Rustic Strawberry + Sage Galette

Galettes are the perfect summertime dessert – quick to make so that you have more time to spend outdoors, and also the best way to use up excess summer fruits (berries, stonefruit, etc.). This rustic style galette has a very simple crust that as my husband described it, “tastes very healthy.” For a sweeter crust, feel free to add a bit more sweetener. For a less “earthy” flavor, you can use a mix of whole wheat and all purpose flour.

Prep time: 20 minutes (plus chilling time) | Cook time: 30–40 minutes | Serves 4

Ingredients:

Crust:
1 cup (145g) whole wheat flour (I used Roan Mills Sonora Wheat Flour)
4 Tablespoons cold butter or non-dairy butter (I used Miyoko’s plant-based butter)
1 Tablespoon sucanat (or granulated sweetener of your choice)
4–5 Tablespoons ice water 

Filling:
1 pint of strawberries
4-8 sage leaves (use more if leaves are smaller; fewer if leaves are large)
1 teaspoon sucanat (or granulated sweetener of your choice)
1 teaspoon arrowroot (you can also substitute cornstarch)

Preparation:

Place the flour, butter and sucanat in a food processor fitted with the dough blade (this is the all-plastic blade that came with your machine). Pulse a few times until the butter is crumbled throughout the dough. (If you don’t have a food processor, place ingredients in a large bowl and use a pastry cutter instead.) Add 4 tablespoons of ice water to the machine and pulse a few more times to incorporate water into the flour mixture. You will likely need to scrape any excess flour up from the bottom edges of the food processor bowl and pulse a few more times. If there is still excess flour, add up to 1 tablespoon additional ice water in ½ tablespoon increments, pulsing until the dough has formed fairly uniform sized pieces that resemble small pebbles.

Transfer dough onto a lightly-floured work surface. Use your hands to shape the dough into a circular disc, about 1 inch thick. Place the prepared dough in a shallow bowl and cover with a tea towel. Refrigerate dough for 30 minutes.

While the dough chills, sliced the strawberries until you have about 1¾ cups of chopped berries (you will have a few extra berries left over to snack on). Place sliced berries in a bowl.

Chiffonade the sage: stack the leaves on top of one another (up to 4 at a time) and roll the leaves to form a cigar shape. Use a knife to slice the cigar into thin ribbons. Then chop the ribbons into smaller sections so that you’re left with what should resemble sage confetti. Add the chopped sage to the berries, along with the sucanat and arrowroot. Gently stir and let the berries sit while the dough finishes chilling.

Meanwhile, pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees (F) and line a baking sheet with a sheet of parchment.

When the dough has finished chilling, return it to a lightly-floured surface and use a rolling pin to roll it into a circle about ¼-inch thick. (If your circle isn’t perfectly round, it’s okay – even an oval or more rectangular shape can still be folded into a beautiful galette).

Carefully transfer your rolled dough onto the center of the prepared baking sheet – here’s a quick tutorial if you’ve never done this before.

Add the berry filling to the center of the dough, trying to keep an even border of dough on all sides of your pile of berries.

Gently begin to fold the dough border in towards the center of the galette. If the creases as you fold, press each side of the crease together (this will help keep the juices from the berries from oozing out during cooking. If this does happen, don’t sweat it – your galette will still taste great).

Bake the galette for 30–40 minutes, until the bottom and edges are just lightly browned. The galette can be served warm or at room temperature.

Vegan Peach + Blackberry Cobbler

If you’re lucky enough to be in California, you may be enjoying our extended stone-fruit season this year. Thanks to our cool spring, peaches and some other summer produce are hanging on into October, making for an Indian Summer of sorts in the kitchen. Don’t delay in making this cobbler, as peaches won’t be here too much longer. If you’re in a part of the country where peaches have already finished for the season, you can bookmark this for next summer.

This recipe is a vegan adaptation of a traditional Southern “one cup” peach cobbler, inspired by the recipe here

Prep time: 15 minutes | Cook time: 40–45 minutes | Serves 8–10

Ingredients: 

2 pounds peaches, pitted and sliced
Zest of one large lemon
3 Tablespoons lemon juice
1 cup sucanat (or sweetener of your choice), divided
¼ cup vegan butter (I recommend Miyoko’s)
1 cup all-purpose flour (gluten-free all-purpose flour mix can be substituted)
1½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
¼ cup full-fat coconut milk
¾ cup almond milk, or other vegan milk of your choice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
12–15 blackberries (optional)

Preparation: 

Gently mix the peaches, lemon zest, lemon juice, and ¼ cup sucanat together in a large bowl. Let this sit while you prepare the rest of the cobbler.

Preheat your oven to 350°F. Place the vegan butter in a 13x9" glass or ceramic baking dish and heat in oven until melted, 6–8 minutes. Remove pan from oven once the butter is fully melted.

