blackberry & peach galette with cream cheese crumble.

easy summer treat!

i reluctantly turned on the oven in the middle of the day to make this - which is usually something i’m against during summer months…but sometimes you get an idea and you have to go with it.

or sometimes you have an aging peach that needs to be eaten NOW.

of course a fruit galette has become an easy foolproof summer dessert - but adding a streusel or crumble atop? that seems like a new thing to me.

cream cheeeeeese crumble to be exact.

i love a sweet, savory, tart & sour balance. since theres no sugar added to the fresh fruit, the sugary cream cheese crumble adds just the sweetness and texture that this rustic little pie needs.

galettes are great because they don’t have to be perfect, and they won’t be. it will look like a absolute pile of mess, but taste like a fancy pie.

and if you want to make this even easier, just use pre-rolled store bought pie dough. though i highly recommend making your own.

you could stop here with the raw sugar sprinkled on the crust……

or go hard with the salty sweet cream cheese crumble. mmm mmmm mmmmmmmm.

^ this looks like a wild pile of who knows what. ignore this photo.

burble burble burble.

obviously you can use whatever fruit you like - something that makes sense in a pie - use your best fruit judgment.

i’d say this tastes better cold! or maybe i was just too hot & bothered to thoroughly enjoy when it came out of the oven.

so use that delicious summer fruit, folks, and share a slice with a friend!

Blackberry & Peach Galette with Cream Cheese Crumble

Makes (1) 12-inch Galette

Serves 4-6

Total Time: 2 hours, 45 minutes - Active Time: 30 minutes - Bake Time: 30 minutes

(Crust Recipe from Alison Roman’s ‘Dining In’ Cookbook, “The Only Piecrust” recipe - halved here)

Ingredients:

For the crust:

• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling

• 1 tsp. sugar

• 1/2 tsp. kosher salt

• 1 1/4 sticks unsalted butter (10 TB), cut into 1-inch pieces, chilled

• 1/2 TB apple cider vinegar

• 1/8 - 1/4 cup ice water

For the cream cheese crumble:

• 4 oz. cream cheese, chilled

• 1/3 cup flour of choice

• 1/3 cup brown sugar

• 1/4 cup granulated white sugar

• 1/4 tsp. kosher salt

• 1/4 tsp. cinnamon

For the filling, etc.:

• 2 ripe peaches, sliced

• 1 cup fresh blackberries, halved if large

• 1/4 of a lemon

• 1 egg + 1 tsp. water (for crust egg wash)

• raw sugar (optional)

Instructions-

Make the dough/crust ahead of time to allow 2 hours to chill, or chill overnight:

In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar & salt. Add the chilled butter cubes and toss to coat in the flour mixture, then use your hands to smash the butter between your fingers. Incorporate the butter into the flour mixture until it appears shaggy and flaky.

Combine the vinegar and the ice water and drizzle it over the flour + butter mixture. Run your fingers through the mixture to evenly distribute the water through the flour until the dough starts coming together.

On a lightly floured work surface, knead the combined dough a few times to gather up and incorporate any dry bits. It will not be smooth or shiny. Knead the shaggy mass with your palms a few more times, then pat into a flat disk about 1 inch thick. Wrap the disk with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 2 hours.

Make the cream cheese crumble:

Add all ingredients for the crumble in a small bowl and gently combine with forks or your clean fingers to create sugary coated crumbles of cream cheese blobs in various sizes. Chill for 5 minutes if the blobs have softened too much.

Put it all together:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Prepare a piece of parchment on a baking sheet and lightly spray with cooking spray.

Roll out chilled galette crust on a lightly floured work surface until it’s about 1/8 inch thick, depending how big/small, thick or thin you’d like your galette to be.

Pile the fresh peaches and blackberries in the center of the rolled out dough, leaving a thick 2-3 inch border. Fold the edges over, just to contain the fruit like a pocket, leaving the fruit in the center exposed still.

Brush the crust liberally with egg wash and sprinkle with raw sugar. Bake for 10 minutes.

Remove from oven and squeeze lemon all over the hot fruit, which should be soft and bubbly. Cover the entire galette with the cream cheese & sugar crumbles, gently pressing as much as you can into the edge of the crust. Return to oven and bake for an additional 20 minutes, until the crust is golden brown.

Remove from oven and let cool until slightly firm, then lift the galette on the parchment to cool on top of a cooling rack.

Slice and serve a la carte, or with ice cream. Store in the fridge. This is a great cold treat, too!

qp

cucumber, peach & prosciutto summer salad.

it's the cantaloupe + prosciutto combo for people who don't actually really like cantaloupe.

hey, we want that delightful juicy summer fruit + thin, salty, chewy meat flavor profile, too!!

enter the yellow peach. plus thin lightly marinated cucumber ribbons and a bunch of other tasty morsels atop.

this little summer salad is so so freshhhh, crisp, juicy and so flavorful.

sometimes when it's hot out you just want something cold and crunchy and easyyyyyy. but you demand flavor as well!

this comes together in under 15 minutes and satisfies all of those thangs!

my personal food critic peter really really enjoyed it too. this is key.

you quickly marinate your cucumber ribbons in a bit of white vinegar, pinches of salt, pepper & red chili flakes. while that's chilling in the fridge, slice and blanch your red onions. slice the peach and gather the rest of the ingredients. 

build the salad with the cold cucumbers, peach slices, prosciutto, red onion, cherry tomatoes, feta crumbles and torn fresh mint!

sorry bout it, cantaloupe. peach + prosciutto just does it betta. 

Cucumber, Peach & Prosciutto Summer Salad

Serves 2

Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 large cucumber, mandoline sliced into very thin ribbons

• 1/4 cup white vinegar

• pinch of salt, pepper & crushed red chili flakes

• 1 yellow peach, sliced

• 1/3 cup red onion slices, blanched

• 4-6 slices prosciutto

• handful of cherry tomatoes

• 1/4 cup feta cheese crumbles

• fresh mint, torn

Instructions-

Slice the cucumber long-ways into very thin ribbons. I recommend using a mandoline to make them consistent and very thin (be careful not to cut your fingers!!). Place the ribbons in a bowl and add the white vinegar with a pinch of salt, black pepper and red chili flakes. Toss and refrigerate while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.

Heat several cups of hot water to boil. Slice the red onion and add to a strainer and set in the sink. Pour the boiling water over the onions to blanch. Rinse with cold water and drain. 

Slice the peach and tomatoes.

Remove chilled and lightly marinated cucumber ribbons from the fridge and begin assembling the salad using the cucumbers as the base. Add sliced peaches, torn prosciutto, blanched red onion slices, cherry tomatoes, feta crumbles and fresh mint. 

Enjoy!

qp