Galette Dough
By: Helen Pitlick
Published: Friday, December 10, 2010 - 1:02am

Ingredients




2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled, cut into ½ inch pieces (1 ½ sticks)
7 tablespoons ice water

Preparation

1 Combine the flour, sugar and salt in a large mixing bowl. Cut 4 tablespoons of the butter into the flour mixture with a pastry blender, mixing until the dough resembles coarse cornmeal. (Butter dispersed throughout the flour in tiny pieces makes the dough tender.) Cut in the remaining 8 tablespoons butter with the pastry blender, just until the biggest pieces of butter are the size of large peas or a little larger. (These bigger pieces of butter make the dough flaky.) 2 Dribble 7 tablespoons of ice water (that's 1/2 cup minus 1 tablespoon) into the flour mixture in several stages, tossing and mixing between additions, until the dough just holds together. Toss the mixture with your hands, letting it fall through your fingers. Do not pinch or squeeze the dough or you will overwork it, making it tough. Keep tossing the mixture until it starts to pull together; it will look rather ropy, with some dry patches. If it looks as if there are more dry patches than ropy parts, add another tablespoon of ice water and toss the mixture until it comes together.  3 Divide the dough in half, firmly shape each half into a ball, and wrap tightly with plastic wrap, pressing down to flatten each ball into a 4 inch disk. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before rolling out.

About


The dough will keep in the freezer for a few weeks; thaw in the refrigerator for 6 to 8 hours. Use as directed in the accompanying recipe for Upside-Down Pear and Red Wine Tart or another favorite recipe. From "Chez Panisse Fruit" by Alice Waters