Summer Veggie Galette

I love a good tart. Sweet, savory, whatever. It’s all good in my book. Which probably means what I really love is a good carbohydrate, but that’s a conversation for another time. We’re here to talk about tarts. Or galettes, if you’re fancy (which we decidedly are). Galettes are the best kind of tart because they are unfussy (we are fancy but not fussy, you see); they’re the hippie-next-door-neighbor-who-paints-in-the-nude-and-shares-the-eggs-from-their-chicken-coop-with-you of the tart world.

Galettes are great for when you’ve got a zillion veggie odds and ends in your fridge (hello, summer produce) but they just don’t add up to a salad you can get all that excited about. You know what makes a pile of veggies REALLY exciting? Wrapping them up in a buttery, flaky blanket, that’s what.

If you don’t have A/C, I will understand if you don’t want to make this right now. It’s currently 97 degrees in D.C., and if my house weren’t a steady 70 degrees all day, every day, I sure wouldn’t want to turn the oven on either. The good news is you can make galettes all year round with whatever veggies suit your fancy, so holding out for chillier temps is no problem. Or you could always get the pool boy to fan you and feed you frozen grapes to cool off while the oven’s on, if that’s the kind of life you’re living. (If it is, let’s talk, I have several questions.)

Summer Veggie Galette

• 1 Pie Crust, prepared and chilled (see note)
• 3 Onions, sliced thin
• 2-3 Summer Squash, sliced thin
• 5-6 small Red Potatoes, sliced 1/4″ thick
• 4 oz. Goat Cheese, crumbled
• 1 Egg, beaten
• Pecorino or Parmesan Cheese, for grating on top/gilding the lily
• Salt, Pepper, Olive Oil
• Basil, for garnish

First things, first: If you’re making your galette dough yourself, get it made and stick it in the fridge to chill while you prep the other ingredients (and if you’re using a frozen crust, make sure you give it plenty of time to thaw in the fridge).

Next, you’re going to do a bunch of veggie prep, starting with caramelizing your onions. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees, then heat a couple tablespoons of olive oil in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over med-low heat. Add your sliced onions along with a big pinch of salt; cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are softened, brown, and sweet. (This takes a lifetime but it’s worth it, especially since you’ll be using the cook time for other prep!) Set aside to cool.

Meanwhile, toss summer squash with a drizzle of olive oil, salt, and pepper, then place on a rimmed baking sheet (confession: I toss veggies with oil/s&p right on the sheet because I’m lazy and it’s one less dish to do). Do the same with the potatoes, and place them on a separate baking sheet. Bake both trays of veggies for around 15 minutes, until potatoes are tender and zucchini has significantly softened. Set aside to cool.

When veggies are all cooked and have cooled to room temperature, roll out galette crust to an approx. 14″-wide circle, then place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, allowing excess dough to hang over the edges. Leaving a 2″ border, spread onions evenly over the dough, then dot with 3 oz. goat cheese. Next, shingle potatoes over top. Give your roasted squash slices a gooooood squeeze to remove as much liquid as you can, then spread over the potatoes. Dot top with remaining goat cheese, then fold up the bare perimeter of the dough towards the center. Brush dough with beaten egg, then grate pecorino over top of the entire galette, crust included. (If the room is warm, place the whole shebang back in the fridge for at least 10 min. after this step– you want your dough to be nicely chilled when the galette hits the oven to maximize flake-age!) Bake for 25-30 minutes, until golden brown all over (including on the bottom). Top with torn basil leaves and serve warm or at room temp (…or straight from the fridge when you get hit with a sudden pang of hunger at 4 in the afternoon).

Note: I use a rotation of crust recipes depending on my mood, but in this case I used King Arthur’s cheddar crust recipe and it worked out beautifully (of course it did, it has literal cheese powder in the dough). Any dough recipe you like (or pre-made dough!) will do fine, though if it’s one that calls for a lot of sugar, maybe cut that back. Since all your veggies will be pre-cooked, bake the galette according to whatever instructions accompany the dough you choose.