Summer Fruit Galette

Strawberries are here – it must be summer! Every year, it’s a cause of celebration when summer fruits start appearing on the shelves. Once you’ve had all you can eat in your morning cereal, or plucked straight out of the box, here’s a recipe to tuck any remaining rhubarb, berries or stone fruits into throughout the season.

Galettes are free-form tarts that wrap around any seasonal produce – savoury or sweet. Use this crust recipe – or your favourite flakey short crust – and get creative with the filling. Here we’ve suggested a traditional strawberry and rhubarb combination with a maple syrup twist, but this is only the beginning. As strawberries transition to raspberries and then stone fruits, the opportunities for adaptation are endless. Just remember to use a deep-sided baking tray when you test out new variations to make sure you don’t lose any delicious juices!

Crust
175g plain flour, plus more for rolling (or substitute 50g with your favourite wholemeal wheat or rye flour)
12g sugar (omit if using a savoury filling)
115g butter, very cold and diced
1 large egg, beaten
very cold water

Filling
400g strawberries, hulled and halved
300g rhubarb, cut into 1cm pieces
165g maple syrup or honey
15ml balsamic vinegar
1 pinch sea salt
100g goat’s cheese

Place flour(s) and sugar in a medium bowl and add diced butter. Use your hands or a fork to mix flour and butter until you have course crumbs. Add egg and mix gently until mixture just comes together. Add only as much ice-cold water as you need to form a loose ball. Place dough in cling film, form a disc and chill in the freezer for 30 minutes (or in the refrigerator for up to 2 days).Pre-heat oven to 180 C.

Combine strawberries, rhubarb, maple syrup or honey, vinegar and salt in a deep sided casserole dish. Roast in a hot oven for 30-40 minutes, until the juices have thickened slightly. Remove from oven before you roll out the dough.

Prepare a large baking tray with greaseproof paper (if you use a baking sheet, make sure to place another pan on a lower rack in the oven to catch any juices that escape). On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough in a rough circle until 1/2 cm thick. Move crust carefully to the centre of the prepared tray and layer goat’s cheese, then fruit filling evenly on top, leaving a one-inch edge. Fold remaining edges of the crust over the filling and secure lightly by folding over itself. Lightly brush a spoonful of milk over exposed crust. Bake until the crust is evenly browned, 45-60 minutes. Enjoy fresh from the oven, at room temperature or chilled.

A version of this recipe originally appeared Chelsea’s blog, Over a Meal.