Apple frangipane galette has got to be the epitome of January bakes, especially with Epiphany on 6th January! Galette des rois, or king cake is one of my favourite recipes. While the ingredients usually consist of a luxurious frangipane filling encased with puff pastry, the traditional recipe can vary from household to household. Hidden inside is a usually small fève or small figurine. If you find the fève in your slice of galette, you’re crowned king (or queen) for the day.
This recipe uses the modern open look for this apple frangipane galette, rather than encasing the filling with a lid of pastry. Firstly, this galette is made with an extra flaky pastry, flecked with creamy butter. As a result, it puffs up in perfect golden layers, and is finished with demerara sugar for an irresistible crunch. Secondly, the frangipane is smooth and flavourful spread generously on the pastry based and thirdly, the apples are cooked gently in a caramel sauce for a sweet cinnamon finish.
How do I get flaky pastry for my apple frangipane galette?
Go by feel of the pastry
Taking note of how sticky or dry your pastry is is crucial. This helps ensure you get that signature flaky pastry all galettes possess. If it becomes too gooey or warm, then your crust will be in trouble. Equally if you overwork it by kneading it too much, gluten development will cause it to be tough and hard. Work it carefully and lightly, and avoid handling it too much since this will warm up the butter. The finished dough should be soft and shouldn’t stick to your hands. A pastry scraper is your best friend for moving the pastry around.
The size of your fat matters
Lots of recipes suggest mixing the flour and butter by hand until you have uniform “pea-size” pieces. However you actually want uneven pieces of fat and have more walnut-size pieces of fat for a lighter, flakier dough. Using a dough scraper, as mentioned above, will also help avoid your butter warming up too much.
Tricks for hydration
Vodka or vinegar are great additional ingredients that contribute to hydration but also inhibit the formation of gluten, which keeps the dough tender. These are not essential, as with practice you can definitely make dough without this!
Gluten development
When baking bread, gluten is your best friend because it helps to build structure. However, the opposite is true for pastry dough. You want to invite as little gluten as possible which is why going easy on the mixing and having a light touch is essential to avoid overworking the dough. Temperature can also cause the gluten to develop, hence why you should use cold water (I like to put ice cubes in mine to get it really cold and make sure my butter comes straight from the fridge. Equally too much moisture will encourage gluten development so add the water slowly.
Chilling the dough
Chilling after mixing the butter and flour is crucial to avoid the fats getting too soft. It also allows the natural protein strands (gluten) that form when the flour is hydrated to relax, making it easier to roll out. I also like to chill after rolling it out and transferring it to your pie tin to allow it to relax again before crimping. This avoids the dough shrinking too much during baking.
Use the folded-book method
While this trick means the dough is worked significantly more, this method produces a light, flaky result rather than making the dough tough. Roll the dough to a rectangle, fold it in half, then in half again and into quarters. Refrigerate for 30 minutes and repeat this folding process once more.
What if my dough for my apple frangipane galette is too wet or too dry?
My dough is too wet
A dough that’s too wet can often be saved by add a little extra flour while rolling it out. This might seem counterintuitive but you’ll need to soak up the excess hydration. Saying this, add it sparingly to use as little as possible and err on the side of caution so you don’t end up with an under-hydrated dough. Your dough will otherwise be crisp and tough.
My dough is too dry
This is harder to fix than a dough that’s too wet, but it can be done! A small amount of water is all that’s needed in this instance. Flatten the dough with your hands and then dip your hand in ice water, flicking a few drops onto the surface of your dough. Fold the dough over on itself a few times but be careful not to knead as this will encourage the gluten development, making the dough tough. Chill for at least 30 minutes. Take note that your dough may be a little tougher as a result even if you salvage the issue with hydration.
Apple Frangipane Galette
Ingredients
For the pastry
- 1.5 tsp caster sugar
- 1/4 tsp fine sea salt
- 150 g plain flour
- 113 g unsalted butter
- 60 ml ice cold water
- 1 tsp apple cider vinegar or vodka
For the frangipane
- 125 g unsalted butter softened
- 125 g caster sugar
- 125 g ground almonds
- 25 g plain flour
- 1 large egg
For the apples
- 4 Pink Lady apples around 650g
- 100 g light brown sugar
- 30 g unsalted butter
- 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 1 large egg lightly beaten
- 50 g demerara sugar for sprinkling
Instructions
To make the pastry
- Sift the flour into a large bowl, then add the sugar and salt flour. Cut your butter into large cubes, then toss into the dry ingredients to coat. Dump everything out onto a clean work surface.
- Using your hands, start to rub the butter between your fingertips until they resemble big shards. Continue tossing it in the flour as you go. If your hands tend to be warm, you can switch to a bench scraper to avoid your butter getting too warm.
- Continue cutting the butter until the pieces are about the size of walnuts. Make a well in the centre of your flour mixture and add your ice water slowly. N.B. You might not need all of it, so add 30ml and use your hands to toss the flour with the water to start mixing the two together. Then add the 1 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar or vodka and toss again.
- As it starts to come together, you can switch to more of a kneading motion, but go gently as you don't want to encourage much gluten development. Keep adding 10ml of water at a time until the dough is properly hydrated or you've used up all the water. It should be uniformly combined and hold together easily, but not totally smooth – you want the chunks of visible butter in it!
- Form the dough into an even disc, wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, or up to 2 days.
For the frangipane
- Beat the butter until very soft, then add the sugar and ground almonds. Continue mixing until everything is nicely combined.
- Add the flour and egg, and mix again. Transfer to a bowl and refrigerate for 15 minutes while you make the caramelised apples.
For the apples
- Preheat the oven to 220C / 425F and line a large baking tray with parchment paper.
- Add the sugar, butter, vinegar, cinnamon and vanilla to a large saucepan over a low heat. Cook gently for a few minutes then add the sliced apples and reduce the heat to the lowest setting.
- Swirl the pan so the apples are evenly coated and cook for 7-8 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and let the apple cool until lukewarm and cool enough to handle.
To construct your galette
- Dust a work surface lightly with flour and roll the dough to a circle about 12 inches in diameter. Carefully transfer to the baking tray.
- Sprinkle a little flour into the centre of the pastry, then spread the frangipane paste liberally across the base, leaving a 3-inch border. Pile the apples on top, then fold the edges of the pastry over the filling. Place in the fridge for 15 minutes before baking.
- Brush the dough with the lightly beaten egg, then scatter over the demerara sugar over the top. Bake for 35 – 40 minutes until the crust is golden brown.
- Remove from the oven and leave to cool for 10 minutes before cutting and serving with any leftover caramel sauce, ice cream or cream.
Notes
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