Sweet And Floral Peach Lavender Galette Recipe

When the desire for a sweet treat strikes, why not try something a little different with this sweet and floral peach lavender galette? This easy and elegant dessert is a tantalizing combination of flaky crust, fresh fruit, and fragrant lavender. Foodie recipe developer Julianne De Witt shares this galette recipe and says, "A galette is a rustic French-style pie baked on a cookie sheet. Galettes can be savory or sweet and this peach galette is the perfect way to showcase summer fruits."

If the thought of making homemade pie seems intimidating, she notes, "I like this recipe because it's far simpler than the traditional pie but looks impressive and tastes delicious." Indeed, the galette's flavor profile is anything but ordinary. "The addition of lavender adds a light floral taste that complements the sweetness of the peaches," De Witt describes. 

The easy prep means this recipe is perfect as the elegant ending to a dinner party. In fact, if you want to make it in advance, De Witt tells us, "This galette will last 2 days, covered and kept at room temperature but is best enjoyed the day you make it. The dough can be made up to 3 days in advance and kept in the fridge or frozen for 3 months."

For the galette crust, you'll need all-purpose flour, sugar, salt, salted butter (cut into cubes), and ice water. For the filling, get large fresh peaches, sugar, all-purpose flour, and dried culinary lavender. De Witt uses white peaches but any variety works. To assemble the galette, use a beaten egg for the egg wash and sugar for sprinkling. If desired, pick up vanilla ice cream to serve.

Place the flour, 1 tablespoon sugar, salt, and butter in a food processor.

Pulse until the mixture resembles coarse sand.

Add the ice water, one tablespoon at a time, to the flour mixture and pulse, until the dough has just begun to come together. Use only enough water to form the dough.

Remove the dough and form into a disk.

Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.

To make the filling, wash and dry the peaches.

Slice the peaches to about ¼ inch thick.

Add the peaches, sugar, flour, and lavender to a bowl and stir. Set aside.

Preheat the oven to 400 F.

Sprinkle flour on the work surface and place the chilled dough on top. Use the rolling pin to roll out the dough into a 12-inch circle.

Place the dough on a parchment-lined baking sheet.

Arrange the peaches in a circle on the dough, overlapping them slightly and making sure to leave a 2-inch border.

Fold the edges of the dough over the peaches.

Brush the crust with egg wash.

Sprinkle the crust with the remaining sugar.

Bake for 35 – 40 minutes, until pastry has browned, and peach juices have thickened. 

Allow to rest for 10 minutes before serving.

Serve with vanilla ice cream, if desired.

If you're more accustomed to seeing lavender in your garden than on your dessert plate, it's time you learned about its alternate uses. De Witt calls for dried culinary lavender for this recipe, and explains, "Most lavender is safe to eat. However, culinary lavender (also known as English or true lavender) has less oil than the aromatic lavender used in soaps and perfumes." Additionally, culinary lavender typically undergoes more thorough processing to eliminate stems that are best kept out of your food.

If you're able to find culinary lavender at the store, De Witt recommends, "Look for bright blue/purple flowers (rather than greyish)." Meanwhile, fresh sprigs of culinary lavender are sometimes available at farmers' markets. Between the two, she notes, "Dried lavender is more potent than fresh so you'll want to use less." Chances are you'll buy a small bundle, and there are plenty of ways to put culinary lavender to use. "Lavender works wonderfully in simple syrup added to lemonade or gin cocktails and in cookies and cakes," De Witt suggests.

Galettes are a fuss-free way to make a pie-adjacent dessert with less effort, and De Witt offers a few basic tips to help ensure your galette is as successful as possible. Starting with the dough, it's best not to overwork or knead it. Once the ingredients are combined in the food processor, quickly shape the dough into a disk. "Overworking the dough will cause the butter to melt and the dough will toughen up," De Witt warns and adds, "Light and flaky pastry is the goal here." Keeping the dough cold is important, and De Witt explains, "Chilling the dough allows the gluten in the flour to relax, thus making it easier to roll." Another benefit to cooling the dough is it won't shrink as it bakes. 

Once the dough is prepped, the assembly is the next big step. As you place the sliced peaches on the surface of the dough, be sure to stick to a single layer. "Overlapping is good but stacking the fruit will cause the crust to become soggy," De Witt says. Still, you don't have to be too fussy about it as she points out, "It's meant to look rustic." Finally, be patient and let the galette rest for 10 minutes after it comes out of the oven. This will give the peach juices time to set instead of leaking out as you slice into it.