Around the World in 12 Dishes - Apple Galette

Here we go, off to the land of love...France. When I think of France I think of fields of lavender blowing softly in the breeze, riding my bike along a winding road and drinking wine as the sunsets. Too much? Whatever...a girl can dream.

So, when I discovered that we were traveling to France this month (after our fun eating adventure in Ireland last month) I thought, what a perfect way to welcome spring. My girls and I are well aware of french cuisine...we've seen "Julie and Julia" and we are HUGE fans of the Food Network's "French Cooking at Home". We're kind of obsessed with great cooking shows. For this month's dish I wanted to try something simple and yet something that would challenge my girls to learn a new technique. An apple galette fit the bill. "Galette" is a term used in French cuisine to refer to any flat and round cake made of pastry, that may be sweet or savoury.

puff pastry (store-bought is easiest)

2 apples

wedge of lemon

¼ teaspoon cinnamon

1 tablespoon apricot jam

1 tablespoon milk

1, ¼ teaspoon granulated sugar

1. Preheat the oven to 375F

2. Roll out the puff pastry to approximately 8" X 11" rectangle. You can trim it into a circle if you wish, but it's not necessary.

3. Spread the apricot jam around the center of the rectangle..leaving a 4" perimeter...this will be under the apples.
4. Slice the apples thinly...here's where the new skill comes into play...I had my daughter cut the thin apple slices.

6. Toss the apples in a bowl and coat with lemon juice, cinnamon and 1 teaspoon of granulated sugar.
5. Arrange the slices in a circular pattern in the middle of the rectangle...take your time and create something beautiful.

6. Fold the sides of puff pastry up and over the edge of the apples...leaving a "window" of apples in the middle of the galette.

7. Brush the milk on to the puff pastry and sprinkle, lightly, with ¼ teaspoon of sugar.

7. Bake on a parchment paper lined baking sheet for about 25-30 minutes.

8. Remove from the oven when golden brown and bubbling, slice, serve and enjoy.

We really felt like Laura Calder as we were preparing and baking this galette. The galette was so easy to make and quite delicious served with whipped cream, or you could serve it with ice cream. My daughter was very proud of her new found slicing skills and apple arranging skills.

Now the fun begins. Have you ever been to France? Do you enjoy cooking French cuisine? Share your stories with us on the Around the World in 12 Dishes Facebook page. Have you written a post about French cuisine? Please link up your post and we would love to see how other people have been cooking around the world. Don't forget to print off our France placemat and our France passport pages...learn all about France and have fun too.