Easy Peach Galette

Two weeks until the pool closes. I have been here six summers now and it never gets old — not the job itself, which is mostly watching and waiting and the occasional real emergency, but the pool as a place. The pool in August is the fullest it gets all year: kids who have been coming every day all summer and know all the rules and break them anyway, babies in swim diapers in the shallow end, the smell of sunscreen and hot concrete. I will miss it when the semester starts and my whole world becomes student teaching.

I have been thinking about September 14th. It is a month away and it is already present. The first anniversary — the one I spent driving to Nar-Anon and back in the dark — was the worst. Then the one in the dorm room at NIU, when I drove to the cemetery early in the morning before class. Each year I wonder how I will feel and each year I feel something new. This year I will be at home when it happens — not in DeKalb, not on campus. I will drive to Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in Worth and bring sunflowers.

Made a peach galette this week — something I had never made before, from peaches on sale at Jewel for ninety-nine cents a pound. Store-bought pie crust (ninety-nine cents), sliced peaches tossed with sugar and a little cinnamon, arranged on the unrolled crust and folded up at the edges. Baked at 400 for about thirty minutes. The edges get golden brown and caramelized and the peaches get soft and jammy.

Patty watched me make it and did not say anything until I pulled it from the oven. Then she said "Where did you learn to do that?" I said from a blog. She said "A blog." Like it was a slightly suspect source. She ate two slices. Total cost under three dollars. Some things you make because you can, because the peaches are ripe and the evening is long and you have thirty minutes to kill before you have to think about anything hard.

I am not sure I would have made this on a heavier evening — but that is exactly the point. There is a certain kind of late-August Tuesday where you have a free half hour, the peaches are on sale, and you just want to do something with your hands before the harder thinking starts. This galette is that recipe. It asks almost nothing of you, and it gives back something genuinely good — golden edges, jammy fruit, the smell of cinnamon in a warm kitchen. Patty’s skepticism about the blog source did not survive contact with the second slice.

Prep Time: 10 min | Cook Time: 32 min | Total Time: 42 min | Servings: 6

Ingredients

1 refrigerated rolled pie crust (store-bought, such as Pillsbury)
4 to 5 medium peaches (about 1 1/4 lbs), pitted and sliced 1/4 inch thick
3 tablespoons granulated sugar, divided
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 large egg, beaten (for egg wash)
1 teaspoon turbinado or coarse sugar (optional, for sprinkling)

Instructions

Preheat and prep. Heat oven to 400°F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Unroll the pie crust and lay it flat on the prepared sheet.
Season the peaches. In a medium bowl, toss the sliced peaches with 2 tablespoons of the granulated sugar, the cinnamon, and the cornstarch until evenly coated. Let sit for 5 minutes.
Arrange the filling. Pile the peach slices in the center of the crust, spreading them out to leave a 2-inch border all the way around. Scatter the butter pieces over the top of the peaches.
Fold the edges. Working around the galette, fold the outer edge of the crust up and over the peaches, pleating as you go to form a rough border. Press lightly to help the folds hold.
Finish and bake. Brush the folded crust with beaten egg and sprinkle with the remaining 1 tablespoon granulated sugar (and turbinado sugar if using). Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the crust is deep golden brown and the peach juices are bubbling and beginning to caramelize at the edges.
Cool before slicing. Let the galette rest on the pan for at least 10 minutes before cutting. The juices will thicken as it cools. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Nutrition (per serving)

Easy Peach Galette — Something to Make When the Evening Is Long and the Peaches Are Ripe