Rhubarb Ricotta Galette
Rhubarb Ricotta Galette
My friend Bethany called me the other day and we managed a good 15 minutes of conversation before one of our children needed us. She had decided that, just like fishing has an open season, gin and tonics needed an open season. She was hosting a little “stop-by-after-work-for-a-gin-and-tonic” party and wanted ideas for easy munchies to serve alongside them. So of course I asked, “What do you have around?” I’ve determined that I could never be in one of those TV cooking competitions where the contestants have a fully-stocked pantry and larder to work from. Too much choice! Constraints make us normal folk more creative and resourceful. Amen?
Bethany is blessed with several over-producing rhubarb plants, and I have always been very jealous of them. She lives in Bellingham, or else I would be over there constantly cutting rhubarb stalks (while drinking a gin and tonic and admiring the other lush things about her yard). So we started talking about what she could do with the rhubarb and thought of a rhubarb chutney that she could serve with a soft, tangy cheese. By the time we got off the phone, I had rhubarb on the brain. I basically had to have some.
Spring gold
Luckily, the Columbia City farmers market opened this week, and Mary and I took all four kids to celebrate. True to form, I wandered around gawking at everything while Mary ended up supervising the kids. She is my second spouse and I do not know what I’d do without her.
I did find some rhubarb, though it was something like $3/lb. Still cheaper than the gas to drive up to Bellingham, I guess. The chutney conversation had gotten me thinking about cooking the rhubarb down quite a bit as opposed to dicing it for a crisp or pie. I knew I wanted something sweet (not savory) as there was only slice of apple cake left in my kitchen. Rhubarb jam. That’s it.
Rhubarb Jam
And galette dough. The best-ever recipe I copied from Abra’s copy of the Baking with Julia Child cookbook years ago. I swear, galettes have given my friends the impression I can do no wrong in the kitchen. Since I have mastered them, I often bring them to parties or potlucks and people think I’ve worked much harder than I have. Emily emailed me the other day and asked if I could devote a posting to them, and when Jordan’s friend Jenn was in town last winter, we had a little galette lesson in my kitchen. (As a consequence, Jenn is now my friend, too.) A galette is basically a free-form tart–roll out one disc of this easy dough, dump whatever you want in the middle (sweet or savory), fold the crust up around it, cook it for 30 minutes, be a goddess.
Discs of galette dough
I also had a tub of whole milk ricotta in the fridge–nothing fancy, just Trader Joe’s and something I had bought without a purpose in mind. I could sweeten that a bit to add creaminess and texture.
I’m glad to get posting this dough recipe out of the way because then I can forever refer to it and fill it with other things. The combinations are endless. A few I’ve made: caramelized onion and blue cheese; winter greens and feta; berries (fresh or frozen); any kind of stone fruit; mascarpone, dried fig, and walnut; cranberry orange. The trick with galettes is to not count on the cooking time to cook many of the fillings. Berries–fine. But if I were to do big chunks of rhubarb in this one, for instance, I only get 30 minutes before the crust is done. In that short amount of time, the rhubarb would be getting all watery but not done.
I hope your party was a hit, Bethany, and that you made a dent in your rhubarb. And here’s to open season for galettes. Now my secret is out.
P.S. A word about sources…I will always, always give credit for a recipe if I’ve knowingly taken it from someone or somewhere else. If I don’t give credit, that means I “made it up,” though there is really nothing new under the sun. Surely something akin to this has been made somewhere at some time, but the creator might not have been as likable or as funny as me.
Rhubarb Ricotta Galette
For dough:
from Baking with Julia Child
(I always double this. The extra disc of dough will keep in the fridge for several days)
1 c. flour
1/4 c. cornmeal
7 Tb. cold butter
1/3 c. ice water
3 Tb. sour cream
Stir flour and cornmeal together. Cut in butter with your fingertips until butter is in pea-sized lumps. Stir ice water and sour cream together in a small bowl, then add to flour mixture. Mix together with a fork until mixture holds together and form into a ball. Put ball on a piece of plastic wrap, loosely gather plastic wrap around it and twist, then press dough into a disc. Refrigerate for one hour before rolling out. Roll out on a floured surface till dough is about 1/8″ thick. Fold into quarters and transfer to baking sheet. Unfold and fill.
Galette Dough
For rhubarb jam:
(you will have leftovers)
2 lbs. rhubarb, diced (about 8 cups)
2 c. brown sugar
2 Tb. grated fresh ginger
splash of port (optional)
1/2 c. water
2 Tb. instant tapioca
Put everything except tapioca in a big pot and bring to a simmer, stirring frequently. Cook for about 30 minutes, adding more water at the beginning if necessary. Mixture will totally lose definition, becoming a kind of rhubarb sauce. This is why you need the tapioca. Add it, and cook for about another 10 minutes until mixture gets thick. Cool.
For ricotta:
3/4 c. whole milk ricotta
2 Tb. honey
1 Tb. grated orange zest
1 tsp. vanilla
Stir everything together in a small bowl.
