A really special recipe
Honeynut Squash Galette with Goat Cheese & Fresno Chilies
Happy Halloween, fellow witches, ghouls and aliens too! When I think of tricks, I think of Senator Joe Manchin. When I think of treats, I think of butter. Oh, you too? This Sunday, I’ll be enjoying this buttery pastry as I wait hopefully for even a single child to darken my door, small jack-o-lantern bucket outstretched. Alas, it’s never happened. Instead, it will probably just be me and the old doggo watching Hocus Pocus and reciting incantations into the night. Send your favorite hexes, charms and potions my way!
Honeynut Squash Galette with Goat Cheese & Fresno Chilies
What can I say: this is really, really delicious. I said so many nice things to myself when I first made it, and so will you. There’s buttery pastry, tangy goat cheese, sweet honeynut, and zippy chilies. There’s flecks of aromatic thyme. There’s crispy bits of squash, caramelized and curled until just chewy.
I promise you this: honeynut squash will change the way you feel about winter squash. It’s not just sweeter, but also far more flavorful than its cousin, butternut. Find it at your local farmers market or at Erewhon if you’re in the LA area. If butternut is all you got, fret not! This will still be delicious. Just make sure to remove the butternut’s skin as it is generally quite tough.
Ingredients:
1 recipe Carla Lalli Music’s pastry dough or your favorite
4 oz goat cheese
2 tbsp creme fraiche
4-5 sprigs fresh thyme, picked
2-3 honeynut squashes
2 tbsp cold butter, cut into small pieces
2 tbsp honey
3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 fresno chili, thinly sliced
Salt and pepper
Directions:
Prepare your pastry dough at least a few hours before you plan on making your galette and let it chill in the fridge until very cold and firm.
Remove your dough from the fridge and let it soften a bit while you prepare your fillings. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
Mix together the goat cheese, creme fraiche and thyme leaves in a small bowl until spreadable and creamy. If your goat cheese is very stiff, you can add a splash of water or milk to help loosen it up more. Taste for salt and add more if it’s bland (most goat cheese will be somewhat salty on its own.)
Working on a well-floured surface, roll out your pastry dough to about 1/8’’ thick (a little thicker is fine) on a piece of parchment. Transfer the dough and parchment to a baking sheet and return it to the fridge while you prepare the squash.
Wash and cut your honey nut squash into very thin rounds with a very sharp knife, leaving the skin on. When you get to the part of the squash with the seeds, scoop them out with a spoon, cut the remaining squash in half and slice into thin half-moons. (Safer to cut this way and we’ll be hiding these pieces.)
Remove your pastry from the fridge and schmear your cheese mixture in the center, leaving about a 2 inch border on all sides. Arrange the half-moon squash pieces on top as the first layer, then add the prettier circular pieces on top of that.
Dot the pieces of cold butter on top of the squash and season all over with salt and pepper, then fold up the sides of the dough over the squash so you have a nice, rustic galette.
Put it in the oven! You will cook it for about 50-60 minutes total.
Meanwhile, melt the honey and apple cider vinegar together in a small saucepan and add the fresno chili. Cook on low for 2-5 minutes until the mixture is bubbling and the chilies have started to soften. Remove from heat.
About 30 minutes into cooking the galette, remove from the oven and brush some of the vinegar/honey mixture on top, reserving the chilies. Repeat every 10-15 minutes until the galette is golden brown and the squash pieces are beginning to curl and caramelize.
Allow the galette to cool before slicing, and top with the reserved chili slices and some more fresh thyme. Serve with a side salad for breakfast or lunch!
Currently:
Currently reading: The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah, an epic novel about two sisters in Nazi-occupied France. A real page turner, but also very traumatic! Evidently they are making this into a movie starring the Fanning sisters, but I will never watch it because your girl simply cannot cope with violent images. Does it sound like I’m recommending this book? I am, but with all the trigger warnings attached.
Currently eating: Cabbage slaw on everything! Buy one big head of napa cabbage, eat it massaged with salt, vinegar and olive oil all week long. Put it on tacos, use it as a salad base, throw it on a sandwich. Is cabbage our most versatile vegetable friend?
Currently listening to: David Sedaris on Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard. I put this on yesterday while walking the dog and giggled all the way home.