Cherry Poppy Seed Galette

This cherry poppy seed galette is rich, fruity, and incredibly flaky with a laminated galette dough.

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I love visiting Central and Eastern Europe for the array of cakes, pastries, and cookies and flavorful local ingredients: grains like rye and buckwheat, poppy seeds, stone fruits like cherries, plums, and apricots. The history of the region has created a cuisine that is substantial, humble, comforting, and extravagant all at once. While Vienna has maintained its reputation for excellence in pastry and dessert, I can’t help but feel like traditional desserts from the region are underappreciated outside of their home.

I based this recipe on these flavors I crave, especially in cherry season, but in a rustic, easy galette. I wanted a poppy seed and cherry dessert without having to defy physics by stretching and rolling impossibly thin strudel pastry. To emulate that flaky experience, I’ve laminated the galette dough. I guess it’s my own spin on humble, comforting, and extravagant.

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Poppy Seeds

If you’ve only ever had poppy seeds as a topping to a roll or bagel, or in a lemon poppyseed cake, you might not have been able to fully appreciate their flavor. These tiny seeds can be so much more than just a garnish. They are sweet and nutty, and when ground into a paste, it unleashes their irresistible floral and fruity flavor.

Poppy seeds are a staple in Central and Eastern European baking. Usually ground and cooked into a paste, they’re used as a filling for croissants, rolls, and other traditional sweets such as kolaches, bjeglis, and strudels.

How to Pit Cherries

I do not have the luxury of an expansive kitchen or an abundance of storage space. As such, I try my best not to acquire items in my kitchen that serve a singular purpose. You could argue that a cherry pitter also pits olives, but I don’t often need to pit olives, either. So, I use my trusty paring knife (affiliate link) and halve and pit the cherries by hand, just as you would pit a peach or avocado.

To pit cherries with a paring knife, first, remove the stems. Then, run the blade of the knife around the pit until you have sliced the cherry all the way around. Rotate the cherry halves in opposite directions (clockwise and counterclockwise) to split the cherry. Then, use your fingers to remove the pit.

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Laminated Galette Dough

I’ve always wanted to emulate the layers and flakiness of croissants and puff pastry in my pies and galettes. Any pastry deserves that level of crisp, airy, and flaky texture. But the main reason I love galettes is their rustic nature, never mind the ratio of effort to satisfaction.

I’ve been trying to develop a laminated pie and galette dough for a while now. I wanted to incorporate some flavorful whole grain flour, and I didn’t want to rely on the typical fold, chill, fold, chill, fold, chill routine that adds too much time to the process.

I’ve tried varying amounts of whole wheat or dark rye flour, different proportions of butter to flour, and different folding techniques. Ultimately, I’ve settled on a reliable method, skipping the intermediate chilling, that takes the same amount of time as any other pie dough recipe but is much more rewarding.

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Make Ahead

The galette dough can be prepared ahead of time and stored, well-wrapped, in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Or freeze it for up to 2 months.

The poppy seed filling can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Storage

The galette is best enjoyed on the same day it is made. It will keep for 1 to 2 days covered at room temperature.

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Ingredients:

Yield: 8 servings
Prep time: 45 minutes
Chill time: 60 minutes
Cook time: 45 minutes

Laminated Galette Dough

1. Combine the water and vinegar:

Combine the water and vinegar in a liquid measuring cup and keep in the refrigerator until ready to use.

2. Combine the dry ingredients:

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour and salt.

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3. Add the butter:

Cut the butter into thin 1/8-inch (3mm) slices. Add the sliced butter into the mixing bowl, stirring to coat each slice with flour so they don’t stick together.

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4. Pour in the water and vinegar:

Slowly pour in the water and vinegar mixture and stir with a rubber spatula or fork until the dough starts to come together. Tip the dough out of the bowl onto your work surface and lightly scoop the dough and crumbs into a square.

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5. Laminate the dough:

Keep a small bowl of flour nearby and sprinkle a light coating of flour onto the dough or your worksurface if the butter starts to stick during the laminating process.

Use a rolling pin to roll the dough into a rectangle about 12 inches (30cm) long. Fold the top third of the dough down over the middle of the dough. Then, fold the bottom third up over the top, like folding a letter. This is the first fold.

Rotate the dough 90 degrees, so the seam is facing you. Complete another fold.

Rotate the dough 90 degrees again and complete another fold.

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6. Chill:

Wrap the dough and let it rest in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour, preferably overnight. After resting, the dough is ready to use.

Poppy Seed Filling

1. Cook the poppy seed filling:

Combine the ground poppy seeds, milk, honey, and lemon zest in a small saucepan set over medium-low heat. Bring to a boil and continue to cook until it has thickened, about 5 minutes.

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2. Blend the filling:

Take the filling off the heat. Use an immersion blender, food processor, or blender to blend the filling into a thick paste. It does not need to be perfectly smooth, there will still be some whole poppy seeds.

3. Cool:

Allow the poppy seed filling to cool to room temperature before assembling the galette. For longer storage, transfer the filling to an airtight container and store it in the fridge.

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Cherry Filling

1. Pit and halve the cherries:

Remove the stems. To pit the cherries, run a paring around the pit until you have sliced the cherry all the way around. Rotate the cherry halves in opposite directions (clockwise and counterclockwise) to split the cherry. Use your fingers to pull out the pit. Place the pitted cherry halves in a large mixing bowl.

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2. Add the lemon juice:

Stir in the lemon juice and toss to evenly coat the cherries.

3. Combine the dry ingredients:

In a small bowl whisk together the sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, and salt.

4. Mix the dry ingredients into the cherry mixture:

Add the dry ingredients to the cherries and stir with a silicone spatula until evenly distributed.

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Assemble the Galette

1. Preheat the oven:

Preheat the oven to 190°C (375°F). Line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper.

2. Roll out the dough:

Remove the dough from the refrigerator and unwrap it. Lightly dust both sides of the dough and your work surface with flour. Use a rolling pin to roll the dough out into a 14-inch (35cm) circle, working from the center outwards. If the dough sticks to the rolling pin or countertop, sprinkle it with a little bit more flour.

Transfer the dough to the prepared baking sheet.

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3. Spread the poppy seed filling on the dough:

Use a small offset spatula or the back of a spoon to spread the poppy seed filling into an even layer on the dough, leaving a 1 1/2 inch (4cm) border around the edge.

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4. Top with the cherry filling:

Spread the cherry filling evenly over the poppy seed filling.

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5. Fold up the edges:

Gently fold up the edges of the crust over the cherries, overlapping every couple of inches to create a decorative border.

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6. Brush with egg wash:

In a small bowl, whisk the egg with a tablespoon of water. Use a pastry brush to brush the dough with the egg wash. Sprinkle the dough generously with turbinado sugar.

7. Bake the galette:

Bake the galette for 45 minutes, until the crust is a deep golden brown.

Let cool slightly and serve warm or at room temperature.

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Nutrition

Calories: 443kcal | Total Fat: 21.9g | Carbs: 58.2 | Sugars: 18.4 | Protein: 5.6g | Sodium: 358mg | Fiber: 2.8g

The nutrition information provided for this recipe is an estimate. The accuracy of the calories listed is not guaranteed.