Leek and sorrel galette
Sorrel is a beautiful but under-used herb with a bright, lemony flavour that can really lift a dish. You can often find it at farmers’ markets, but if you can’t get hold of it, replace with spinach leaves and add a squeeze of lemon.
SERVES 6
PREPARATION TIME
25 minutes, plus chilling and cooling
COOKING TIME about 35 minutes
FOR THE PASTRY 100g wholemeal flour 150g plain flour 150g cold butter, cubed
1 egg, lightly beaten Ice cold water, as needed FOR THE FILLING
2tbsp butter, plus 2tsp to bake
6 leeks, trimmed: 2 finely chopped and 4 sliced lengthways, top to root
1 large banana shallot, finely chopped
200ml double cream
50g mature Cheddar cheese, grated 50g Gruyère, grated 80g sorrel leaves, finely chopped
1 egg, beaten
1 Make the pastry. Rub the flours and butter together by hand (or use a food processor, if you
prefer) until you have a breadcrumb texture. Stir in the egg with a cutlery knife until the mixture forms clumps, adding a few drops of cold water if it looks too dry. Bring together with your hands, knead lightly and briefly on a worktop until smooth, wrap in baking parchment and chill for at least 30min.
2 Melt the butter for the filling in a deep frying pan until lightly bubbling. Add the chopped leek and shallot and sweat gently until softened and the shallot is translucent, it shouldn’t brown.
3 Remove from the heat and stir in the cream, grated cheeses and sorrel leaves. Season to taste. Leave to cool for at least 20min.
4 Preheat oven to 200°C (180°C fan) mark 6. To assemble, roll the pastry out to a rough circle about 40cm wide. Don’t worry if it’s not neat; the beauty of a galette is in its rustic look, but do patch up any holes.
5 Spread the filling over all but the outer 5cm of the pastry circle. Lay the lengthways-sliced leeks on top, ideally covering the filling mixture entirely.
6 Fold the edges inwards to cover the edge of the filling. Transfer to a baking sheet and brush the pastry with the beaten egg. Dot the leeks with small pieces of the remaining butter and bake for 30-35min until the pastry is golden brown and the leeks are just starting to colour.