Galette is the fool’s pie.

Which is not to confuse it with a fool. Or a crumble. Or a buckle. Or a betty. Or a cobbler.

It’s just a scruffy, free-form, beautifully lazy way to have fruit and crust with minimal fuss.

Simple, Summer-Fruit Galette

I used blackberries, since my canes are berserk this season. If the peaches in yesterday’s sharebox had been ripe enough, I’d have used one of those, too. Use any berries or stone fruit you have on hand, in whatever combination you enjoy. Basically, make your favorite summer pie filling, and use your favorite pie crust (here’s mine). Shoot, use store-bought crust, even; the fruit’s the real star here. 

Serves 2.

for the crust

• 1/2 the dough for a single pie crust (tuck the other half into the fridge or freezer for the next time a craving hits)

for the filling

• 1 pint blackberries, rinsed
• 2-3 tbsp sugar, depending on how sweet and juicy the berries are
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp all-purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

for the custard

• 3 tbsp unsalted butter, melted and cooled
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 large egg
• dash of vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 425º.

In a small bowl, combine the first five ingredients. Lightly smash a few of the berries, and give everything a gentle stir.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out the half-crust into a rough circle, maybe 8 inches in diameter. Carefully transfer the round (or oval or rectangle or whatever) to a parchment- or silicone-lined sheet pan.

Spoon the fruit filling onto the dough, distributing it evenly but leaving an inch or two margin on the sides. Work your way around the circle, gently folding that empty collar up, over, and onto the filling.

Put the pan into the fridge to rest for a few minutes while you make the custard.

The custard, by the way, feels like another lazy shortcut. No double-boilers, no bain marie, no muss. Just whisk together the melted butter, sugar, egg, and vanilla. That’s it. (And, like the crust, you can refrigerate any leftover and use for another galette later this week.)

Pull the galette out of the fridge. Brush a little milk (or water) onto the crust and sprinkle it with a pinch or two of sugar. Bake for about 20 minutes, until the sides are golden and the fruit has softened.

Remove the pan from the oven. The fruit will likely have cooked down a bit, leaving you the perfect gap between filling and crust. Add enough spoonfuls of custard to fill in that gap, and return the pan to the oven for another 8-10 minutes, until the custard has fully set.

Let cool for at least a half hour. Serve warm or at room temperature. We added a scoop of Weckerly’s Whole Bean Vanilla, but a sifting of powdered sugar is really all you need.