Super easy and delicious! This quick version of apple pie is festive enough to grace your Thanksgiving table!

Thanksgiving is in two short days and there is so much still to do! I finally got the turkey yesterday and I’m thinking of trying Alton Brown’s recipe this year. Do you brine your turkey or not? His recipe calls for it and even though I typically don’t brine the bird, I think I will try it this year. Early on, when I was just learning about Thanksgiving and the traditional dishes, I brined the turkey. I don’t remember it tasting amazing but I suspect there were few mistakes along the way! I used a store-bought brining blend, which could have had been not so good. But, more importantly, I probably overcooked the bird, and there is no fix for that. Since I’m slightly more experienced in the kitchen now, I will give it another try.

Traditionally, we will spend the day at my mother in law’s house. I will be making several of our favorite side dishes: creamed spinach, corn pudding, roasted butternut squash and Brussels Sprouts, cranberry relish and lots of pies. A couple days ago I made a pumpkin cheesecake with my caramel sauce for the Friendsgiving party we went to. The cake was soo delicious! I will make it tomorrow again (sorry, no time for posting the recipe). I will also make this, this and possibly this. 

This Apple Galette is very easy to make and tastes as good as an apple pie. Drizzle it with the caramel sauce, add a dollop of vanilla ice cream and you will be in pie heaven. When you are short on time and still behind with your cooking, this recipe could save you! Make the dough today, pop it in the freezer and on Thursday morning assemble the galette and bake. In the early Fall I like to bake this galette as well.

Using a food processor or pastry blender, quickly combine flour, sugar, salt and cold butter. Process few times, then add an egg yolk and 1-2 tablespoons of icy water. Pulse a few more times, just until the dough pulls together. Transfer the dough onto a large piece of plastic wrap, flatten into a disc and freeze ( for up to 1 month) or refrigerate until ready to use, at least 30 minutes. For more detailed description and pictures go here. 

In the meantime prepare the apples. The best apples for the apple pie are Golden Delicious, Braeburn and Pink Lady. They don’t turn mushy and have a nice flavor. You can mix a few kinds of apples for even better flavor. Here is a great article comparing 10 different kinds of apples written by J. Kenji Lopez-Alt from the Food Lab.

Peel, core and thinly slice the apples then squeeze lemon juice to prevent browning. Next, mix them with a bit of flour, sugar, cinnamon, raisins, walnuts and a pinch of nutmeg. Set aside.

Bring the dough back from the fridge, remove the wrap and place the dough on a baking pan lined with parchment paper. Roll the dough out until it slightly resembles a circle, about 12 inches in diameter. It is supposed to look imperfect and rustic so don’t try very hard to make a nice shape.

Place the fruit in the middle, leaving about 2 inches of border. Fold the dough over, making small pockets.

As an egg wash, here I’m using egg yolk mixed with 1 tablespoon of water to get more color in the crust. You can also use only an egg white mixed with water for some shine. The entire egg blended with some water can also be used to get both results. A bit of turbinado sugar sprinkled on the dough will also add a nice touch.

Chill the assembled galette for 30 minutes before baking. Place the oven rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat it to 375°F. Bake until the apples are bubbly and the edges of crust are golden brown.

Cool the galette for 10 minutes and drizzle a generous amount of my Homemade Spiced Caramel Sauce on top. Serve with vanilla ice cream, if desired.

Makes: one 9-inch galette     Prep time: 45 minutes     Ready in: 2.5 hrs

Ingredients:

The dough:

• 1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 stick unsalted butter, chilled and cubed
• 2-3 tablespoons ice water
• 1 egg yolk
• 2-3 tablespoons turbinado sugar for sprinkling
• 1 egg yolk + 1 tablespoon of water for brushing the dough

The filling:

• 3-4 cups of apple slices (from 4-5 medium size apples)
• 2-3 tablespoons of lemon juice
• 1½ tablespoon all-purpose flour
• ¼ cup light brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 2 tablespoons raisins
• 2 tablespoons walnut pieces
• pinch of nutmeg

Serve with my Homemade Spiced Caramel Sauce.

Directions:

1. The dough: using a food processor, add flour, sugar, salt into the mixing bowl. Pulse 2-3 times to mix it all together. Add the cubed butter and pulse it 6-8 times (it should resemble a coarse meal and still have some bigger pieces of butter visible). Add the egg yolk and 2 tablespoons of icy water. Process 2-3 times. If the dough appears too dry add another tablespoon of water.
2. Transfer the dough onto a plastic wrap and turn it into a ball, then flatten it into a disc. Wrap well and place into a fridge for at least 30 minutes.
3. The filling: peel, core and slice the apples. Place them in a bowl and add the lemon juice to prevent from browning. Add flour, sugar, cinnamon, raisins, walnuts and nutmeg. Stir well and set aside.
4. Preheat the oven to 375 making sure the oven rack is in the lower third. Line the baking sheet with parchment paper.
5. Place the refrigerated dough on the baking sheet and roll it out to about a 12-inch circle. Add the fruit in the center leaving about 2 inches of border. Fold the border over the fruit, making small pockets.
6. Brush the egg wash on the dough and sprinkle the turbinado sugar.
7. Bake for about 45 minutes, until the apples are soft and the edges are golden brown. Remove from the oven, cool it down and generously drizzle the caramel sauce. Serve!

Enjoy and Happy Thanksgiving!