This rustic French pastry is easy to make using butter, ice water, all-purpose flour, and salt. This dough works with both sweet and savory galette recipes.
In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, salt, and optional sugar (use sugar for sweet galettes and omit for savory galettes). Using a pastry cutter or your fingers, cut in the cubes of butter until they are crumbly and pea sized.
Mix in the ice cold water one tablespoon at a time, stirring with a spoon until a cohesive ball of dough forms. It is ready when the dough can hold together on its own but it will still have some crumbly pieces.
Wrap the dough in plastic wrap or foil and let rest in the fridge for 30 minutes. This allows the dough to hydrate and the butter to chill.
Remove the dough from the fridge. On a baking mat or lightly floured surface, roll out the dough until it is roughly 12x12 inches. It does not need to be a perfect circle.
Transfer the dough to a parchment paper lined baking sheet (parchment paper is optional but makes cleanup easier). Place the filling in the center, leaving two inches of dough uncovered around the outside.
Fold the dough in over just the edge of the filling, pinching overlapping edges together as needed. This keeps the filling from spilling out during baking.
Optional egg wash: Make an egg wash by whisking together one egg yolk with 1 tablespoon milk (water works in a pinch). Brush it on the edges of the galette crust before baking. This results in a more golden and crispy crust.
Bake at 425F for 25-30 minutes, until the crust is golden and the filling is bubbling. Let the galette cool on a cooling rack for at least an hour before slicing.
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Notes
Sugar: Use sugar if making a sweet filling, such as a fruit galette. Omit the sugar for savory galettes, such as tomato or vegetable filling.
Ice water: Add ice to a liquid measuring cup and top with water to make very cold water. Measure tablespoons of water from this ice water container.
Use cold ingredients: Just like with biscuits, galette dough turns out best when all ingredients are chilled. I recommend cubing the butter and placing it in the freezer along with your mixing bowl for just 10 minutes before preparing the galette crust.
This galette dough works with both sweet and savory fillings. If needed, you can adjust galette cook time and temperature based on the recipe used for the filling.