leek and goat cheese galette

J’adore galettes and I make a lot of them! Apple galettes for Thanksgiving, cherry galettes for my Dad’s birthday (his favorite), and galettes with whatever looks good at the farmers’ market. 

It’s only recently that I started to make savory galettes, because I ordered too many vegetables in our weekly Imperfect Produce box. Whoops! I was bored with other recipes and had extra pie dough in my fridge. Enter the savory galette. Add a bright salad and (and maybe a glass of pet-nat?) for a perfectly acceptable lunch or dinner that everyone will love because, well, it’s pie for dinner! 

I thought leeks and goat cheese – a classic combination – could not lead me astry. Leeks are the onion’s slightly sweeter and milder cousin, and taste amazing when paired with tangy goat cheese, fresh lemon, and earthy thyme.

The pastry recipe has been my mainstay for many years. It’s a shortcrust pastry and works well for pies, quiches, and galettes.

The ingredients listed here to make enough pastry for two galettes, because if I am going to the trouble of making pastry, I may as well have some left over for another cooking project!

Cut the recipe into half (1 stick of butter, 1 cup of flour, 1 tablespoon of cold water) if you don’t want and extra pastry for a rainy day. 

You will need a food processor for this recipe.

Ingredients

Easiest pastry

2 sticks of salted* butter, 1 cup total

2 cups of whole wheat flour

2 tablespoons ice cold water, plus more if needed

*I use salted butter in basically all my cooking (yes even baking!), so if using unsalted butter, add a pinch of salt 

Leek and goat cheese filling

2 large leeks

3 ounces of goat cheese

1 small lemon, zested

1 tablespoon of thyme

2 tablespoons of butter

Pinch of salt, freshly ground black pepper

1 egg

Directions

Let’s make some pastry! Take out your food processor. Cut the two sticks of butter into cubes and add to the food processor. Then add the flour.

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Pulse, until the butter is roughly the size of peas. Add 2 tablespoons of cold water and pulse a few times, it quickly comes into a dough. Don’t overmix here! If you do overmix, the pastry will be tough. 

Take the dough out of the food processor onto a lightly floured surface. Using your hands, roll the dough together into a large ball or oval. Divide the dough into two portions by using a pastry scraper or knife. I use my kitchen weight to make sure they are the same size, but this isn’t necessary! Wrap up one of the dough balls in saran wrap and throw into the fridge or freezer for another time. 

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Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper, and lightly coat in flour. Place the dough ball in the middle of the pan, and add a little bit of flour on top of the dough. First, using your hand, flatten the dough ball. Then using a rolling pin, gently roll out the dough, into a large circle (or rectangle!) that reaches the edge of the cookie sheet.

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I aim for the dough to be ⅛ inch thick. If the dough gets too warm (you know this is happening if it’s getting sticky while you are shaping it) put the cookie sheet in the fridge to allow the dough to firm up again.

Let’s make the filling! Leeks are super dirty, so make sure you clean them properly because an dirt in the dish will be gross. Cut the leeks in half widthwise, and then in half again lengthwise. Fill a large bowl with cold water and add the leek pieces. Swish the leeks around in the water, and separate the layers to ensure you have removed all the dirt. Once the leeks are clean, remove from the water bowl and lay out on a dish towel to dry.

Thinly slice the cleaned and dried leeks. 

In a large saute pan, turn the heat to medium-high. When the pan is warm, add 2 tablespoons of butter. The butter should melt quickly – then add the leeks and lower the heat to medium.

Cook the leeks 20-25 minutes, stirring frequently, until they caramelize. You will need to keep and eye on these! If they start to brown too quickly, turn the heat down. When the leeks are 1-2 minutes away from being done (golden brown!) add: pinch of salt, a couple grinds of black pepper, 1 teaspoon of thyme, and the zest from 1 lemon. Cook for another 1-2 minutes to allow the flavors to combine, and remove from the heat.

Assemble! Preheat the oven to 400 degree F. Take out the pastry dough (if in the fridge). Spread the goat cheese out in the middle of the galette, leaving about a 4-inch margin between where the goat cheese ends and the pastry ends. 

Add the caramelized leeks on top of the goat cheese. 

Cut from the edge of the dough to the start of the leek and goat cheese filling, making slits in the border of the galette in 2-inch intervals. Fold the flaps up and over the filling, overlapping as you go around the circle. 

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Crack the egg, whip it, and using a pastry brush, coat the galette with an egg wash before popping into the oven. Galette will bake for 40 minutes, until the crust is a dark brown. Take out and let cool before serving.