Mixed Berry Galette

It seems like forever since I baked a galette. I love this rustic combination of pastry and fruit. And a dollop of whipped cream, of course! It's the perfect thing to serve on a summer day. And best of all, it doesn't have to be perfect!

I cheated by using puff pastry. You can certainly make your own dough if you prefer. But I'm a sucker for puff pastry and it saves so much time.

If puff pastry isn't your friend, you're not alone. I wrestled and fought the silly stuff until I realized that I wasn't letting it thaw long enough. It has a very precise window of opportunity. Force it when it's still frozen and it will crack and break. Wait too long and it will get too soft. Take it out of the freezer and let it rest, still folded, for 35-40 minutes. Do not try to unfold while it's thawing because it will break. After 35-40 minutes, unfold and work with it. For this galette, I rolled it out and it cooperated very nicely. If you're a perfectionist, you might want to trim the square corners. I didn't bother because I like that slightly uneven homemade look.

Do taste your berries so you'll know how heavy to go on sugar. I used 1/2 cup. My blueberries and blackberries were nicely sweet, but the raspberries were a bit sour.

Wash your berries the day before. If you wash them the day you make this, be sure to dry them on paper towels and you may want to add more corn starch. The galette will ooze a little juice in any event, certainly less after it has been refrigerated.

Mixed Berry Galette

1 sheet puff pastry
1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
2 cups mixed berries (blueberries, blackberries, raspberries)
1/2 cup sugar  (more or less depending on the sweetness of the berries)
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
1 egg yolk
1 teaspoon sugar for dusting

Allow your puff pastry to thaw for 35-40 minutes. Place on a sheet of parchment paper and roll out, making it a bit larger and so the "folds" are incorporated with the rest. Dust with 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch in the middle where the berries will go. Move to a baking tray.

Combine the berries in a bowl and add the sugar, 1 tablespoon cornstarch, and lemon juice. Toss lightly to coat. Pour the berries into the center of the puff pastry. Mound in the middle or spread a bit, as you like. Fold the edges of the puff pastry toward the center. Start with a corner and keep folding as you go around. Whisk the egg yolk very lightly and brush on the puff pastry. Sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of sugar.

Bake at 375 for 20-25 minutes or until the puff pastry is baked and has a golden hue.

Allow to rest for at least 10 minutes before cutting.

Serve plain, with whipped cream, or ice cream. It's even delicious cold!

Let puff pastry thaw.

Roll out.

Berries!

Add to the middle

Fold the dough.

Brush with egg yolk and sprinkle with sugar.

Fresh from the oven.

With a dollop of whipped cream.

Happy Memorial Day!

My father grew up in a country where people were afraid to speak their minds. They were even afraid of the neighbors. They never knew who might turn someone in for having an opinion against the government. Or just an unpopular opinion. He learned early on that he had to be careful what he said and to whom he spoke. Consequently, he was always amazed by the friendliness of Americans. He shushed me more than once for having the audacity to speak to a stranger, but I grew up in the United States, where I never felt the fear he knew too well.

When I see what's happening in the Middle East, I have to think of my dad and his caution. The horrid pictures of innocent people suffering unimaginable acts of cruelty remind me how much we have to be thankful for in the United States. The people who deserve our thanks for protecting our freedoms are the brave men and women of the armed forces and their families, who sacrifice so that we can live free.

We should say it every day, but especially on Memorial Day, we send our appreciation and thanks to you.

Happy Memorial Day from all of us at 

Mystery Lovers' Kitchen!

When I posted my mother's recipe for cookies made with cottage cheese, I started wondering if the same basic recipe would work in a galette. With that in mind, I bought cottage cheese and fresh berries. And then I saw Smitten Kitchen's brilliant red and blue galettes. Perfect for Memorial Day!

I switched things up, though, because while Smitten Kitchen used ricotta, I wanted to try the cottage cheese. I revisited my mom's recipe and adjusted the quantities accordingly. My version is also a step easier because I was lazy and used the food processor to make the dough. Seriously, putting in the ingredients and pulsing the dough took all of about seven minutes.

I was so impressed with the star shape that Smitten Kitchen made! Sheer genius! And really not all that hard to do. Instead of different colors, though, I mixed raspberries and blueberries. At Smitten Kitchen, they said not to worry about the juices running. So to save some of those yummy juices, I used my mother's strudel trick and crumbled up half a graham cracker over the middle where the berries would go. You don't even notice that graham cracker, but it helps keep the juices inside.

On top, I drizzled a little bit of lemon sugar icing to add the white of the stars in our flag. This is a super easy recipe. The only caveat (because I always forget!!!) is to move your dough to the baking sheet BEFORE filling it. 

Star Berry Galette

inspired by Marianne's Windmills and Smitten Kitchen's star galette

1/2 cup cottage cheese

1 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoons sugar

1 stick cold unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces (1/2 cup butter)

1/2 a graham cracker sheet 

2 cups berries (raspberries and blueberries)

3 to 4 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons cornstarch

half a lemon

pinch of salt

1 egg, whisked

coarse sugar (optional)

1/2 lemon

powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 400. Prepare a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.

Place cottage cheese, flour, salt, sugar, and COLD butter into food processor (use pastry blade if you have one) and pulse until it forms a ball. Wrap in wax paper and refrigerate for one hour.

Roll out the dough to about 15 inches. Trim the dough into the shape of a pentagon. Make a short slit in the middle of each of the long sides. Fold gently and MOVE DOUGH TO BAKING SHEET. Crumble the graham cracker as finely as you can over the middle of the dough.

In a bowl, mix the berries with the sugar, cornstarch, lemon juice, and salt. Pour the mixture in the middle of the prepared dough and spread to within 1 1/2 or 2 inches of the edge. Fold the first part of the dough (with a point) over the berries. Follow with the next point, adjusting the edges as you go so that the berries show in the shape of a star. Brush the dough with the egg. Sprinkle with coarse sugar.

Bake for 25-30 minutes, until golden brown.

When the galette has cooled, whisk the lemon and powdered sugar together into a drizzling consistency and drizzle over top.

Serve with ice cream, whipped cream, or gobble it plain!

Dump the ingredients in and pulse.

So quick to make in the food processor.

 

Trim into a pentagon and make a little slit in the long sides.

 

Pour the berries in the middle and spread.

Fold the points inward so that the berries are in the shape of a star.

Make Windmills with the scraps!

Stop here, or -

Add a lemon sugar drizzle!

 

I can't believe that we're only a week and a day away from the release of 

THE DIVA STEALS A CHOCOLATE KISS!

I'm giving away a copy today. Leave a comment to enter. 

And don't forget to leave your email address so I can notify you if you win!

Good luck!

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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