Easter Brunch Apple Danish

I am married to a wonderful man. I'm Christian. He's Jewish. Our family has celebrated both Easter and Passover for many years. Our combination of religions has made us see a bigger picture; we think God does, too. Our combo has also made me learn how to cook a variety of foods, including ham and brisket  (not together! LOL).  I can make waffles and potato latkes. I know how to prepare Charosos (pronounced: har-oh-sis, with a sort of guttural "h" at the beginning). It's made with apples, nuts, wine, and cinnamon (a requirement at a Seder dinner), and I know how to dip Easter eggs so the color is just right!  Vinegar to water balance is key.

I also know where NOT TO HIDE those Easter eggs so that you don't find them until the following year. [I actually make a list and keep count. Sometimes the adults are doing all the hunting in the end for the "missing" egg. Too funny.]

This year, after a Seder dinner on Friday, we're celebrating Easter on Sunday. We're having an egg hunt and I'm serving brunch, and I thought what could I do instead of waffles?

I saw a recipe for apple galette in a cheese course book that a girlfriend gave me, and thought, hmm, sounds like apple pie but looks so pretty and it's different. A galette  is basically a danish.


As many of you know, I need to eat gluten-free, so sometimes making pastry isn't all that easy. I've gone for the store-brand pre-made GF pie shell in the past, but this recipe called out to me (I have craved a good danish ever since I went off gluten), and I have to say I'm never going back to store-bought. It was so easy to make this "shell" and it tasted fabulously rich. The butter definitely made the difference. (Not good for the waistline, so good for the taste buds.)

Truly, making the pastry was easy. I used a food processor to mix up the dough. Huge help!  The dough held together. When it cooked, the dough crisped up perfectly. And the Gouda cheese made it...well, "not just gouda...great!"  (...to coin a phrase that fellow author Lorna Barrett coined for my first Cheese Shop Mystery.)

GLUTEN-FREE APPLE GALETTE WITH GOUDA

[This can be made with normal flour - sub out the rice flour and omit the Xanthan gum...that's all.]

Ingredients:

1 cup rice flour (or mixture of choice)

¼ teaspoon salt

1 stick (less half tablespoon) unsalted butter (cold)

3 Tablespoons ice cold water

1 pound apples (Granny Smith)

3-5 Tablespoons sugar (depending on your taste)

1 egg yolk whisked with 1 teaspoon water

4 ounces (1/2 pound) aged Gouda

Directions:

To make the dough: in a food processor, combine flour, salt, and half of the butter, diced into small bits. Pulse. Add the rest of the butter, diced into small bits. Pulse. The mixture should resemble small peas.

Move mixture to a bowl. Add the ice cold water and stir with a fork. You might need to knead the mixture with your fingers (sparingly) until it holds together. Form a ball. Pat it into a hamburger-patty sized flat round. Cover with waxed paper and set in refrigerator for an hour.

Meanwhile, pare the apples, quarter, core, and then cut into thin-thin slices. Also, make the egg yolk and water mixture. Set aside.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Remove the dough from the refrigerator. 


Set it on a gluten-free floured board. Cover with a fresh piece of wax paper. Roll it out to about a 12-inch round. If necessary, reach beneath the wax paper and pinch pieces of flour together so no cracks form. Remove the wax paper, slice off the jagged edge so you have a circle. Set the circle on a flat (round if you have it) baking pan. (I use my pizza pan.)

Layer the apples (about 2 ½ cups of slices) in the center of the galette, leaving about 2 inches of dough free. Sprinkle the apples with sugar. Gently fold up the edges of the galette, pinching together where necessary to prevent cracks in the dough. Brush the dough with the egg wash.  Set in the oven to bake for 30 minutes. [Check to make sure it doesn’t burn. This is a hot oven.]

Serve warm with shavings of aged Gouda on each portion.

So on this Easter, or Passover, or if you simply celebrate the newness of Spring, may you enjoy good health, hope, a happy vision of your future, and be inspired to love not only yourself but those who mean so much to you! New things are on the horizon!

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Say cheese!

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