Recipes

Strawberry Pesto Galette

Sweet and savory coexist quite happily in Italian cuisine, as well as in this nuanced dessert. Start with a pastry crust made with a hint of our Basil Pesto, then fill it with fresh strawberries, sugar, lemon, and basil—plus a sweet balsamic glaze that brings it all together.

Ingredients

Pastry

1¼ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2½ tablespoons sugar
6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, ½-inch chunks
2 tablespoons Armanino Basil Pesto
1 egg yolk (save the white for the egg wash)

Filling

½ cup sugar
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
1 teaspoon balsamic glaze
1½ pounds stemmed strawberries (about 5 cups), sliced
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
3 tablespoons cornstarch

Egg Wash

1 egg white
1 teaspoon milk or cream
1½ teaspoons sugar, coarse or granulated

Garnish

fresh basil leaves, optional
balsamic glaze drizzle

Directions

For the pastry: in a large bowl, whisk together the flour and sugar. In another small bowl, whisk together the egg yolk and pesto.
Put the cubed cold butter into the flour bowl and toss to coat. With your hands, rub the butter into the flour using your thumbs and first 2 or 3 fingers until the butter is the size of peas. There should be visible of pieces of butter in the mixture.
Make a well in the center of the bowl and gently mix in the pesto/egg mixture with a fork and then work it with your hands until there are no dry flour bits remaining.
Pat into a flat disc, wrap in plastic and refrigerate at least 30 minutes. (Will keep refrigerated for 2 days tightly wrapped or frozen up to 2 months. Defrost overnight in the fridge.)
When ready to bake, preheat oven to 400°F and place rack in the lower third of the oven.
Take the pastry out of the refrigerator and let rest 5-10 minutes to warm up a bit.
On a piece of lightly floured parchment or a silicone baking mat, flour the pastry top and roll to a 12-13” circle. Keep the pastry moving, add adding more flour as needed to prevent sticking. Slide the parchment/baking mat onto a sheet pan and chill while you make the filling.
For the filling: stem the strawberries and slice into pieces about 1/8” thick.
In a bowl, combine the strawberries, lemon zest, sugar, balsamic glaze and cornstarch.
Remove the rolled pastry from the refrigerator and arrange the strawberry mixture in the center, leaving a 2” border all around.
Using the parchment paper or silicone mat, fold the dough border up over the berries, over about an inch of the filling. Rotate and continue folding up and over. If it gets a bit messy, don’t worry– this is a rustic tart.
Make the egg wash – combine the egg white and the milk (or cream.)
Brush the egg wash over the pastry and sprinkle with the coarse sugar (this will look nice and give a pleasant crunch.)
Bake the galette for 35-40 minutes until golden brown and bubbly, rotating halfway through baking.
Cool completely before serving. The galette is best on the day it’s made but will keep, tightly covered, at room temperature for a day or two.

Chef’s Tips

As your work the butter into the flour, make sure you leave visible pieces, about the size of peas. This will help create a flaky dough – as the moisture in the butter evaporates in the oven, it will create layers between the dough and a nice, flaky pastry.
If your pastry seems a bit dry, add a little water, a small drizzle at a time, until all the dry bits are fully incorporated. Do not overwork or your pastry will be tough. Weather variables such as heat and humidity can affect how much liquid the flour will absorb so do not fret if you need more or less liquid than the recipe calls for.
Coarse sanding sugar is sprinkled on the outer crust for both texture and appearance. If you don’t have any, use regular granulated sugar.