I've been spending my summer as a chef at Prairie Fruits Farm and Creamery in Champaign. I consider myself to be in pretty good shape, but by the end of my workweek, my 71-year-old butt is dragging! When I drive back home to Springfield after my last shift, I count on my two days off to rest up for the next week. The last thing I want to do is spend my recuperation time fussing in the kitchen.
However, my days off also are times to catch up with family and friends so on most weekends we have people over for wine and nibbles on our front porch. I try to keep the menu simple and usually bring back goat cheese from Prairie Fruits, but on a recent weekend, I came home to a glut of sweet corn generously gifted to us by farmer friends. We also had an abundance of summer squash, so I needed to develop a quick, easy dish utilizing goat cheese, corn and squash. My solution was a savory galette.
Galettes are essentially a rustic, lazy man's pie. They can be sweet or savory. Galette crusts are shaped free-form on a sheet pan rather than baked in a pie pan. While a traditional pie crust is pressed into the bottom and sides of a pie pan and decoratively crimped along the edges, a galette crust is rolled out flat, topped with filling, and then folded over onto itself in a round shape. No one wants to turn on the oven in hot weather, but a galette bakes for only 30 minutes. So at least the oven won't be on for long. The galette dough benefits from chilling in the refrigerator. It can be made a day before.
Savory galettes are blank canvases. The filling can be made with tomatoes, onions, peppers, eggplant, summer squash, corn, potatoes, mushrooms or even braising greens such as kale or collards. You are only limited by what's available and your imagination. The only requirement is that the filling components are precooked. Because of the relatively short baking time, raw vegetables may not cook fully or evenly. Many vegetables have a high water content, and precooking will release much of the liquid, preventing a soggy crust. Savory galettes are a good way to use up leftover cooked vegetables. You need about three cups' worth.
This galette uses a basic pie dough that bakes into a flaky crust. All that's needed is flour, butter, water and a little salt and pepper. It comes together so easily that I don't bother dirtying a food processor. I just use my hands. You need to avoid overmixing. If you overmix, the gluten in the flour will begin to develop, which results in a tough crust. When making this dough, the colder the ingredients, the better. I put my butter in the freezer well ahead of time so it's frozen solid. With cold butter, your pie crust will be light and flaky, because as the cold butter melts in the oven, it produces steam that creates flaky layers.
Corn, summer squash and goat cheese galette
Serves 6-8
Ingredients:
For the dough:
1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
¾ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 stick butter- frozen
Ice water
1 egg, beaten (for egg wash)
For the filling:
1 tablespoon neutral cooking oil
1 medium shallot, minced
1 medium summer squash or zucchini, sliced into ¼-inch rounds
½ teaspoon kosher salt, more if needed
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 cups fresh corn kernels, cut from 3-4 ears of corn
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves or 1 teaspoon dry thyme
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
8 ounces fresh goat cheese, room temperature
Preparation
Make the dough:
Well ahead of time, place a medium mixing bowl, box grater, and butter in your freezer to thoroughly chill.
When ready to make the dough, prepare some ice water. Combine the flour, salt and pepper in the chilled mixing bowl. Grate the frozen butter directly into the flour mixture through the large holes of the chilled box grater. Dipping your stick of butter into some extra flour will make it easier to grate.
With your hands, gently toss the grated butter in the flour until combined. The cold butter should end up the size of peas. Drizzle cup ice water into the mixture, stirring until the flour is evenly moistened. With your hands, gather the dough into a ball, transfer it to a floured work surface, and knead gently until it comes together. If the dough starts feeling warmer or the butter is melting, put it back in the fridge for 10 minutes to chill. Do not overwork. Form into a disc, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for at least one hour or overnight.
Make the filling:
Heat a large sauté pan over medium heat and add the oil. When shimmering, add the squash slices, season with half the salt and pepper, and cook, turning once, until the squash gives off some of its liquid and starts to soften – about four minutes. Transfer to a plate and set aside.
In the same pan, melt two tablespoons butter, stirring continuously. Add the shallots. After the butter foams and sizzles around the perimeter of the pan and turns golden brown, add the corn kernels, thyme and the rest of the salt and pepper, and continue stirring until the corn is hot, but not mushy. Remove from the heat.
Prepare the galette crust:
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. With a rolling pin on a lightly floured work surface, quickly roll the cold dough into a 14-inch circle. Carefully transfer to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Leaving a 1½-inch border, spread the Dijon mustard over the dough with the back of a spoon. Distribute the goat cheese evenly over the mustard, then top with the corn mixture. Level the corn with a spatula. Starting at the perimeter, arrange the squash slices in an inward spiral, overlapping slightly.
Fold the dough edges up over the vegetables to create a 1 ½-inch border. Brush the dough border with egg wash.
Bake the galette until the crust is golden brown, about 30 minutes.
Allow to cool. When ready to serve, cut into six or eight wedges.