sweet miscellany

Make your pastry first. Add the flour and salt to a bowl, mixing to combine. Add the cold butter to the flour mixture. Using your fingers, a fork, or a pastry blender, begin to rub the butter into the flour. Once the pieces of butter are the size of a pea or smaller, and the mixture looks coarse and sandy, add your ice water. Mix the water in with a wooden spoon. Once the dough begins to come together, knead it a few times with your hands. If it seems a bit too dry, add a splash or two more of the ice water. Pat the dough into a round about 1-inch thick, wrap it in parchment or plastic wrap, and place it in the fridge. Allow it to chill for at least 30 minutes.

While the crust is chilling, you can start on the filling. Cut each onion in half, removing and discarding the stem end. Cut each half into thin slices. Set a skillet over medium-low heat. Add 1 tbsp of the olive oil. Once the oil is to temperature, add the sliced onion, the dried thyme, and a pinch of salt to the skillet. Cook the onions over medium low, stirring every minute or two, until they have turned golden and caramelized. This will take about 20-30 minutes total. Once the onions are ready, put them in a bowl to cool and return the skillet to the stove over medium low heat.

Add the remaining tablespoon of oil to the skillet. While the oil heats up, remove the stems from your bunch of chard. Chop the stems into thin slices and set them aside. Roughly chop the leaves and set them aside. Add the chopped stems to your skillet and sauté them just until they’ve softened (about 3-5 minutes) then add the chopped chard leaves. Sauté this mixture for an additional 2-3 minutes to allow the leaves to wilt. Remove the skillet from the heat and set it aside to cool.

Once your chard and caramelized onions have cooled down (you don’t want them hot or they will melt the butter in the pastry), remove your dough and your vegan ricotta from the fridge. Pre-heat your oven to 400 degrees.

Get out a standard baking sheet. Cut a piece of parchment paper that is roughly the same size and place it down on your work surface. Alternately, you can do this with a reusable silicone baking mat if you like. Dust the parchment lightly with flour, then unwrap the dough and place it on the flour. Roll the dough out to a round shape that is about 1/8-inch thick and 10 inches wide. Arrange the cooled onions in an even layer on the dough, leaving about a 1 to 1 1/2-inch border. Dollop about half of your vegan ricotta over the onions. Then, cover the onions and ricotta with the cooled chard. Add the remaining dollops to the top of the chard.

Begin to fold up the edges of the crust over the filling. If the crust cracks, you can always pinch it back together. Once you’ve folded up all of the edges over the filling, carefully transfer the sheet of parchment with the galette to your baking sheet. Chill the galette in the fridge for 15-20 minutes (this helps to ensure the flaky crust and keeps the butter from immediately leaking out of the pastry!).

If you want, you can brush the crust with non-dairy milk or an egg wash before baking to ensure it gets nice and golden. Bake your galette in your preheated 400 degree oven for 35-40 minutes or until the crust is golden. Garnish with fresh thyme leaves if you like!