Pear and Blackberry Galette
Galettes are a free-form type of tart that in this case I made with store-bought puff pastry. The recipe makes two galettes, yielding 12 servings. It’s a tasty dessert you could serve at a festive fall gathering or bring to a potluck. I didn’t toss the blackberries with the pear filling, but instead set them separately into each galette. Doing this helped them hold their shape better, making them look more attractive in the galette. Preparation time: 30 minutes Cooking time: 40 minutes (per galette) Makes: 2 galettes (12 servings)
2 tbsp (30 ml) lemon juice 5 just ripe (but still a little firm) medium Bartlet, Anjou or Bosc pears, halved, cored and sliced 1/3 cup (80 ml) granulated sugar 1 tbsp (15 ml) all-purpose flour 1/2 tsp (2.5 ml) ground cinnamon 1/4 tsp (1 ml) ground nutmeg Pinch of salt 1-14 oz. (396-g) pkg. frozen puff pastry, thawed 2 cups (480 ml) fresh or frozen (not thawed) blackberries 2 tsp (10 ml) granulated sugar 1 large egg beaten with 2 tbsp (30 ml) milk Icing sugar for dusting Whipped cream or vanilla ice cream, to taste Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Place the lemon juice in a medium bowl. Halve, core and slice each pear lengthwise into 1/4-in. (6-mm) slices. Place slices, flour, spices and salt in the bowl with the lemon juice and toss to combine.
Lightly flour a work surface. Cut the pastry, widthwise, in half. Set one of the pieces on the work surface. Gently roll into a 10 x 10-in. (25 x 25-cm) square (does not have to be perfectly square). Set the rolled pastry in the centre of one of the baking sheets. Roll out the other piece of pastry and set it on the other baking sheet.
Arrange 1/2 cup (120 ml) of blackberries in and around the centre of each piece of pastry. Divide and mound the coated pear slices on top of the berries, leaving a 2-in (5-cm) border of clean dough around the fruit. Divide and arrange remaining berries on top of the pears. Fold the clean edges of pastry up and partially over the filling, leaving the centre open. Brush the top and sides of the pastry with the milk-egg mixture. Sprinkle the top pastry and fruit filling on each galette with 1 tsp (5 ml) granulated sugar. Refrigerate galettes 30 minutes (this will firm up the pastry and make it puff better when baked).
Preheat the oven 375 F (190 C). Bake one of the galettes 40 minutes, until puffed and golden. Remove from oven and set on a baking rack. Bake the other galette.
When ready to serve, dust the galettes lightly with icing sugar. Slice and plate the galette. Serve each portion with a dollop of whipped cream, or scoop of ice cream.