Honey and Saffron Glazed Peach Galette
For those who didn’t know, English isn’t my first language, but you probably guessed since my English might sound odd sometimes. It’s ok, I am over it... I stopped harassing Zayd when he comes back from work to read my blog posts a long time ago. So apologies for my English and the (hopefully) occasional awkwardness.
French is my first language and I always assumed that gallette is a French word, it definitely sounds more French (Latin?) than any other language. However, galette in the francophone world means something a bit different than in the Anglophone one. The galette I used to know is covered and looks more like a crusty cake. One of my favourite ones is the legendary galette des rois, I can’t remember the last time I had one. But lets get back to what galette means in London, because that’s what we are making today.
A galette, the Anglo-Saxon way is seriously one of the best things to bake. You can’t fail a galette and the amount of time spent in the kitchen is ridiculously small in comparison to the flavour and the comfort a galette will bring you. You just need to buy shortcrust pastry, slice fruits, mix them with sugar and corn flour and voilà!
This galette is Moroccan-ized or maybe not, perhaps I can say it is because it has saffron and cinnamon? It doesn’t matter because I can assure you, it’s super fruity, subtly spiced and extra comforting. The almond flakes on the edges of the galette are of course optional, but it's definitely worth taking three extra minutes to give a rustic and elegant look to your galette. I recommend enjoying it with a big dollop of vanilla ice cream.
Honey and Saffron Glazed Peach Galette
INGREDIENTS
Serves 4 to 6
300g store-bought or home-made shortcrust pastry
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 generous pinch saffron
1 teaspoon butter
6 to 7 ripe peaches, peeled and sliced into segments (450 gr sliced and peeled peach segments)
60 to 80g light brown sugar such as muscavado
2 tablespoons corn flour (corn starch)
1 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)
Pinch of salt
1 beaten egg (for decoration)
2 tablespoons almond flakes (for decoration)
1 tablespoon caster sugar (for decoration)
METHOD
• Preheat oven to 200 C (390 F)
• Prepare the glaze. Heat the lemon juice in a small pan oven medium heat until the juice is reduced in half. Lower the heat to low and stir in the honey, saffron and butter. Let simmer for 3 to 5 minutes to allow the saffron aromas to develop and set aside to cool (the glaze will thicken as it cools down).
• Mix the peach segments, light brown sugar, cinnamon, corn flour and salt in a large bowl. Taste to adjust the sweetness, the more ripe your fruits will be and the less sugar you should add.
• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and roll out your pie dough.
• Arrange the peach segments over the pie and leave 3 to 5 cm (1 to 2 inch) border around the edge of the dough, depending on the shape of your dough (round or squared).
• Drizzle or brush the glaze over the peach segments.
• Fold the edges of dough towards the centre and over the peaches. Gently press the corner of the pie to seal.
• Brush the edges of the pie with a beaten egg. Sprinkle the edges with sugar and almond flakes, pressing genlty the almond flakes to seal them to the dough.
• Transfer in the oven until the crust is golden brown, about 25 to 30 minutes.
• Leave to cool down for 10 minutes before removing the galette from the baking sheet to avoid damaging it. Serve warm or at room temperature with vanilla ice cream.