Squash, Leek & Goat Cheese Galette

There are versions of this all over the place, probably all harking back to this one at Epicurious.  Hmm, I just now see they seasoned it with sage, which I didn't mention as a possibility mostly because most of my eaters are not big fans. (Dad hated it, but I don't have to worry about him any more.) But you could.

I also used my favourite biscuity crust, which may be a bit too crumbly for galette purposes and may explain the difficulties I had in forming it (see instructions). However it's still my favourite and I would rather eat it than a better-behaved one.

I'm also calling for all kinds of variations because this strikes me as extremely flexible, within the framework of squash-allium-cheese. In fact I am wondering about replacing the squash with sweet potato.

Pretty much all the recipes I looked at called for roasting the squash in advance. If you had some already roasted that would probably be ideal, but I had a chunk of raw squash I wanted to use up and I just grated it. It worked quite well so that is definitely a thing you can do. 

4 to 6 servings
1 hour 30 minutes - 30 minutes prep time
not including roasting the squash,
and you should let it cool a bit before serving

Make the Pastry:
2 cups soft unbleached flour (I used half whole wheat)
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup unsalted butter
1/4 cup mild vegetable oil
1/4 cup buttermilk

Measure the flour and put it in a mixing bowl; stir in the baking powder and salt. Cut in the butter (or grate it in, if it's cold). Mix in the oil and buttermilk. Mix enough to form a smooth, stiff dough. I find it easiest to dump it out onto a piece of parchment paper and work it a bit. It is pastry though, so the less you can work it the better. As soon as it has come together, wrap it up in the parchment and set it aside as you make the filling.

Make the Filling & Finish:
500 grams (a generous pound) peeled and diced butternut squash, roasted
OR 450 grams (1 pound) peeled and grated butternut squash
1 large leek
OR 2 large onions, OR 6 to 8 shallots
2 tablespoons unsalted butter OR mild vegetable  oil
1 teaspoon savory, thyme, OR basil
1/4 teaspoon salt
freshly ground black pepper to taste
flour to roll pastry
150 grams chevre (soft goat cheese) OR other cheese to taste


This is a good way to use up chunks of already roasted squash, aka left-overs (or plan-overs). If you are starting with raw squash - which is what I did - peel and grate it.

Wash, trim, and thinly slice the leek or other alliums of your choice. Put the butter in a medium skillet and heat over medium heat. Gently cook the leeks (etc) until softened and reduced in volume; if leeks do not let them brown; if onions or shallots they can brown a bit. Season with the herb of your choice and the salt and pepper. Add the leeks(etc) to the squash and mix in.

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Roll the pastry out - on its sheet of parchment - into a neat circle. Dust it with plenty of flour  Place it on a large baking try.

Pile the vegetables in the middle of the pastry, layering them with slices of your cheese. If you opt to use a firmer cheese than the chevre, it may make sense to grate it and mix it with the vegetables, although I would reserve a few slices to put on the top.

At this point, and to make a true galette, you should neatly fold the edges up over the filling, leaving a bit of a gap in the middle. I have not made galette before, because I looked at pictures of other people's beautifully formed pastry, and said "Uh huh."

Indeed.

When it looked like working about as well as I expected (i.e. not) I hastily transferred it, parchment and all, to a 10" pie plate. There I was able to fold up the edges acceptably if not beautifully, and therein I baked the pie galette. I suppose I could have transferred it back the baking tray to let it go properly flat. Whatever.

Bake for 50 to 60 minutes at 350°F. If you use already roasted squash I suspect the lower figure is the one to aim for; raw squash will take the full hour.




Last year at this time I made Ground Beef & Mushroom Stroganoff.

Posted in: Ontario Food