The summer is already half over and it seems as if it just began. Days are flying by turning into weeks flying by. When we are doing the paper, we are always working a week ahead of time and that really seems to speed time up. Momma Said, “Blink too fast and you could teleport yourself into the future.”
Some days it is as if I just start work and it is time to go home, then other days seem to be hours and hours before it is time to leave. It feels as if the aliens came down and put me in a time warp that never ends. And the weather makes it feels that I am in the story of The Three Bears, it is either too hot or too wet to do anything, never just right. But the fighter in me says whatever comes the job must be done.
I am complaining about the heat and rain, I guess before too long I will be complaining about the cold and snow. I can never be satisfied but the weather is something that you just put up with during West Virginia summers. Momma Said, “Just go with the flow because what will be, will be.”
Cherry Galette with Almond Pastry Crust
Almond Pastry Dough:
½ Cup Sliced Almonds Toasted
1 ¼ Cups All-Purpose Flour
1 Tablespoon Sugar
½ Teaspoon Salt
8 Ounces Chilled Unsalted Butter Cut Into Cubes
½ Teaspoon Lemon Juice
4 To 6 Tablespoon Ice Water As Needed
Cherry Filling:
3 ½ Cups Pitted Sweet Cherries Fresh Or Frozen
¼ Cup Sugar
2 Tablespoons Cornstarch
Zest From 1 Orange
1 Egg Beaten
Raw Sugar
Instructions
Freeze the butter cubes for 15 minutes before starting.
Place the almonds in the bowl of a food processor and pulse a few times until coarsely chopped. Add the flour, sugar, and salt to the food processor bowl. Add the semi-frozen butter cubes and pulse together with the flour until the butter chunks in the flour are about the size of peas. Add the lemon juice and 4 tablespoons of water, drizzling over the flour as evenly as you can, and pulse the mixture again to get the dough to come together. You may need to add more water to get to this stage. (Alternatively, you can mix by hand using a pastry cutter or your fingers to cut the butter into the mixture until it resembles coarse crumbles. Then mix in the lemon juice and enough water to bring the dough together.)
Transfer the dough to a counter dusted with flour and shape the dough into a disk. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least thirty minutes before using. You can also do this step a day ahead of time.
When you’re ready to assemble the galette, let the pastry sit out on the counter for 5 minutes just to soften slightly.
Pre-heat the oven to 425°F.
Roll the pastry out into an 11-inch circle about ¼-inch thick. Transfer the circle to a sheet pan lined with parchment paper.
In a medium bowl, combine the pitted cherries, sugar, cornstarch and orange zest. Immediately place the fruit in the middle of the pastry circle, leaving a 2 to 3-inch border around the edge of the circle. Fold the edges of the pastry up around the cherry filling, pressing the pasty slightly so it stays in place. The center of the cherries should still be exposed.
Brush the pastry with the egg wash and sprinkle with a little raw or sanding sugar.
Bake at 425°F for about 35 minutes, until the pastry is nicely browned, and the cherries are bubbling.
Let cool for at least 20 minutes before serving. Serve warm or room temperature with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream. Garnish with toasted almonds if desired.