Apple Galette

Another French delicacy.

This gorgeous picture belies the near-catastrophe that the pie was. This was the first pie in a long while where I felt like giving up. Throw in the towel, literally. I had the hardest time layering the apple slices, which kept springing out at odd places and ruining the shape. And the whole thing took so long, the dough stuck to the silicone mat and I couldn’t quite transfer it to the pan. And I had a dinner appointment to make! Looking down at the squished up dough and the jumble of oxidized, brown apples, I just wanted to scoop the whole thing up, transfer it into a trash bag, and pretend the French had never invented this stupid galette. And for a split second, I saw myself doing it. It was like momentarily imagining abandoning a beloved pet that is being particularly, willfully naughty. We’ve all had those moments…

I don’t really know what kept me going. I mean, what really keeps us from quitting in situations like this? Ah, these psycho-philosophic questions I no longer have time for because I’m busy baking. (Which is ironic because I’d originally imagined, all those months ago, that I’d use this blog to air out my thoughts, using baking as “kindling.” I realized very quickly that baking is much more fun.) So, the simple answer is this: because quitting is NOT an option. Let the result be what it may, I have never quit a pie mid-way.

But really, I hate bad results. So, somehow, I willed it to be good:)

And it was very very good! (Which was a huge relief because I shared it with someone with the highest of standards.) The softened dough crisped up, the apple slices sorted themselves out, and even the shape looked “rustic.” It must have been part miracle… If I could just figure out how to make this without all the fuss and panic, it would actually be preferable to the standard apple pie. There’s something about the delicate layering of the slices and the perfect apple-to-crust ratio that makes it taste more elegant. And it’s so “light,” you could probably eat half the pie before you realize what you’ve done.

So, here’s to not giving up!

Looking back, there were quite a few similar cases. I picked the top 5 pies where I was really ready to quit, but didn’t… to some spectacular results:

1. Apple Galette, the miracle that sorted itself out

2. Fresh Berry Tart, the one where I remade the entire filling

3. Apricot Strip and Tartlets, the puff pastry challenge

4. Danish Pastry, the one requiring toothpick-and-string engineering

5. Raspberry and Grand Marnier Cream Cake Tart, the one where I had to start over many times because of a stupid and obvious mistake