There is something special about the light and air this time of year. The days are still fairly long and bright, the air is crisp and the temperatures are finally dropping a little bit to within a comfortable range (for me that is somewhere between 17-22°C). I’ve come to realize my birthday month (September) is actually my favorite month! And possibly May too, so right before and right after summer.
Liv invited me to be a guest teacher at a one-on-one workshop last week. I said yes, of course, and after a three hour card drive we arrived at the most stunning location, an island called Skaftö in Bohuslän – on the Swedish west coast. I’ve always wanted to visit this area, but have never gotten to it. Actually there are lots of places I’d love to visit in Sweden, makes me realize we need more road trips in our lives. And I need a driver’s license. hehe.
I decided the day before what to make at the workshop, as I always do. Very stressful! I wish I wasn’t like that, but it’s part of my process I suppose. It’s as if my brain isn’t working until the very last minute and it’s always been like that. Thankfully, Liv gets it as I think she has a similar process.
We had the sweetest guest one could ask for, Lina, and it was such a pleasure spending time with her and Liv for a day. Wish I had joined them for the whole week, although I would probably have stayed back at the house for the kayaking (I have this thing with being on water).. Though it looked like they had an amazing time!
During my day of guest teaching we talked a lot about camera settings, we practiced shooting movement, like sifting flour. I think we all enjoyed it a bit too much, but Lina’s photos turned out amazing so it was well worth it. We shot both light and dark photos. We shot Liv’s gnocchi (which is AMAZING btw), liquids, oysters and way too many photos of this galette.
So, this galette! Apples and pears go so wonderfully together, especially with the addition of orange and hazelnuts. I know frangipane is supposed to have almonds in it, but I simply didn’t know what else to call it.. Hazelnut… paste? Cream? Hazelnut frangipane sounds better to me. No matter what you decide to call it.. you need to taste this wonderful, wonderful thing.
APPLE PEAR GALETTE WITH HAZELNUT FRANGIPANE
Yields one tart, 6-8 servings
INGREDIENTS
PIE CRUST
- 210 g (1 1/2 cups) all purpose flour
- 1 1/2 tbsp. granulated sugar
- 1/4 tsp. flaky salt
- 150 g (about 1 + 1/3 stick) very cold salted butter
- 3-6 tbsp. ice water
HAZELNUT FRANGIPANE
- 75 g (2/3 cup) hazelnuts
- 75 g (2/3 stick) softened salted butter
- 3 tbsp. granulated sugar
- 1 medium egg
- 1 tbsp. all purpose flour
FILLING & TOPPING
- 500 g fruit (approx. 2 apples & 2 pears)
- zest from 1 orange or 1 lemon
- 2 tbsp. fresh orange or lemon juice
- pinch of salt
- 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp. ground cardamom
- 2 tbsp. granulated sugar
- 1 tbsp. (15 g) salted butter, melted
- 1 tbsp. all purpose flour
- 1 egg
- pinch of salt
- 2 tsp. turbinado sugar
INSTRUCTIONS
PIE CRUST
- Mix together flour, sugar and salt in a large bowl. If you have one, use a cheese slicer to slice the butter thinly – if not, you can dice the butter with a knife. Add the sliced or diced butter to the dry ingredients, and using your fingers or a pastry cutter, cut in the butter until dough is crumbly but there are still some small visible pieces of butter.
- Drizzle with ice water, 1 tbsp at a time, and mix gently with a fork until dough just comes together, do not knead the dough.
- Form the dough into a ball and place it on a piece of plastic wrap. Flatten into a disc, wrap in the plastic wrap and place in fridge for at least one hour.
HAZELNUT FRANGIPANE
- Preheat the oven to 200°C (390°F). Place the hazelnuts on a baking sheet and toast them in the oven for about 10-14 minutes, or until they become fragrant and slightly golden brown. Keep a close eye on them as they burn easily! Let cool, then rub the hazelnuts in a clean and dry dishtowel, removing as much of the shells as possible.
- In a mixer or food processor, pulse the hazelnuts until finely ground.
- Beat butter and sugar until creamy, about 1 minute. Add the egg and hazelnut flour and beat until smooth. Fold in the all purpose flour. Cover the bowl and set aside.
FILLING & BAKING
- Let the dough rest for a few minutes at room temperature. Roll out the dough to a large circle on a lightly floured surface, about 1/8 – 1/4 inch (3-5 mm) thick. Make sure to roll and turn the dough so it doesn’t stick to the surface.
- Using the rolling pin, transfer the dough to a baking sheet covered with baking paper.
- Spread the frangipane over the rolled out dough, leaving the edges free from filling.
- Peel the apples and pears and slice them thinly. Place them in a large bowl and add zest, juice, salt, cinnamon, cardamom, sugar, butter and flour. Gently toss until all ingredients are combined. Arrange the slices of fruit in a pattern on top of the frangipane.
- Fold the edges over the fruit and press gently to seal. Transfer the galette to the freezer for 15 minutes, meanwhile preheat the oven to 200°C (390°F), if you haven’t already.
- Whisk together the egg with a pinch of salt in a small bowl. Brush the edges with the egg wash, then sprinkle with turbinado sugar.
- Bake the tart for 30 minutes or until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbling.
- Serve with vanilla sauce, you can find my recipe HERE.
It’s been more than two months since the Norway workshop at Melgården with 
Our journey began in Sweden, with our van filled to the brim with food, cameras, props and fresh herbs and flowers from Liv’s garden. We had a 5-6 hour drive ahead of us so of course we took every opportunity to stop at random flea markets on the way. One of them was absolutely lovely and I found some great things, like the cake stand from my previous post.
Last week, I was lucky enough to spend a few days in winter wonderland… errr, I mean at Melgården in Norway with some wonderful friends, Olivia of 
…
