Light, flaky pastry slathered with almond cream and topped with local Bosc pears to create this amazing Frangipane and Pear Galette.

Ah, pastry, we meet again. Welcome to Beyond the Thunderdough! Two shall enter. One shall leave.

(I’m also partial to Revenge of the Sift. I could make these puns all day.)

Pastry dough is my baking nemesis. If you’ll recall I have patented my famous Puzzle Crust ™ because they have a habit of  falling apart on me. Even after all the YouTube tutorials, all of the ‘no-fail crust recipes’ that have FAILED. Ice water? Check. Vodka in place of ice water? Check. Butter? Shortening? LARD????

It shouldn’t be this difficult.

Buuuut apparently it is. 

I needed to get back to basics. I needed something that didn’t HAVE to be pretty. It could be rustic. Simple. No fancy crust edging, no pre-baking with marbles in it, none of it. Clearly a galette was the answer. Good thing my trusty Joy of Cooking had my back! 

Just make circle of dough.

Then put delicious stuff in it. (Prettiness optional)

Fold up the edges. 

I also incorporated this lady’s system of putting saran wrap on the top and bottom of the dough instead of flour when she rolls it out. (She’s my favourite. The SASS.)

And it… it didn’t fall apart. Instead it actually worked. TWICE. That’s right. I made two of these galettes and the saran wrap trick worked both times!

IT’S A MIRACLE!

The crust of this galette turned out flaky and light, it was everything I ever dreamed! 

Perfection.

Oh, and I guess these amazing local Bosc pears and stunning frangipane from Laws of Baking help too!

Print

Frangipane and Pear Galette

Light, flaky pastry slathered with almond cream and topped with local Bosc pears to create this amazing Frangipane and Pear Galette.

Course: Dessert

Servings: 1 8" round galette

Author: Cristina

Ingredients

Pastry

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 cup cold , unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup chilled shortening
• 5-6 Tbsp ice water

Frangipane (This will make about 4x what you need for this recipe, but it freezes well!)

• 1 cup almond flour (I used Bob's Red Mill almond flour)
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter , softened (but not melted!)
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 3 Tbsp all-purpose flour
• OPTIONAL: 1 tsp almond extract
• 3 pears , cored and sliced thinly (I used local Bosc pears)

Instructions

Pastry

1. Sift together the flour and salt.
2. Cut in the cold butter and chilled shortening with a pastry blender or two knives, a bit at a time, until they are pea-sized and completely coated with flour.
3. Gently blend in the ice water a tablespoon at a time with a fork or pastry blender, just until everything begins to stick together. You don't want to add too much water!
4. Divide the dough in half, shape into inch-thick discs and wrap in plastic wrap. Place in the fridge for at least an hour.

Frangipane

1. Make sure that the almond flour is finely ground, pulse in a food processor if necessary.
2. In a mixer with a paddle attachment, cream the softened butter and sugar, then add the ground almonds and mix until combined, scraping the sides occasionally.
3. Add the eggs one at a time, and mix until blended.
4. Slowly add the 3 tablespoons of flour and beat until just combined.

Assembling the Galettes

1. Heat the oven to 350°.
2. Take one of your pastry discs out of the fridge, unwrap and place between two pieces of saran wrap. Roll flat with a rolling pin into a circle (or as close as you can get).
3. Spoon the frangipane into the centre, leaving a border around the edge about an inch wide.
4. Carefully arrange the sliced pears in a circle.
5. Fold the edge of the dough over the pears.
6. Bake in the oven for 25-35 minutes, or until the pastry is golden brown.

What’s your cooking nemesis?