Author: Susan Murray, www.awomancooksinasheville.com
Ingredients
FOR THE ALMOND CREAM
6tbspbuttersoftened
¾cpowdered sugar
¾calmond flour
Pinchof salt
2eggsroom temperature
1tbsprum
1tspvanilla
FOR THE CAKE
1/3capricot jam
2sheets puff pastry
1small almond or bean
Instructions
MAKE THE ALMOND CREAM
Beat the butter and sugar in the bowl of a mixer until almost white in color and very light. Scrap the sides and bottom of the bowl to make sure all the sugar is mixed in. (5 minutes)
Beat in the almond flour and a pinch of salt.
Beat in one whole egg and the whites of a second egg. Reserve the egg yolk.
Add the rum and the vanilla and mix well. Cover and refrigerate for at least an hour or up to three days.
Add 1 tsp of water to the reserved egg yolk and mix them together. Save in the refrigerator until you assemble the cake.
ASSEMBLE THE CAKE
Remove one sheet of puff pastry from the refrigerator and cut a 9” circle.
Place it on a parchment lined baking tray.
Spread the jam over the puff pastry being careful to leave a 1-2” inch border around the edge.
Spread the pastry cream over the jam. Press the bean (or almond) into the pastry cream.
Remove the second sheet of puff pastry from the refrigerator and cut a second 9” circle.
Use water to wet the rim of the bottom circle (with the filling) and lay the second circle on top of it. Use your fingers to seal around the edges. Try not to miss any of the circle. If you do, some of the filling may leak out. It won’t change the flavor of the cake, but it won’t rise as high.
Scallop the edges of the cake by using the flat side of a knife to indent the pastry every 1-2 inches around the whole cake.
Cover the cake and put it in the refrigerator for an hour.
BAKE THE CAKE
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
Use the egg wash you saved to brush over the top of the cake. Again, be careful not to let it drip down the sides which will keep the pastry from rising.
Take a sharp knife and score the top of the cake in a decorative pattern. Don’t cut all the way through to the filling, just score the top layer of the pastry. Poke 5-6 holes in to top to vent the steam.
Turn the oven down to 400 degrees and bake 30-40 minutes until it is risen and golden brown. Check it after 20 minutes and if it is browning too fast, tent it with foil for the last ten minutes.
Let it cool for 15 minutes before serving. The galette can be eaten warm or at room temperature