Peachy Keen

Though Fall is my favorite season, I think summer is second best.  I seriously hate the heat, but I love everything else that comes with this time of the year.  Lately I've really been missing being outside and all of the activities that once accompanied my summer months.  Bike rides with my family, camping and bonfires, running where there are trees and fresh cut grass, and probably at the top of the list---fresh summer fruits and vegetables from the farmer's market.

I've been craving all things summer.  And what better fruit to celebrate these mid summer months with than peaches!?

I splurged and picked up a couple from the grocery store the other day and knew just what I was going to do with them.  I've never been much of a pie person, but lately flaky crusts and syrupy fruit sound like the perfect combination.  On the 4th I attempted some Apple-Berry Hand Pies, but I didn't think they were quite recipe worthy.  I was still on the search.  And then Pinterest saved my life, again.

That's where this beauty comes in:

Yeah!  See what I mean about that flaky crust and syrupy fruit!?  Perfection!  I adapted it from this recipe, giving it my own personal touch.  There's was a bit more "prim and proper" so along with veganizing this recipe, I also made it more rustic.  Being more rustic gave me liberty to not only adjust the flavors, but make it more natural.  Basically it gave the excuse to not have to be so perfect with it.
Rustic Peach Galette 



Ingredients


Crust:
1 1/4 cup spelt flour
1 1/2 tsp. raw sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
4 oz. (1/2 cup, 1 stick, 8 TBS.) vegan butter, cut into small cubes
4-6 TBS. ice water


Filling:
2 large yellow peaches, pitted & sliced into 1/4-1/2 in. slices (which is what they advised, but I only had the white variety)
3 TBS. raw sugar
1 TBS. flour
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. almond extract
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
dash of cardamom
dash of nutmeg

Egg Wash for coating crust:
1 TBS. cornstarch
1/2 TBS. water

A Sprinkling of Coarse Sugar


Directions
1.  In a food processor pulse the flour, sugar and salt just a few times to combine it.  Next, add the cubes of butter and pulse 8 times.  You still want to see little specks of butter, but nothing larger than pea size.  Now pour in water 1-2 TBS. at a time pulsing between each one, until the dough just begins to clump.  Remove from work bowl and place on a sheet of wax paper forming into a disk.  The key here is to not handle the dough too much or over work it.  Now wrap it up and place in the refrigerator for 1 hour.

2.  Preheat oven to 425 and cover a cookie sheet with parchment paper or baking mat, then set aside.  Place peach slices in a bowl and sprinkle with sugar, flour, vanilla & almond extract, cinnamon, cardamom, and nutmeg.  Gently toss around with a fork to ensure everything gets well coated.

3.  In a small bowl mix together cornstarch and water for egg wash and set aside.

4.  On a lightly floured surface roll out the dough to about a 12 inch diameter.  Then gently pick it up and place on a prepared cookie sheet.

5.  Now arrange peach slices in an overlapping single layer in the center of the dough leaving a consistent amount of dough.

6.  Fold the outer edges of dough over the filling.  Use a pastry brush to coat the exposed dough with egg wash, and then sprinkle with coarse sugar.

7.  Place in the oven and cook for about 15-25 minutes, until nicely browned.  Remove from the oven and allow to cool on baking sheet over a rack for about 15 minutes.

This is also a recipe that will make your house smell absolutely delicious.  Inhaling never smelled so good!  As you can see I opted for a spelt crust, which made it a bit earthier.  It also helped to uphold and balance out those spices I added in as well.  And I didn't find that using the white peaches made this recipe any less satisfying.  It was a scrumptious balance of sweet and spicy all at the same time.  And I love how the peaches were enveloped in caramelly goodness.

I let it cool just enough to not scald my tongue on any bubbling goo.  You could pair it with vanilla ice-cream if you wanted, but I thought it stood well alone.  But maybe that's because I wasn't waiting around for any ice-cream...

I could definitely use a few friends around with this whole baking kick I've been on, as my husband is not really a fan of desserts.  When I showed him the pictures of what I was going to make and asked him if he'd eat any, he replied with. "Yeah if it had cheese and sauce on it instead."  Pizza never escapes his mind.  Oh well...to the fridge it will go.