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Sunday, September 22, 2013

Apple-Pear Galette

Penny in the fallen leaves.
   Yesterday I felt like it was officially Fall even if the calendar might say differently! Penny and I went out for a walk yesterday and I could smell the crisp smell of rain and fallen leaves. Penny was happy to stop and smell the fallen leaves as I snapped a couple of photos.

  When I made the cupcakes for my husband's birthday (on September 19, 2013). I did not know that Madison was going to come over to celebrate. Madison is my mother in law's next door neighbor's daughter and she is allergic to peanuts. She was happy to see me and the cupcakes but she was unable to enjoy what I baked on Thursday. I made a promise to Madison that I would make the Real Simple Magazine's Apple-Pear Galette either on Friday or Saturday. Well I made the Galette Saturday night (yesterday) starting at 10:40 pm and I put it in the oven around 12:07 am! So I did not lie!

  A Galette is a french cuisine term for flat, round or free form crusty cake. But it can also refer to a buckwheat crepe as I learned when I watched Aisha Tyler on "The Getaway." She went to Paris, France and she talked about getting a Galette in a crêperies. The process of making the type of crepes that she got looks pretty much how you fold the Galette. 

  I had no idea what a galette was until "The Getaway" with Aisha Tyler but I kept calling it "a thin pie." That pretty much is what this recipe tastes like a nice flaky thin pie. So if you have friends and family that are afraid of French food or pastry just call it your apple-pear thin pie. Whenever I tried to explain what the galette was it reminded me of this scene from Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Rick Bobby. So yes a Galette is a very thin flaky pie. My husband loves his thin apple-pear pie (Galette) and scrabbled egg pie (Quiche)!

     It is supposed to be a 20 minute hands on time but I peel and slice my fruit slowly. I also do a variation to my Apple-Pear Galette.  I really do enjoy making the dessert and it is a big hit! It has become my go to dessert to make when I want to do more than just a cookie. It also has that sort of rustic-elegant look to it. And the smell is amazing! It smells like fall in here! Also if you go apple picking and your apples are bruised you can use your "ugly apples" for this recipe. Since the apples are peeled then cut up you do not have to worry about the apples looking beautiful. I had a couple that were bruised but I just added one more apple and I cut around the bruises. No one will ever know or taste it since it will not be in the Galette!

  I tried this recipe with many Apricot preserves. At first I went with an expensive brand and it went over very well. But then I wanted to see if I could use different Apricot Preserves. I recommend getting the expensive preserves from France because even though expensive apparently it just tastes better! The Polaner's apparently is not as good or it just is not good. Bonne Maman is not crazy more expensive and the good thing is that they have lovely jars that you can reuse. The average size jar is about $5.00 so if you can get a coupon for the pie crusts or you make the pie crust from scratch to make up the difference. So think of it as getting a nice keepsake glass with the preserves. The Polaner's I do not like the preserve glass jars and they were the least tasty preserves. The Hero brand which is on sale often was said to be better than the Palmer's apricot preserves. Based on the many months of research my husband has endured the Americans have not perfected the Apricot Preserves.  Hero is Swiss and Bonne Maman is of course French. Thanks to Julia Childs and then Martha Stewart it is not too hard to find within a reasonable price range the Bonne Maman and other specialty items. I found the Bonne Maman at Stop and Shop which is a grocery store chain in CT, RI, MA and NJ. 

   My husband is currently working a double (he is working from 2:30 pm until 7:00 am) and I thought I would make something special for him.  I am also bringing some for: my grandmother-in-law, Madison and her family, Donna and Jan, and of course my mother in law. So I am getting a lot out of my Apple-Pear Galette recipe! This Galette is a PR agent of some sort!

  It was nice this Sunday afternoon to get in almost 9,000 steps walking errands (I try to get 10,000 steps a day) and get to talk to people. I have not really gotten a chance to hang out with Donna and Jan in a while. This apple-pear galette made it a nice chance to just take time out for people. I also walked to my mother in laws to chat with her, we ran a quick errand together and I also got to pet her three dogs! 


  As the story goes my in laws gave the apple-pear galette that I made for little Madison, my grandmother got her small apple-pear galette and my in-laws ate the first layer of the apple-pear galette. The second layer was suppose to be take to a sunday dinner for another family. However Maddie the dog must of thought that I made it for her because I kept talking about Madison and how I made the apple-pear galette for her. So Maddie had the second layer of Apple-Pear Galette! 

   This post was suppose to go the last week of September but the whole Miriam Carey situation made me unable to finish up the post. Instead I recovered and wrote this article instead.  

  Then I had to visit my parents where I made this Apple-Pear Galette. My second oldest brother had a bad Autistic day freaked out over the apple-pear galette! I was so glad I baked it before my husband and I ran off to Martha's Vineyard for the day! My second oldest brother did not like the fact there were pears in it and had a tantrum. I also had to make this with an ancient electric stove and it just was not the same. The pie still baked and it was not bad but it was not as flaky. There is a HUGE difference between gas and electric stoves! You just don't get the consistency of heat and the pastry does not come out as well! Something I had totally forgot about since I grew up with gas ovens and only occasionally baked with an electric stove. This stove of course also was new probably when I was an infant (ie early 1980s),  To GE I am sure there are better electric stoves now but this was not your finest creation! If you have a choice in your stove never, ever, ever buy or use an electric stove! 

