Little Strawberry Galettes
Get ready to make people happy! These Little Strawberry Galettes are pure joy and so seasonally right!
I’m thinking maybe July 4th dessert (if you want the red white and blue thing you could always toss in a few blueberries) but really anytime you make them this summer, these mini pies are guaranteed to be a hit!
Also, if you’re a wee bit pie making-phobic, you will love the very forgiving rustic nature of these. No crimping or fancy edges required!
And the dough gets mixed in the food processor. Easy-peasy and done!
Then you simply roll it out
Trim the edges to neaten things up
And cut into squares.
The filling is super easy too— just berries mixed with a little butter and sugar and salt.
You’ll love the no-stress way you just fold the dough over the berry mixture.
Then comes the hard part—these have to chill in the freezer for at least 20 minutes before baking but the agony of waiting is so worth it!
The pastry is flaky and buttery and the slightly sweetened strawberries add just the right balance of taste, texture and color. When you first take them out of the oven the filling will most likely have oozed out a bit as you can see from above, but who cares when these are so darn delicious!!!
Just like something you’d get in the French countryside!
C’mon, whats better than your own individual dessert? Maybe having 2?!! Lol! Try these lovely little treats and have a wonderful holiday weekend!!
Little Strawberry Galettes
Makes about 12
Prep Time for crust: 10 minutes, plus at least 1 hour chilling time; Prep Time for filling:15 minutes; Assembly Time: 20 minutes, plus chilling time; Bake Time: 30-35 minutes
Ingredients
For the pastry dough
2 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
¼ cup sugar
½ teaspoon baking powder
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cubed
¼ cup water
For the filling
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 generous cups halved fresh strawberries
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
2 egg yolks
2 tablespoons heavy cream
Pinch of kosher salt
Demerara sugar for sprinkling on tops of galettes
The Recipe
1. For the pastry dough: Add the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt to the large bowl of a food processor and pulse to blend. Add the chilled butter and pulse a few times until you see pea-sized clumps of butter. Pour the water over the dough and pulse 3-4 times, just until the dough starts to come together. It should still be shaggy and crumbly.
2. Dump the dough onto a clean work surface or board and use the heel of your hand to press down against the dough and bring it all together. Toss and squeeze the dough together to gather any loose bits and to redistribute the water. Repeat the process with the heel of your hand a couple more times until the dough really holds together but be careful not to overwork it—you still want to be able to see the bits of butter throughout.
3. Press the dough into a ¾-inch disk and wrap tightly in plastic. Chill for at least 1 hour and up to 24. When you are ready to use the dough, if you’ve let it chill longer than an hour, you’re likely to need to let it sit out to soften up a bit so that you can work with it but make sure it doesn’t get too soft or it will be hard to work with.
4. To make the filling: Melt the butter and toss it with the strawberries. Set aside.
5. In a separate bowl, mix the brown sugar, granulated sugar and salt together and set aside.
6. Beat the egg yolks, with the cream and salt to make an egg wash and set aside.
6. To assemble the tarts: Line two rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. Lightly flour your board and use a rolling pin roll the dough to a 14-inch square, about ⅛-inch thick. Use a ruler to help trim the edges to make them even and slice the dough into nine 4-inch squares. Transfer the squares to the prepared pans, spacing them apart as evenly as possible. Press the scraps together and re-roll into squares (I got 12 but you may get less).
7. Toss the sugar mixture with the strawberry mixture and evenly divide between the dough squares, piling it into the centers, leaving a 1-inch border all around. Use a pastry brush to brush the egg wash all around the borders and then fold up the dough around the berries, pressing down to seal where it comes together. You can try to fold it like a picture frame but really these are rustic and it doesn’t matter as long as you fold up the sides and press together the creases. Place the trays in the freezer for at least 20 minutes (if you can’t fit both trays in at the same time, place 1 in the freezer, 1 in the fridge and then freeze the second tray while the first tray is baking)
8. Preheat oven to 375ºF. When ready to bake, brush the top edges of the dough with the egg wash and sprinkle with the demerara sugar. Bake 1 sheet at a time for 30-35 minutes, until the crust is a deep golden brown. Let the galettes cool a few minutes on the baking sheet on a wire rack and then use a spatula to transfer directly to the rack to help keep the bottoms from getting soggy. These are best on the day they’re made but pretty darn good reheated even a few days later. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge.
Enjoy!
Note: Recipe adapted from Huckleberry by Zoe Nathan. I used more berries, added demerara sugar to the tops of the galettes and tinkered with some of the techniques as well.
