We love—no, crave—autumn because it comes to us as a cooling shroud over the blinding exposure of summertime. Heat, light, bright, noise, and intensity fall back into the quieter arms of fall. We’re given a reprieve, a moment to catch our breath, a moment to remember. Before this year becomes the next, a few months to reflect.
In the kitchen, autumn’s herbs and deep, round flavors lend comfort and tenderness to the transition. Root vegetables, squashes, warm colors, sweetness and spice. And rosemary. Let’s talk about rosemary.
In Hamlet, Ophelia famously quips, “There’s rosemary, that’s for remembrance. Pray you, love, remember.” This stimulating herb has long been revered for its ability to rouse and tone tissue, brain and otherwise, while perfuming the palate with an herbaceous glow.
In this savory galette, rosemary mingles with butter, onions, fennel, butternut squash, goat’s cheese, and freshly picked chanterelle mushrooms (sent to me from a friend in Oregon’s Columbia River Gorge). The flavors are perfect for mellow amber sunlight, gray afternoons, and crisp air. For savoring. For remembering.
Pray you, love, remember.
Ingredients
Rosemary Pastry Crust
- 1 1/4 cups flour
- 1 stick butter
- 1 Tbsp . rosemary leaves
- 1/2 tsp . sugar
- 1/2 tsp . salt
- 3-4 Tbsp . ice water
Rosemary Butternut Squash
- 2 cups sliced and peeled butternut squash
- 1 tsp . rosemary leaves
- 1 Tbsp . olive oil
- sea salt to sprinkle
Caramelized Onion & Fennel
- 2 cups thinly sliced yellow onion
- 1 cup thinly sliced fennel bulb
- 3 Tbsp . olive oil
- 1 Tbsp . balsamic vinegar
- 1/2 tsp . salt
Rosemary Chanterelles
- 5-6 cups medium to large fresh chanterelle or other mushrooms sliced (about 1 1/2+ )
- 2 tsp . rosemary leaves
- Galette Topping
- 1/3 cup crumbled chèvre
- 1 tsp . rosemary leaves
Instructions
- First make the crust: Preheat oven to 425º. Take out a baking sheet for later use. Whisk together flour, salt, sugar, and rosemary leaves. Grate the butter into the dry mixture using a cheese grater. Add 1 tablespoon of ice water at a time, using hands to incorporate butter and flour into a ball of dough that is smooth and just sticks together.
- Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge while you prep the filling.
- Roast the butternut squash: Place peeled and sliced butternut squash in a baking dish or on a cookie sheet and toss with olive oil and rosemary leaves. Slightly crush the rosemary leaves against the squash. Sprinkle lightly with sea salt. Roast in 425º oven for 15-20 minutes, checking at 10 minutes for tenderness. The squash should be tender to a fork when you remove, but doesn’t need to be browning (it’s going in for a second round with the galette).
- Caramelize onion and fennel: Place onions, fennel, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and sea salt in a large frying pan. Sauté on medium heat until they are deep brown and have reduced significantly. Stir as they cook, until some of the onions may even become crisp and caramelized. Approximately 20-25 minutes depending on heat. Remove the fennel and onions from the pan, leaving the oil and juicy goodness behind.
- Sauté the chanterelles: Place sliced mushrooms and rosemary in the same pan you used for the onion and fennel. Toss them in the remaining olive oil and turn heat to low. Sauté gently, about 5-7 minutes. Remove from heat.
- Assemble the galette: Reduce oven to 400º. When the dough has chilled at least 30 minutes, remove from the fridge and dust a piece of parchment paper with flour (the dough will stay on this parchment paper for baking, so it can be as big as the cookie sheet you’ll bake on). Begin to flatten the disk of dough by tapping its surface (really you’ll be smacking it, but that sounds a bit violent, doesn’t it?) in a circle with the rolling pin—flattening it out as you go. When it’s about 1/2” thick, start to roll it out into a larger circle. Ultimately it should be about 1/4” thick. Place the parchment paper and dough on the baking sheet you’ll use in the oven.
- Spread the onions and fennel in a circle, leaving a 2-3” perimeter of dough to fold over. Arrange the butternut squash in a concentric circle, from outside in, atop the onions and fennel. Top with sautéed chanterelles, crumbled chèvre, and an extra sprinkle of rosemary.
- Fold the edges of the galette in and over, making sure to seal it up as you go—no cracks allowed!
- Bake for 40-45 minutes, until the dough is golden brown.
- Enjoy autumnal flavor bliss.
