Mixed Berry Galette

PIE!

I love pie.

I love the fruit soaked bottom crust and I enjoy picking at the jammy fruit puddles that have bubbled out around the edges.  I am a pie picker.  A picker of pies?   You see those purplish smear marks in the picture above, those were jammy puddles.  I spooned them off, straight from the oven.  They didn’t have a chance.

I learned my pie picking habits early….Grandma never minded that I would pick at her pies when I wandered into her kitchen and more importantly, grandpa never minded that my cruddy fingers were picking at his cherry pie before he even got a single slice.

You see, I grew up with a grandma that made cherry pie weekly for my grandpa, who ate cherry pie weekly.  For 60+ years.  I wonder where my mean sweet tooth came from?  Her pies were nothing crazy.  No random exotic fruit from some far away land that was only in season for 2.5 hours each year.  She used cherry pie filling from the can (probably the only canned food she ever bought) and her pie crust was a simple flour/vegetable oil/milk crust…one that should would make without ever measuring an ingredient.  Every now and then she would stray from the usual cherry and bust out a blueberry or a pineapple or maybe a sugar cream or custard.

She taught me how to crimp the edges using my thumb and pointer finger.  She taught me how to make cinnamon rolls out of the extra pie dough.  She taught me that pie dough isn’t something to be feared.  She taught me that fruit shrinks when baked, so pile that filling high.  She taught me that pies do not require a recipe, fruit + thickener + sugar and you are golden.  She taught me that baking a pie can make you feel like a true baker.  She taught me to keep it simple.  She taught me that a runny pie is not the end of the world…it still tastes like pie and when paired with vanilla ice cream, the extra juice is welcomed!  She taught me to wait for that bubbling around the edges….so you aren’t bummed out with a runny pie.  Therefore, she taught me patience, which is still a work in progress.

While I might be straying a bit from her crust recipe and forgoing the pie plate and crimped edges all together with this pie…I think she would approve of the final outcome.  And I think she would totally dig the rustic style…I know I do.

Mixed Berry Galette

Makes about a 9 inch round

Ingredients

Crust

1 Cup Flour
6 Tablespoons Butter, VERY COLD ( frozen if possible), and cut into small pieces
2 Tablespoons Vegetable Shortening
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1 Tablespoon Granulated White Sugar
3-5 Tablespoons Ice Water

6 ounces Blackberries
6 Ounces Blueberries
6 Ounces Raspberries
1 Pint Strawberries, hulled and quartered
3 Tablespoons Granulated White Sugar
4 Tablespoons All Purpose Flour
Zest of 1 Lemon, grated
1 Whole Egg + 1 Tablespoon Water, whisked together = egg wash
1-2 Tablespoons Raw Cane Sugar

Prepare crust.  I prefer making pie crust in a food processor.  In the bowl of a food processor, combine flour, salt, and sugar.  Pulse several times to combine ingredients.  Add very cold butter and vegetable shortening and pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal, about 10 seconds.

With food processor running, slowly add ice water in a steady stream until the dough starts to form a ball.  You do not want the dough to be wet or sticky.  The amount of water needed can vary each time dough is made.   It is best to add water slowly and tablespoon by tablespoon until the dough starts to come together.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and shape in a round, flat disk.  Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least one hour before using.

An hour later…

Preheat oven to 375°F.

On a lightly floured surface, roll dough out into a 13 inch round about 1/8 inch thick.  Transfer dough to parchment lined baking sheet and place in fridge until needed.

In a large mixing bowl, carefully toss together blackberries, blueberries, raspberries, strawberries with sugar, flour, and zest of 1 lemon.

Remove rolled out pie crust from fridge and pile berries high into the center of the crust leaving a 2 inch border for the crust.  Carefully fold up the sides of the crust, making pleats and pinching together the edges as you go.  It doesn’t need to be perfect – the more uneven the better!  Brush the egg wash onto the crust and sprinkle with raw cane sugar.

Place in preheated oven and bake for 45 to 60 minutes until the crust is golden brown and the filling is bubbling.  Remove from oven and let cool before serving.