Day 231 - Cinnamon Pear Galette

So I'm making this galette today, have it in the oven and since it has to bake for 60 minutes I started doing other things.
After about 40 minutes I walk into the kitchen, turn the oven light on and I must say, it looked MAHVELOUS!
Standing at the island, I'm on the computer and something smells funny.
Hmmm...
Smellls like a little sugar might be burning.  No biggie.  I know there was some sugar that fell onto the stone, so that's probably what it is.
Really too focused on what I was typing on the computer to look up or go to the oven.
Two minutes later...
Hmmm. the smell's a tad bit stronger, like something's burning.  Maybe I should go check it out.
I look up.
Funny how I didn't notice the smoke BILLOWING from the oven vent!!!
Good Grief!!!
I open the oven door and more smoke pours out.
The house fills with it, but fortunately the weather's turned, is no longer 100º+ and we've had the windows open the past few days.
When it clears I can see that some juice has seeped through one of the creases of the galette that I hadn't pressed together enough and dripped onto the bottom of the oven.
The dessert is fine and that's all I care about.

I decided to make a Fall galette after making and finding this Strawberry Rhubarb Galette on Two Peas & Their Pod.  The two Peas, Maria and Josh have become three Peas with the addition of their son, Caleb, so when you stop by, be sure to congratulate them!
I made up the filling today, but used the crust from Two Peas.

Cinnamon Pear Galette - serves 6


Crust
1 3/4 cups flour
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup yellow cornmeal
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup cold butter, cut into small pieces
1/3 cup buttermilk (I used 1/3 cup milk mixed with 1 teaspoon vinegar and let it sit for 15 minutes before using.)

1 egg, beaten
2 tablespoons turbinado sugar

In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, cornmeal, and salt in. Add butter and with a pastry cutter blend in butter until mixture resembles coarse meal.  (You can also use a food processor for this step and pulse the butter in to the mixture 4-5 times)
Pour the buttermilk into the bowl and stir dough until it begins to stick together.  (Ok, mine didn't completely stick together, so, I gathered it into a ball and stuck the remnants to it.  When I took it out of the fridge to roll it, it was fine and not crumbly.)
(OR: With the processor running, slowly pour the buttermilk through the chute, processing until the dough forms a ball.)
Remove the dough ball and adhere any remaining pieces of dough to it, then wrap in plastic wrap or parchment paper.
Refrigerate for at least 45 minutes before rolling out.
*The galette dough can be made in advance. It will keep in the refrigerator for 3 days.*


Preheat oven to 350ºF.


Filling
2 Bartlett Pears, cored and sliced thin
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice


In a small bowl, mix sugar and cinnamon together.
In a medium bowl, combine all sugar mixture, pears, and lemon juice, and toss gently to coat.

Remove the dough from the refrigerator and place on a pizza stone or a sheet of parchment paper. Starting at the center of the dough, roll out to form a 14-inch wide circle. Place the dough with parchment paper on a baking sheet (if using parchment). I used the pizza stone without any parchment, and didn't have a problem with it sticking.

Start by placing the pears two inches in from the outer edge and continue forming a circle until all slices have been used.  Pour remaining juice/sugar over the pears.

Fold the edges over the pears and gently press to make sure the creases are adhered otherwise you'll have smoke filling your house!  It is fine to overlap the dough.

Lightly brush the edge of the dough with the egg (don't worry, you will have some left over) and sprinkle with Turbinado sugar.
Bake for 1 hour; crust should be golden brown and the filling will be bubbly.

Transfer baking sheet with galette to a wire rack and allow to cool for 20 minutes.

Serve warm or at room temperature.

This was quite the Fall dessert and I would gladly serve it to guests and will definitely be making it again.
I was really glad I made this because I've never made a dessert with pears before.
I rate everything I bake on a scale of 1-4 with 4 being the best and this Cinnamon Pear Galette earned 4 rolling pins!
It was delicious!
At first because of the cinnamon/sugar it tasted like apples, but then it really started to taste like pears and that CRUST!
The crust had such a wonderful flavor and texture because of the Turbinado sugar.  It was really amazing!
Mr. 365 said it's the best thing I've made so far.
It was really delicious, but I don't know if I'd go that far.
I would definitely give this a try if you're looking for a Fall dessert and want something easy.  The crust can be made ahead and put into the fridge and assembly doesn't take long at all.
The only thing I think I'd change is that I'd add one more pear to make it 3 instead of the two.

I give you BIG baking hugs and muffins!!