A fantastic pie that’s the perfect way to enjoy in-season, local plums. I prefer purple prune plums – smaller than usual imported plums. A galette has only one crust and folding the dough over the fruit before baking gives an attractive rustic effect that’s easier than pie. I like to make pastry in the food processor; you can also do it by hand using a wire hand pastry blender. I got the idea of sprinkling a mixture of almonds, flour and sugar under the fruit from ace chef Jacques Pepin; it stops the juice from making the crust soggy.
1½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
¼ tsp salt
¾ cup cold butter, cubed
⅓ cup ice water
Almond Layer
⅓ cup finely chopped almonds
3 tbsp granulated sugar
3 tbsp unbleached all-purpose flour
Filling
1½ lb (675 g) large or prune plums, pitted and cut in ½ inch wedges
¼ cup granulated sugar
3 tbsp apricot, peach or apple jelly
Add flour and salt to bowl of food processor; process to combine. Add butter; pulse on and off until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add water through feed tube, pulsing, until mixture starts to clump. Transfer dough to bowl. Gather into ball; press into disc and wrap. Refrigerate until chilled, about 30 minutes. (You can chill longer but if you do, you will have to bring dough to room temperature before rolling it out.)
Meanwhile, make Almond Layer: Add almonds, sugar and flour to food processor. Process until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
Preheat oven to 400F.
On floured surface, roll dough into circle about 14 inches (35 cm) in diameter. Drape over rolling pin; transfer to pizza pan or large baking sheet. Sprinkle almond mixture over dough to within 1 to 2 inches (2.5 to 5 cm) of border.
Filling: Arrange plums, slightly overlapping, in concentric circles on top of almond mixture, again leaving dough border bare. If you have plums left over, use to fill any gaps. Sprinkle plums with sugar, reserving about 1 tablespoon. Carefully fold edges of dough over plums, pleating as you go, to form rustic tart. Patch any breaks in pastry by pinching edges together so juices will not leak out. Brush dough border with water; sprinkle it with remaining tablespoon of sugar.
Place large baking sheet on lower rack to catch any drips. Bake galette in centre of oven about 40 minutes or until crust is golden brown, fruit is tender and filling is bubbly.
Cool on wire rack. Melt jelly in microwave or over medium heat in small saucepan. Drizzle or brush over plums. Serve with vanilla ice cream, thickened yogurt or crème fraîche.
Makes about 10 servings.