Bake apple galettes with flaky pastry and tender, juicy apples. Here’s a rustic apple dessert that deserves a scoop of vanilla ice cream and a second slice!
This apple galette wraps tender, cinnamon-scented apples in a crisp, buttery pastry, with golden edges that invite you to break off a flaky piece before it even reaches the table.
Ingredients
For the Pastry
- 1 ¼ cups (160 g) all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon fine salt
- ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter, very cold and cut into small cubes
- 4 to 6 tablespoons ice water
- 1 egg, beaten, for brushing
- 1 teaspoon coarse sugar, for sprinkling
For the Apple Filling
- 3 medium apples, about 1 ¼ pounds (570 g) total, peeled if you like and cored
- ¼ cup (50 g) granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest, optional
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
Servings: 6 to 8
How to Make Apple Galettes
Whisk the flour, sugar, and salt together in a large bowl. Add the cold butter and rub it into the flour with your fingertips, or cut it in using a pastry cutter, until you have a mix of coarse crumbs and small butter pieces about the size of peas.
Keep those visible bits of butter; they release steam in the oven and help create flaky layers, so resist the urge to work the dough until it looks perfectly smooth.
Drizzle in 4 tablespoons of ice water and stir gently with a fork. Squeeze a little dough in your hand: if it holds together, stop adding water; if it crumbles apart, add more water 1 teaspoon at a time.
Bring the dough together with your hands, press it into a flat disk, wrap it, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. It should feel cool and firm when you roll it, not sticky or warm.
While the dough chills, slice the apples about ⅛ inch thick and place them in a large bowl. Toss with the sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, lemon juice, and lemon zest if using.
The cornstarch thickens the fruit juices as they bake, while lemon keeps the sweetness lively.
Set a rack in the center of the oven and preheat it to 400°F (205°C). Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
On a lightly floured counter, roll the chilled dough into a roughly 12-inch circle, turning it occasionally and adding only a light dusting of flour if it sticks.
The outline can be uneven; a galette is supposed to look relaxed, and the oven is not handing out certificates for circular pastry.
Transfer the dough to the prepared baking sheet. Arrange the apples in the center, leaving a 2-inch border all around, and pour any thickened juices from the bowl over the fruit.
Fold the pastry border up over the apples, pleating it as you go and leaving the center open. Dot the apples with the tablespoon of butter.
If the dough gets soft while you’re folding, slide the pan into the refrigerator for 10 minutes before baking; cool pastry keeps its shape better.
Brush the folded pastry with beaten egg and sprinkle the crust with coarse sugar. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, rotating the pan once if your oven browns unevenly.
The galette is ready when the crust is deeply golden and you can see the apple juices bubbling in the center.
If the crust is browned but the fruit juices are not bubbling yet, give it a few more minutes; bubbling is a useful sign that the filling has heated through and thickened.
Let the galette cool on the baking sheet for at least 20 minutes before slicing. The juices will settle as it rests, so cutting too soon can send them across the pan like they’ve been waiting all afternoon for an exit. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Make this apple galette when you want tender cinnamon apples, buttery pastry, and a dessert that looks special without asking you to make every edge behave.
Put it on the table warm, let everyone choose their favorite crisp corner, and enjoy the happy quiet that usually follows the first bite!