While your butter is melting, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt and remaining ¾ cup sucanat in a separate large bowl. Add coconut milk, almond milk and vanilla and whisk until batter is completely smooth. Pour the batter over the melted butter in the baking dish (do not mix but use a silicone spatula to spread it evenly). Gently arrange the peaches and their juices in an even layer over the batter. If you’re using blackberries, arrange them over the top of the cobbler, pressing down slightly as needed to gently nestle them into the batter.

Bake the cobbler for 40–45 minutes, rotating the pan midway through cooking. The cobbler is done once it is lightly puffed and beginning to turn golden brown. Let the cobbler cool at least 10 minutes before serving.

Serve with your favorite vegan or dairy ice cream or cashew whipped cream (recipe in my book!)

Almond & Apricot Tart

This vegan and gluten-free tart recipe can be made using whatever fruit is in season, but if you can find apricots, I highly suggest them. We technically had a "cold" spring in Southern California this past season, which has meant a delayed and slightly longer apricot season than in many years. I was able to find some amazing apricots this last week at the market, even though it's mid-July! They won't be around for long, so if you do desire to try this with the golden gems, make this soon.

What I love most about this tart is that it is not too sweet (the almond marzipan layer is made with a touch of maple syrup, rather than traditional powdered or cane sugar). You can use the crust recipe for savory tarts and omit the coconut sugar. A food processor is essential for this recipe, and make preparation quite quick.

Prep time: 55m | Serves 8–10

Ingredients:

For maple marzipan:
1 cup blanched almonds* (see note below)
¼ cup maple syrup
¼ cup filtered water
1½ teaspoons almond extract

For crust:
2½ cups + 2 Tablespoons almond meal
¼ pound vegan butter (I recommend using Miyoko's Kitchen butter)
2–3 Tablespoons coconut sugar (or sweetener of your choice)
1½ teaspoons ground cardamom (optional)
Pinch of salt

For fruit topping:
¾ pound apricots (or fruit of your choice)

Preparation:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Place all marzipan ingredients in food processor and blend until an even paste is achieved. You will likely need to stop the machine and scrape down the sides a few times. Once marzipan is complete, transfer it to a small bowl and set aside. Wash and dry the food processor thoroughly.

Place all crust ingredients in the food processor and turn it on. Let the machine run until all ingredients have combined to form one "ball" of dough. Transfer the dough to a 9-inch tart pan and use your fingers to press the dough evenly into the pan to form a crust (I like to use a sheet of parchment to help press the dough so it won't stick to my fingers). Use a fork to prick some small holes into the bottom of the crust to allow steam to release while pre-baking the crust (alternatively, you can use pie weights or dried beans to weigh down the crust – google if you're curious how to do that :)) For easiest handling, place the prepared tart pan on a larger baking tray. Bake the crust for 8-10 minutes until it just starts to turn a slight touch of brown. Some parts may still look a little doughy, and that is fine. Remove the crust from the oven and let it cool slightly. While the crust is cooling, prepare your fruit by slicing it evenly (or, for smaller apricots or fruits like cherries, just cut in half).

When crust is cool, spread the maple marzipan in an even layer in the bottom of the crust using a spatula or your fingers (again, parchment is really helpful here if you use your hands, which I recommend). Then arrange the sliced fruit on top of the marzipan layer in any pattern you like. Bake for 20–25 minutes, until the crust is golden and fruit is has softened slightly. Cool tart completely before removing the outer ring of the tart pan, then you're ready to slice and serve.

To blanch your own almonds:

Bring a small pot of water to a boil. Add almonds, then immediately drain and rinse with cool water. Use your fingers to pop the skins off. This is one of my most favorite meditative cooking practices...and kids LOVE helping with this!

Vegan Orange Poppyseed Pudding

Tapioca pearls and poppy seeds combine to create a unique and delightful mouthfeel. Orange zest adds flavor and complexity to this vegan pudding that is free of refined sugars.

Prep time: 15m | Serves 4

Ingredients:

1/2 cup tapioca pearls (regular, not quick-cooking variety)
3-1/2 c. almond milk, divided
1/2 c. maple syrup
Zest of two oranges (about 2 t.)
1-1/2 t. poppy seeds
1/2 t. almond extract
1/4 t. salt

Place tapioca pearls in a small bowl with 1-1/2 cups of almond milk, and let them soak for 3-4 hours minimum (or overnight).

Place soaked tapioca pearls and any excess soaking liquid in a medium saucepan, along with the remaining 2 c. of almond milk. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat, then stir in the maple syrup and orange zest. Wait for the mixture to return to a boil, then turn heat to low, and stir continuously for 8 minutes. Stir in poppy seeds, almond extract and salt and cook for another 3 minutes while stirring.

Divide warm pudding between four ramekins or small bowls, then refrigerate at least an hour before serving. Garnish with quartered orange slices, if desired.