Apricot Galette

Ingredients :

For the crust -
1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
2 tbsp granulated sugar,  plus extra for  sprinkling.
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, cold and cubed
1 egg
1/4 cup cold milk
1 egg, beaten for wash (optional)
additional sugar for sprinkling


For the filling -
5 apricots thinly sliced
1/4 cup of blueberries (optional)
2 tbsp honey
4 tbsp sugar **
2 tbsp of apricot jam (optional)

Serves 6-8



Directions :

1. Make the crust : In a medium bowl whisk the flour, sugar and salt together. Add butter and use your fingers to rub the butter and flour together such that you get sand like texture. Add milk and egg, use you hands to bring the dough together. Don't knead the dough to much , else you loose the flakiness of the crust. Shape the dough into a ball and flatten it into a disc. Wrap it in a plastic wrap and refrigerate it for at least one hour (or you could freeze it for half an hour)
3. Preheat oven at 375F. Line the baking sheet with parchment paper. Set it aside.
4. Make the filling : Mix apricots with sugar and honey , tossing well to coat the fruit. DO the same for blueberries separately. Set aside and allow the mixture to soak until the dough is ready.
5. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough into two 6 inch circle. Trim the circle to make it clean cut if desired. Transfer the dough to the prepared baking sheet.
6. Arrange or dump the fruit in the middle , leaving  a 2 inch border all around. Gently fold the edges of the dough over the fruit and press gently to seal. Brush the crust with egg-wash. Sprinkle crust with sugar.
7. Bake it for 45 minutes or until golden brown.
8. In a small bowl add apricot jam and 1 tbsp of water. Microwave it for 20 seconds and mix it together. Brush the top of the apricots with apricot jam mixture to get that nice gloss. Serve warm or at room temperature.

** If your fruit is a little sour, you might want to add more sugar.

You can use any fruit of your choice to make galettes. For instance you can use strawberries , blueberries, blackberries , apples, peaches. I made blueberry galette as well. However since blueberries leave out a lot of juice when heated, their filling was a little different than apricot/peach. I had to add corn-strach with the fruit before dumping it onto the crust to absorb the fruit juice.

Ingredients for Blueberry filling :
1 pint blueberries
1/ 4 cup sugar **
2 tbsp cornstarch
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp vanilla extract

Stir together all the ingredients to prepare the filling.

Baked Berry Oatmeal

A super yummy and healthy make-ahead breakfast !

Ingredients :

Dry Ingredients -
3 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup packed brown sugar *
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon

Wet Ingredients -
2 1/2 cups milk
2 eggs
1 tbsp vanilla extract
3 tbsp coconut oil or butter
2 cups fresh berries *
1/2 cup golden raisins
1/3 cup chopped pecans

* see notes on the bottom



Directions :

1. Preheat the oven to 375 F.
2. Combine all the dry ingredients in a bowl. Place half of this oat mixture in the baking dish. Spread it evenly. Top with half the berries and raisins. Add the remaining oats mixture.
3. Whisk the eggs, milk, oil and vanilla extract. Pour this wet mixture over the the oats.
4. Top with rest of the berries and raisins along with chopped pecans.
5. Bake for 45 minutes or until the oats have absorbed all the liquid.

Serve warm. I like it with a splash of milk, it gives the oatmeal a creamy texture. This dish can be refrigerated for 4-5 days. Just let it cool first, then cover and refrigerate. Reheat before serving.

Notes :

1. You can replace the berries with sliced bananas. When you do so , double the amount of cinnamon and even add some nutmeg powder. It will result in a yummy banana-nut flavoured oatmeal.
2. The dish is moderately sweet. If you would like it sweeter you can increase the amount of sugar or drizzle the dish with honey or maple syrup while serving.
3. Brown sugar can be replaced with granulated sugar.