sweet miscellany

The last days of summer are upon us, and quite frankly, I’m not sad at all. I’ll be glad to wish summer a fond farewell and welcome cooler temperatures, pumpkins, fall leaves, and sweaters. Speaking of pumpkins, I had my first soy pumpkin spice latte of the season at Starbucks today. This was the first time I was actually able to tolerate a hot beverage after our scorching summer. Hopefully, there will be many more hot beverages to come as the temperatures gradually lower to a tolerable degree.

Before I bid summer a fond farewell, I decided to take advantage of some stone fruits that are still available in the market. I bought some beautiful large peaches and golden plumcots tinged with a bit of red at the store the other day. In wondering what to do with them, I decided that I would keep it simple and let their natural flavors shine through. I made a rustic galette which is basically an easy, free-form pie without the pie dish. You can bake it up right on a lined baking sheet and customize it to your heart’s content. I used a large peach and a plumcot, but you can mix and match any stone fruits as long as you have about 2 1/2 to 3 cups of fruit total. I have also included notes on how to make it gluten free or vegan (or both!).

Stone Fruit Galette

for the crust
1 cup of whole wheat pastry flour (or 1 cup GF flour mix, such millet, oat, and brown rice flour )
1/2 tsp fine grain sea salt
2 tsp raw sugar
1 stick cold unsalted butter, diced ( or 1 stick of Earth Balance )
4 tbsp ice water

for the filling
1 large peach, sliced
1 plumcot, sliced
1 tsp fresh lemon juice
1/4 tsp ground ginger (or 1/2 tbsp fresh finely minced ginger)
2 tsp raw sugar
1 tbsp whole wheat pastry flour (or oat flour), if needed

For the crust: in a food processor, pulse the flour, salt, and sugar a few times until combined. Add the butter and pulse until it resembles large crumbles. With the processor on low, Add the ice water and process until the dough comes together in 1 or 2 balls. Form the dough into a 1 inch thick flat disc and chill at least 30 minutes. If you do not have a food processor, you can cut the butter into the flour by hand or with a pastry cutter, then add the ice water and bring it together with your hands.

Once the dough has chilled, pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough into about an 1/8 inch thick round (about 12 or so inches across). Transfer it to a lined baking sheet. In a bowl, gently toss together the sliced fruit, ginger, sugar, and lemon juice. If your fruit was very ripe and juicy, you may need to add a tbsp. of flour here to help thicken the juices. Put the fruit in the center of the crust leaving a 2 inch border. Fold up the dough a section at a time to create a crust around the fruit and pinch it to ensure it stays when baking. Bake the galette 50 to 60 minutes until the edges are golden and baked through.

serves 6

I never thought fall would actually get here. I guess technically it isn’t here quite yet, but I am a little anxious considering the type of summer we have been having. Maybe I wouldn’t be so angry with summer had I not been working out in the extreme heat most days and experiencing the absence of rain coupled with worsening drought conditions. I have been wishing for September since June, hoping that it would bring some sort of relief. Well I think my wishful thinking wasn’t in vain because we are supposed to get a “cool front” here which means at least the highs won’t be in the triple digits. In celebtration of fall’s arrival, slightly lower temperatures, and the fact that I might have a love affair with anything pumpkin, I decided to bake up some pumpkin scones.

These scones are not too sweet with a subtle hint of pumpkin and spice. If for some reason you can’t enjoy them within a few days, you can freeze them after baking and create a little stash of pumpkin goodness in your freezer. If you want to make these a little more indulgent, you could make a glaze from powdered sugar, milk, and some cinnamon and drizzle that over the top once they have cooled.

Whole Wheat Pumpkin Scones
makes 6 large, or 12 small scones

1 1/2 cups plus 2 tbsp. organic whole wheat pastry flour, plus more for kneading
1/2 cup oat flour*
1/4 cup organic raw sugar
2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. fine grain sea salt
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp. ground allspice
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1 stick of cold unsalted butter, diced
1/2 cup milk of your choice (I used coconut milk, but almond milk would be lovely also)
1/2 cup organic pumpkin puree
1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
2 to 3 tbsp. raw pepitas (opt.)
Coarse raw sugar for sprinkling (opt.)

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silpat.

In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the flours, sugar, baking powder, salt, and spices until combined. Put the flour in the bowl of a stand mixer along with the cold, diced butter and mix on low speed until the mixture resembles a coarse meal. You can also do this by hand with either your fingers or a pastry cutter.

In a separate small bowl, whisk together the pumpkin puree, milk, and vanilla until combined. With the mixer running on a low speed, drizzle in the wet ingredients until the dough just comes together. (If you are doing this by hand, drizzle the wet mixture into the bowl with the dry ingredients and mix lightly with a fork until the dough comes together).

Turn the dough out onto a work surface dusted liberally with flour and knead it a few times to make sure all of the ingredients are incorporated. Pat the dough into a 1 inch thick circle and cut in into 6 wedges for large scones, or 12 wedges for smaller scones. Put the scones onto a lined baking sheet about 1 1/2 inches apart (they will spread a tad) and sprinkle with the coarse sugar and pepitas. Bake for 20-22 minutes until golden brown and baked through. Enjoy!

*You can make your own oat flour by putting whole rolled oats into your food processor or high-powered blender and processing until it is the consistency of flour.