To assemble:
Spread about 1 c. of the rhubarb jam over the dough, leaving an inch around the edges. Drop dallops of the ricotta mixture over the jam, and fold the crust in toward the middle. It will overlap on itself in several places. Sprinkle some sugar over the crust. Bake at 400 for 30-35 minutes, or until filling is bubbling and crust is golden. Let cool for 15 minutes before slicing into wedges. Of course, we had ours for breakfast as well.
Galette for Breakfast
I happen to get a bite of the the very last piece of this galette,after gingerly negociating, with Loretta over it. She held it, oh so tight so I couldn’t eat more than just an insy bit, and crammed the whole rest of the piece in her mouth. I just know it was so I wouldn’t beg for more. Loretta certainly has acquired tastebuds at two. Darn it anyway, I would’ve loved to devour the whole piece myself . It was scrumptious!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Sarah, this is my new favorite blog, and I read a lot of blogs, so I think that says something. How refreshing this is. You seem to have found your stride a bit with the writing and believe it or not you have actually inspired me to cook more. Since I’ve been pretty much a workaholic the last two years I have let my love of cooking take a back seat to all the other obligations of a busy and complex life. But no more…thanks for doing this and KEEP IT UP!
it doesn’t surprise me that there is a connection between making these and obtainig gODdeSS stature. i’m ON it.
your galettes are definitely on my “favorites” list. i appreciate the topping options you gave and welcome any other favorites when you think of them.
when jenn was in town i believe we made roasted sweet potato and salty kale? YUM!!
i lift my glass to you (wish it was a gin+tonic)…
j.
I don’t know which is more fun…reading your entries, or the comments that come afterward! I’m still unsure about what to do with my house (the Girl Outa Texas house, or GOT house), but this dang blog is causing me to lean toward keeping the place empty - so I can go use the oven
I won a beautiful rhubarb plant at our last Master Gardener meeting. Guess if I actully put it in the ground, I’d be closer to making this recipe on my own terms, eh?
OK, finally, migrated over to your new site (I’m a laggard, what can I say), and am psyched to find a rhubarb to-do. Every year we harvest a huge bushel of this stuff, and have no clue what to do with it, other than mix with strawberries (which we pony up $10 for) and a pound of sugar and then call it pie. I tried to make a compote for pork one year, and it was close, but nothing special. So thanks for this. Maybe this year I won’t passive-aggressively try to kill it off in my yard (don’t worry, it’s back in fine form already).
I spent the day with the family putting in our first real garden. Cross your fingers for us.
Okay–Judy has a rhubarb plant languishing in its unplanted state, and Chris secretly wishes his were dead. If I had one, I would take good care of it and make galettes for everyone. And good luck with the garden, Chris. We planted ours this weekend, too…this time before it’s full of weeds is so sweetly hopeful. I’m crossing fingers for all of us.
As you know rhubarb is my favorite and the galette is a great medium to suspend it in. Thanks for the sharing it on Yanc’s grad day. Loved the kids pics.
the party was a hit and the rhubarb chutney went over well. however, i still have at least 100 bushels of rhubarb left…i think i’ll be making galette’s soon.
Sarah.
I am about to try and make this rhubarb thing and let me tell you why…you will love the why. Last week a came home to a stove top full of a beautiful kale and grain concoction. I think to myself…”my roommate read THE blog”. The next morning I wake up to 4 cookie sheets full of delicious homemade granola and my wonderful roommate enjoying it over yogurt. “You read THE blog didnt’ you?” She smiles, “I did!”
My roommate is out of town for the next couple weeks, but I talked with her last night and she tells me…”Before I left I made a Rhubarb Galette for my mom as my late mother’s day present, there’s an extra thing of dough, the filling, and all the other ingredients in the fridge. Will you please make it in the next couple days so it doesn’ t go to waste?”
So here I am…I have to admit I’ve never heard of a Galette before, but I am about to try and make my first one so we aren’t guilty of wasting food. All because of THE blog, by the way I think you and THE blog are absolutely amazing! Hopefully my Galette will be too!
I attempted something similar to this tonight, and it didn’t go as smoothly as I wanted. I started with wanting to peel nectarines. I scored them and put them in boiling water. Fished them out after a couple minutes and they were still impossible to peel. Did the thing all over again and boiled it for five minutes. Sort of worked, but mostly I was irritated.
Then I realized I didn’t really know how to cut a nectarine. I tried the wedges bit but gave up. I eventually just stood them up and cut around the pit (sort of like cutting a mango). That worked, though there was a bit of waste.
Then I cooked the nectarines with strawberries, a little sugar and flour. I’m not sure why I added flour, but I’ve heard that fillings are supposed to have flour. I dunno. That’s what I did.
Then I added that goo to my store-bought dough and folded it up. It looked rather pretty. I topped it with Super Ricotta (ricotta with marionberry honey and lavender) and then baked.
I had enough fruit to make two, so I did that. While the first was baking, I assembled the second. And then the warm fruit started melting the dough of the second.
Classic disaster all around for me tonight. I’m not a baker, but I know that I’m trying, and that counts for something… I hope …
Wow–what a night! Like I said on FB, it sounds like your nectarines weren’t ripe. And yes, trying definitely counts for something. And I also happen to know (through FB) that they tasted good. That’s all that matters.