes one 9-inch galette, or 8 small slices.
