Strawberries are one of those fruits that usher in summer, and then linger for a bit, thankfully. They are still looking and tasting great now, and this homemade strawberry galette with a strawberry crunch topping is an easy and delicious dessert made with fresh strawberries that everyone will love. It's the best not-a-pie-but kind-of-like-one you will ever make!
I am definitely not lacking recipes using fresh strawberries or crumble toppings, my strawberry pie with crumble topping for one, and if you've never had a crisp, my fresh pineapple crisp is definitely where you should start, as it has a wonderful crumble crunch topping.
Jump to:
- What is the difference between a galette and a pie?
- Is galette dough the same as pie dough?
- Should I make homemade pie crust?
- Ingredients for the strawberry galette
- Strawberry crunch topping
- Ingredients in the strawberry crunch topping
- Tips for success
- Top tip
- Delicious strawberry recipes
- Strawberry galette with strawberry crunch topping
- Community
What is the difference between a galette and a pie?
Galettes are basically free form pies. Does that make sense?
What makes a pie a pie, is being prepared in a sloped sided pan. A galette on the other hand...think of a pie, minus the pan. They are rustic, no pan and no fancy crimping required. Anybody, and I mean anybody, can make a galette.
Is galette dough the same as pie dough?
It sure is, pies and galette recipes are all about a golden, crisp crust, and they both use a rolled-out pie crust base.
Should I make homemade pie crust?
This is a constant debate. Homemade? Store bought? A lot of people who call themselves 'real' bakers would turn their noses at a store bought crust. And that's fine. They can do whatever the hell they want.
I make my own crust most times, but sometimes, like when I am using a crumb topping, I just don't f'ing feel like it. And if you don't feel like it most or ALL of the time, you can also do whatever the hell you want. If you want to make your own, choose either the pie crust recipe here (all butter) or here (shortening, butter AND VODKA). I make both of these all the time.
Store bought crusts are all over the place in flavor and texture - mainly having to do with what they are made of. Trader Joe's is by far my favorite store bought crust, and never have I ever used this and someone asked me if it was store bought. It is all butter and, though a bit difficult to handle at first, it is by far the best one on the market - and reasonably priced. Here is a great article on store bought crusts ranked.
Ingredients for the strawberry galette
The strawberry galette recipe calls for what I would traditionally include in a fruit pie:
- Fresh strawberries.
- Sugar. Not a lot of sugar, in season strawberries are plenty sweet.
- Lemon juice. I always include some acidity in my fruit desserts, you need/want balance.
- Flour. When the fruit bakes, it will release juices, adding flour thickens the juices.
- Salt. Again, you need/want balance.
- Your favorite homemade pie crust or store bought (no judgement here)
Strawberry crunch topping
Now onto the good stuff...this strawberry crunch topping is easy, delicious and so very versatile. It is great on this strawberry galette, but can easily be baked up on top of a pie, a finishing touch on a cake (great for some texture on cakes) or baked up on it's own and used on top of ice cream. I have also put this on top of yogurt and oatmeal for an extra fun treat, and eating just on it's own with a spoon never hurts either.
Ingredients in the strawberry crunch topping
I have seen many a recipe for strawberry crunch toppings that call for jell-o, or golden oreo cookies, all of which sound great. But my homemade recipe uses dried strawberries, granola, melted butter and a touch of salt. All blitzed up together in a food processor, and you have a perfectly sweet and crunchy topping that is great for all your strawberry desserts.
Dried strawberries have an intense strawberry flavor and add a great splash of color to a crunch topping. These are the ones I use:
And you can use homemade granola, or your favorite store-bought brand. Whatever is easy and works for you.
Tips for success
- macerate the sliced strawberries a little bit in the sugar and lemon juice before adding flour and putting into the crust. This helps get the juices going.
- bake on the bottom third of your oven - this is no joke. This will ensure the crust gets cooked properly on the bottom.
- Cover the crunch topping with foil if it is browning too much. A foil cover - just lightly placed on the top, will solve this problem
Top tip
Don't be afraid of a golden brown color on the galette crust, as long as you've covered the strawberry crunch topping with some foil to prevent burning, you will be fine. You want a good, golden crisp crust!
Delicious strawberry recipes
Equipment
- Food processor
Ingredients
For the galette
- 1 recipe favorite pie crust rolled out into the best circle shape you can manage
- 4 cups sliced strawberries
- ¼ cup sugar
- 1 tablespoon flour
- 2 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp salt
For the strawberry crunch topping
- 1 cup granola store bought or homemade, your choice
- 2 tablespoon unsalted butter melted
- ¾ cup dried strawberries
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Instructions
For the strawberry crunch topping
- Place your granola, dried strawberries and salt in a food processor. Process on low, and drizzle in your melted butter until fully incorporated.
For the strawberry galette
- Preheat your oven to 350 and have a rack on the lower third of the oven ready to go. Have your pie crust rolled out and ready to go, I always keep mine in the fridge while I get the filling ready to go.
- In a large bowl, gently mix together your sliced strawberries, sugar, lemon juice, flour, vanilla and salt. Let it sit for a few minutes, macerate and get juices flowing.
- Pour all of the strawberry filling, including the accumulated juices, onto the middle of the rolled pie crust. Spread fairly evenly, but creating a sort of mound up to the center. It will look like too much filling, but the strawberries will cook down quite a bit.Also be sure to leave about and inch or so all the way around of pie crust, to fold over.
- Sprinkle the top of the filling area of the galette with the strawberry crumble topping evenly.
- Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes. About 10 minutes into baking, check the crunch topping, if it is starting to deeply brown cover, just the crunch topping, with a small square of foil. The galette is finished when the filling is bubbly and all the juices are flowing out the sides. The crumb topping should be browned nicely.
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