This easy baked apple galette takes whole apples with a cinnamon spice blend and bakes them in a flakey, buttery crust. The simple fall dessert is almost too pretty to eat.
Simple Baked Apple Galette
This easy baked apple galette has everything you love about fall flavors in one bite. Fresh, seasonal apples sit in a buttery, flakey crust and bake in a spice blend full of cinnamon. Don't let the look of the galette intimidate you. It's actually super simple to make and bakes up in no time.
When it comes to the age-old argument about pies versus galettes, I am always on team galette. I love making galettes instead of pies simply because they are much easier. You don't have to worry about having the perfect crust, as the rustic look is part of the nature of a galette. You just roll it out, and you're good to go. It's that easy!
Making the apple filling for this galette couldn't be easier either. In fact, it's technically not even a filling but rather apples sliced really thin. Cinnamon and spices, plus pats of butter, go right on top of the apples. What results is basically a giant baked apple inside a flakey, buttery crust.
Looking for more apple dessert ideas? Try my apple hand pies or apple oatmeal cookies.
Why You'll Love This Dessert
- Picture Perfect - This baked apple galette is almost too pretty to eat.
- Low Maintenance - It will surprise you how easy it is to make this dessert.
- Hard To Mess Up - This galette is hard to screw up, no matter what your skills look like in the kitchen.
Ingredients For Baked Apple Galette
- Apples - Aim to use an apple that bakes well, like Granny Smith or Honey Crisp.
- Spice Mixture - I like to use a mixture of cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg.
- Butter - The butter goes in both the crust and on top of the apples when baking.
- Coarse Sugar - I like to sprinkle the crust with coarse sugar to add a crisp sweetness.
- Flour - All-purpose flour is the base of the crust.
Directions For How To Make Baked Apple Galette
- Make the dough.
Combine the flour, sugar, cold cubed butter, and cold water in a large bowl. Mix with a pastry cutter, a fork, or your fingers. Smash the butter down until it is covered with flour in pea-size pieces, and then mix the dough to form a loose ball. Cover the dough and chill for 1 hour.
- Prepare the apples.
While the dough chills, slice the apples. Slice the apples very thin, about ⅛ of an inch wide. Keep the apples in sections while you slice them. The thinner the slices, the more fold they will have in the galette.
- Make the spice mixture.
In a small bowl, combine the cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg. Set to the side.
- Prepare.
Preheat the oven to 425 and prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set to the side.
- Roll out the dough.
Roll out the dough on a floured surface or on a sheet of parchment paper. Use a pie or pizza cutter to even out the edges.
- Add the apples.
Place the sections of apples inside the galette crust, fanning them out to lean up against each other. Add the sections of apples next to each other so they are touching.
- Add spices and butter.
Sprinkle the cinnamon mixture over the top of the apples. Then, add the pats of butter on top of the apples.
- Fold the crust.
Fold the dough over the apples in an overlapping pattern.
- Add the eggwash.
Brush the edges of the crust with egg wash and sprinkle with coarse sugar.
- Bake the galette.
Bake the galette in the oven for 25-30 minutes, until the crust is golden brown and the apples are soft. Let the galette cool for 10 minutes so the juices don't run out.
Serving Suggestions
This baked apple galette is excellent to serve for Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner. It is great to top with vanilla ice cream, whipped cream, or a caramel sauce.
Make Ahead and Storage
- Make Ahead: The galette is best made fresh. If you need to make the galette beforehand, do it one day in advance and cover it with foil. When ready to serve, warm it up in the oven.
- To Store: Store the galette in an airtight container for 2-3 days in the fridge. Because it is already cooked, the apples may make the crust slightly soggy.
- To Freeze: Once cooked, the apples and crust won't freeze well, so it is best to make this dessert fresh. However, the crust can be made and frozen before it is cooked. The crust will last 2-3 months in the freezer. When ready to use, let it thaw overnight before rolling out.
Tips and Variations
- Spice Blend - If you want to add the warming spices, feel free to do so. Add in more cinnamon, use chai-inspired spice, or add in chunks of fresh ginger.
- Make it more seasonal - If you want to make the galette more seasonal, you can add cranberries into the mix. Sprinkle them on top of the apples before the galette goes into the oven.
- Rolling Out the Dough - If the dough is hard to roll out, give it a minute to thaw out. If the dough looks very soft after rolling it out, place it on a baking sheet and let it chill in the fridge for 15 minutes.
FAQs
Pies are baked in a pie dish and tend to have a shaped crust with a top and bottom. A galette is more of an open-faced pie with a free-form shape.
The crust of the galette should be golden brown, and the fruit should be soft.
There is no need to bake the crust first for a galette, like a pie. The crust and the fruit will bake all at once with a galette.
Baked Apple Galette
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Make the crust. Combine the flour, sugar, and cubed butter in a large bowl. Drizzle in the water and smash the butter into pea-sized crumbs using a pastry cutter, fork, or fingers. Then, work the dough to form a ball. If the dough is very dry, add in more water. You want to create a loose ball and flatten it into a disc shape. Work quickly to avoid melting the butter with your hands. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and let the dough chill for an hour.
- While the dough is chilling, prepare the apples. Slice and core the apples. Slice the apples into thin slices, about ⅛-inch in size. Keep the apples together in sections. Set the side.
- In a small bowl, combine the cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg. Set to the side.
- Preheat the oven to 425 and prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set to the side.
- Prepare a surface with flour or parchment, and get ready to roll out the dough. Use a rolling pin to roll the dough to about ¼-inch thick. The dough does not have to be in a perfect circle; it should aim for an even thickness. If you want even edges, use a pie or pizza cutter to slice off the edges for an even cut.
- Place the apples in the middle of the crust and work your way out to cover most of the area. Leave about 2-3 inches from the apples to the border of the crust. Then, sprinkle the apples with the cinnamon mixture and top with the cold cubes of butter.
- Fold the crust over the apples, overlapping the edges as you go. Brush the edges with eggwash and top with the coarse sugar, if desired.
- Bake the galette for 25-30 minutes. Look for a golden brown crust and soft apples to know when the galette is done.
- Let the galette cool for about 10 minutes after it comes out of the oven so that all the juices will not run out when cut.
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