  The late posting is related to the fact that  I needed distance from this post, I was away from a computer for over a week, and from the Apple-Pear Galette Meltdown! But this pie is worth the wait!

  I have three different variations of how to do the pie. The first is the standard large Apple-Pear Galette, The second is the personal size and the last variation is the medium sized apple pear Galette. I recommend serving the pie hot and à la mode! I think French Vanilla ice cream is best with it because it is extra rich and creamy! 



 Ingredients

  • ·         2  tablespoons  all-purpose flour
    ·         4  9-inch refrigerated pie crusts (this recipe for me uses 4 instead of 2 like in the original recipe)
    ·         1/4  cup plus 2 tablespoons  Bonne Maman apricot preserves (to start off but I go more by eye.)
    ·         4  Empire, Gala, or Cortland apples, peeled and sliced 1/4-inch thick
    ·         3  Bartlett pears, peeled and sliced 1/4 inch thick
    ·         3  tablespoons  fresh lemon juice (I use the real Lemon juice from a bottle)
    ·         1  teaspoon ground ginger (the original calls for fresh grated but I do not usually use ginger so that is a waste)
    ·         1  teaspoon ground cinnamon (I double the ground cinnamon)
    ·         3  tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon  granulated sugar
    ·         1  large egg, beaten


Instructions





  • In a large bowl combine:flour, lemon juice, ginger, cinnamon, and 3 tablespoons of the sugar.

  • Peel the apples and the pears. Cut into 1/4 inch slices

  • Toss the apples, pears in the mixture
  • Pre-heat the oven to 350° F.


  • Use a Jelly roll pan and line it with parchment paper (make sure to cover the whole pan because it gets mess). 

  • Take the two pie crusts out of the packages



  • Take the two pie crusts out of the packages Transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet. 




  • Overlap the two circles so that they overlap almost making an oval. 


  • Beat an egg with a fork. Brush on the egg with a pastry brush. Tip: I have one for wet and one for dry brushing. I recommend labeling them "for wet" and "For Dry." 




  • Spread 1/4 cup of the preserves on the crust, leaving a 2-inch border. Tip:I used a different Apricot Preserves than the Bonne Maman apricot preserves and my husband admitted it was not as good. So pick up the Bonne Maman Apricot Preserves!


  •  Transfer the apples/pear mixture to the crust, leaving a 2 inch border clear. Fold the edges of the crust over the fruit mixture.




  • Brush the egg on the crust and sprinkle with the remaining teaspoon of sugar. Bake until the crust is golden brown and the fruit is tender, 50 to 60 minutes.
Variation of the Large Galette: to make Personal Apple-Pear Galettes.


 

  • Take one Pre-made Pie crust and place on a jellyroll pan that has parchment paper covering the jellyroll pan. Cut it in half.

  • Brush on the egg that was beaten with a fork onto the pie crust.
  • Spread on the Apricot Preserves.



  • Add the apple-pear mixture but leave a border around the edges about an inch or less. 





  • Fold down the edges of the pie crust to fold over the fruit mixture. You should be left with what I call "The Apple-Pear Galette Smile" shape. 

  • Brush the egg on the crust and sprinkle with the remaining teaspoon of sugar. Bake until the crust is golden brown and the fruit is tender, 50 to 60 minutes. 


Variation of the Large Galette: to make medium sized Apple-Pear Galette


 
  • Take one Pre-made Pie crust and place on a jellyroll pan that has parchment paper covering the jellyroll pan. Brush on the egg that was beaten with a fork onto the pie crust.

  • Spread on the Apricot Preserves.

  • Transfer the apples/pear mixture to the crust, leaving a 2 inch border clear. 


  • Fold the edges of the crust over the fruit mixture.


  • Brush the egg on the crust and sprinkle with the remaining teaspoon of sugar. Bake until the crust is golden brown and the fruit is tender, 50 to 60 minutes.





After the Apple-Pear Galettes come out of the Oven finish the Galettes off with a glaze.





  • In a small saucepan, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of preserves and 1 tablespoon water over medium heat until liquid, 2 to 3 minutes. Brush on the fruit. Serve warm or at room temperature. Tip: I normally start this 5 minutes before the galette is due to be finished. This way the galette comes out of the oven you pour on the glaze and then you are closer to serving the dessert. Wait until the pie cools down a little bit before moving/cutting the dessert. 
The Final Result








Happy Fall! 

Nutritional Information

  • Per Serving
  • Calories 378Calories From Fat 35%
  • Fat 15g
  • Cholesterol 36mg
  • Carbohydrate 59g
  • Sodium 210mg
  • Fiber 3g
  • Sugar 27g

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