AMA: Galette! Edition
Some answers you can find in the cookbook, but with more commentary.
Are you enjoying Galette! month on the newsletter (exhibit a, b)? Hope to see folks at my upcoming events at Watchung Booksellers in Montclair NJ (this Thursday 7/10), and Downtime Bakery in Philly (this Sunday 7/13)!
To celebrate the book being out in the world—and perhaps encourage some folks who have not yet picked up a copy of the book to do so—I’m sharing a little Q&A, with questions asked by folks on social media. While I’m proud to say my book does answer all of below in some form or another, this is just a taste of what you’ll get. Sound off with more questions in the comments if you have one!
For hyper-specificity (all of which I would have included in Galette! if that wouldn’t have made it a thesis as opposed to a cookbook), let’s get into the floury, buttery details.
Q: Best butter for galettes?
A: I’ve tested galette crusts with many (many!) brands and styles of butter. While I genuinely don’t want to play favorites—because any butter will make a great galette—there are some factors to keep in mind. In the US, you should be able to find both American- and European-style butters. American butters are around 80% butterfat, while European has at least 82%. This means American butter has a higher water content, so it will be firmer than European when cold, and stay so for longer out of the refrigerator. This can make galette dough easier to work with for beginners who may take longer to put it together. Extra fat in European-style butters make dough with a softer texture, which can be more challenging to work with (mitigate this by freezing the cubed butter for 10 minutes before incorporating it into the dough). That said, the additional fat in makes an extra-rich crust.
Q: Should you always macerate the fruit before adding it to galette filling? If yes, what do I do with the liquid?
A: Formally, maceration means to soften and season an ingredient (usually fruit) in liquid; in the context of baking, it often involves sugaring the fruit and letting that draw out the fruit’s juices. While you don’t have to macerate fruit for a galette, it can be helpful to do so for very firm fruit (like apples, pears, or underripe peaches or plums) to encourage additional softening, drizzle some of those maceration juices over the filling just before putting the galette in the oven to keep it moist as it bakes. It can also be helpful to macerate very juicy fruit like berries to draw out some of their excess moisture that could leach out of the galette crust as it’s baking—in that instance, use a slotted spoon to scoop the fruit, and not the excess liquid, into the filling. Most of the straightforward fruit galette fillings in my book pair fruit with sugar, acid (like vinegar or citrus juice), and salt, letting the mixture sit for a speedy maceration of sorts while rolling out the crust. From there, based on the fruit’s texture some recipes recommend leaving excess juices in the bowl, while others call for everything to be included in the crust.
Q: Why does everyone say 1 cup of flour equals a different amount in grams?? Girl so confusing lol
A: It *is* confusing! You’ve probably seen everything from 120 to 150 grams—and that is quite a big discrepancy. Because everyone scoops flour into a measuring cup differently (either really packing it into the cup or extremely lightly sprinkling it in), how much flour is physically in the cup changes. Therefore, it’s challenging to put an exact number on the “correct” weight. Personally, I was taught to measure flour into a measuring cup by spooning the flour into the measuring cup, then using a straightedge to lop any extra. That yields about 125 grams, and that’s what I based my conversions on in the book. All that said, if you just use a scale to weigh ingredients instead of measuring volume with cups when baking, there’s no need to worry about this at all.
Q: Tips for rolling the dough into a nice even-ish circle?
A: While I don’t think you should worry too much about getting a perfect circle, a relatively even one is certainly a helpful way to neatly enclose the filling/worry less about it spilling out as the galette bakes. The best way to do this is to press the dough into as even a circle as you can while wrapping it in plastic, before chilling it. Loosely wrap the chunk of dough, then gently press it into a flat round. After the dough has chilled, roll it out evenly by positioning your rolling pin in the center of the round, rolling out to the edge, then turning the dough and repeating. For those who simply cannot handle anything less than perfection, once you’ve rolled the dough into a rough circle, you can place a large plate over the dough, then trace the round outline with a paring knife. But still: Don’t feel limited by the circle! Roll your galette into a rectangle, square, oval, or whatever shape delights you.
Do you have a sourdough galette crust recipe?
A: Not in this book! But I am working on an adapted version to excerpt on The Perfect Loaf, where I regularly contribute sourdough recipes.
Q: Any tips on making galettes in a humid area (e.g. Southeast Asia)? My crusts kept failing.
A: While I have not personally baked in Southeast Asia, I am familiar with humidity! While I don’t know exactly how this questioner’s doughs have failed, I imagine that because of the extra moisture in the air, the dough was too hydrated and the crust turned out tough. The best way to avoid this is to hold back on the water content, probably significantly, in the dough. My recipe for A Good Crust calls for 1/2 cup (115g) water and 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar—I do recommend everyone, wherever they’re baking, start by incorporating just half of this mixture in order to avoid accidentally over-hydrating the dough. If baking in a very humid environment, you may not need more than 1/4 cup (58g) liquid to bring the dough together.
Q: Best way to prevent cracks and leaks in what seems like a sturdy galette pre-bake?
A: As you roll out the dough, should you notice any cracks, press them together before adding filling. You can even trim a piece of dough from the edge and press that on top of a crack to make extra-sure it’s filled. Also, since galettes expand in the oven, making a fairly large border—I like to do about 2 inches—when adding the filling will make a larger top crust, and provide more insurance to keep that filling inside. Sometimes, no matter what you do, cracks and leaks happen. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve made the exact same recipe so sturdily that I could lift the galette cleanly off the sheet pan…and then other times they spurt juice out everywhere. It’s just part of the galette-making process.
Q: Can I use premade pie dough instead of making my own?
A: Though the flavor and texture will be a little different, in a pinch you certainly can use a defrosted rollout crust to make a galette. Look for an all-butter, preferably deep-dish version, which will have the best flavor and be a little larger than standard crusts (if your crust measures less than 13 inches in diameter, hold back on some of the filling!) That said, I really hope you try A Good Crust. And once you get the hang of it, make a bunch and stash *those* in the freezer instead of the store-bought ones.
Q: Does any fruit NOT work in galettes?
A: I can’t say I’ve made a galette with literally *every* fruit, but as far as I can tell you’d be hard pressed to find one that is unpleasant wrapped in a butter crust.
