I suggest this recipe for those of you who want to get into baking but are intimidated by it. You don’t need any fancy tools to make this basic crust recipe known as pâte brisée, beyond a rolling pin and a clean counter. Galettes are meant to look rustic so you don’t need to be a pro!

Peach Galette

Prep time: 1 hour, 20 minutes
Cook time: 40 minutes
Total time: 2 hours
Yield: 4 servings

INGREDIENTS

For the Pâte Brisée

1 cup all purpose flour
Pinch of salt
6 tbsp cold, unsalted butter
1 tbsp sugar, plus more for sprinkling
2-4 tbsp ice water
1 egg, beaten with 1 tbsp water (optional for egg wash)

For the Peach Filling

4 cups frozen peaches, thawed and drained, or approximately 4 medium-sized firm peaches, sliced
1 tbsp melted butter
3 tbsp sugar
½ tsp ground cinnamon
3 tbsp all purpose flour

DIRECTIONS

Combine the dry ingredients “for the pâté brisée” on the counter. Cut the butter into small pieces and combine with the dry ingredients using your hands, blending until fine and mealy in texture. To blend, stiffen the fingers and toss the ingredients in the air, repeating this movement just enough to combine while avoiding the development of gluten. Add the water 1 tablespoon at a time, until dough just begins to hold together. Once a ball is beginning to form, smear a couple of tablespoons of dough across the counter with the heel of your hand, repeating until all of the dough has been smeared twice. This action is called frisage. Gather the dough into a ball then flatten it into a disc. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill in refrigerator for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 375, and position a rack in the centre of the oven. Remove the dough from the fridge and let rest at room temperature for 10 minutes. Lay a large piece of parchment paper on a work surface and lightly dust it with flour. Roll out the dough into a 12” round. Transfer the parchment/dough onto a baking sheet.

In a medium sized mixing bowl, stir together flour, sugar and cinnamon. Gently toss the melted butter and peach slices in the cinnamon sugar mixture, until well coated. Tidily arrange the peach slices in the centre of the pastry, leaving a 1 ½ inch border. Leave any extra juices from the peaches in the mixing bowl. You do not want to pour this over top and make a soggy galette. Fold the outer edges of the pastry over the peaches, creating overlapping pleats as you work around the perimeter. Try to patch up any cracks in the dough as you go along. Brush the pastry border with your egg wash and sprinkle with sugar.

Bake until crust is browned and filling is bubbling, approximately 40 minutes. Serve hot with ice cream or whipped cream.