Open-faced Peach Tart

Sweet, succulent summer peaches are available in the Northeast right now. Was there ever a surer sign of summer than a juicy and delicious, perfectly ripe peach.  Sam Sifton of the New York Times says “that you get one really good peach a year, if you’re lucky, if you don’t live in the South or next to a peach orchard. ” I should buy a lottery ticket because this week I’ve eaten at least three perfect peaches. One of my favorite ways to enjoy fresh peaches aside from eating them out of hand (with juice running down my arm) is in this delicious open-faced peach tart. Rustic and beautiful, this peach tart  recipe from Bonnie Stern, first published in the National Post, is a snap to make. 

Open-faced Peach Tart

Picking a sweet ready-to-eat peach has always been something of a mystery to me. According to Frog Hollow Farm owner/farmer Al Courchesne, there are three main characteristics that should help you identify the perfect peach:

1. Color: According to Farmer Al, “the real color you want to look for is the background color of the fruit and not the red, highlight. Plant breeders have bred the color red into a lot of peaches grown around the world nowadays because it helps sell the fruit.” The yellow background is the color you should be paying attention to and it should be golden, not pale.
2.  Touch: When you give the peach a gentle squeeze, it should yield slightly. That peach will ripen up nicely after a day or two on the counter.
3. Appearance/Texture of Skin: This is the most significant of all three characteristics. A peach is ready to eat if there are signs of shriveled skin around the stem. Wrinkles develop on the skin when water starts to leave the fruit. When water evaporates from the fruit through its porous skin, this causes the flavors to intensify and results in the best peach flavor. Wrinkles are a good sign in a peach (and maybe in some food bloggers also).

This open-faced peach tart, also known as a galette, is not only delectable, combining juicy, sweet summer peaches in a flaky crust, it is also really user friendly.  If you have ever shed more than a few tears while making a double crust pie, I’m telling you that you can save your hankie for your nephew’s wedding. This crust is free form; the simple pastry dough is rolled out and then pleated and pinched around the fruit filling in the center. According to Chef Katie Button, “no matter how you fold or crimp the dough, it always looks beautiful; and in fact the more rustic it looks, the prettier it is.” This easy-to-make tart dough bakes into a light and flaky crust with a crisp bottom as a result of an initial high baking temperature. The baking is completed at a lower temperature allowing the filling to thicken perfectly. The open-face design of this peach tart “encourages evaporation that concentrates the flavor of the pie”.

You can use any combination of stone fruit  to make this tart, including, peaches, apricots, nectarines and plums.  And more good news, this peach tart can be assembled, carefully wrapped and frozen unbaked until you’re ready to bake it. This is my summer go-to dessert and I’m sure that it’s going to be yours as well.

The ingredients for this tart are readily at hand. Too many peaches looking lonesome on the counter…it’s time to make open- faced peach tart.

The pastry dough comes together easily in the food processor, just be sure not to over process it. Combine the flour mixture and chunks of butter or margarine with short pulses until cornmeal type crumbs form (10 pulses ought to do it). Add the cold water 1 tablespoon at a time until the dough starts to clump around the S-blade. Remove it from the food processor and press the dough into a ball with your hands. Wrap it in plastic wrap, flatten it into a disc and refrigerate the dough for at least one hour. It can remain in the fridge for up to 3 days

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Cut two pieces of parchment paper that are a little larger than the size that you would like your rolled out dough to be. We are aiming for a circle that is about 15 inches in diameter but this is not to be interpreted very rigidly (to say the least). Lay one piece of parchment paper on your counter. Dust it with flour. Place your tart dough in the center. Place your second piece of parchment paper on top of the dough. Dust this surface with flour also. Place your rolling pin on top of the second piece of parchment paper and roll out the dough in a circular shape until it is 1/8 of an inch thick. Carefully lift off the top layer of parchment paper from the dough. If you find that the parchment paper is sticking, slide the dough onto a baking sheet and refrigerate it for 5-10 minutes, then remove the top piece of parchment paper. Slide the parchment paper with the rolled out dough on it onto a baking sheet. This step is important.

Combine the sliced peaches (yes, you really do leave the skin on. Isn’t that nice?), brown sugar, flour and cinnamon. You should have between 3 and 4 cups of fruit. I used 7 medium peaches for this tart.

Arrange the fruit mixture in the center of the dough circle, leaving a 1 1/2 inch border. The border may be larger in some places. It’s all good. Fold the dough edges up and over the filling (the dough will only partially cover the filling), pleating every 3 inches or so. Lightly brush the folded dough edges with a beaten egg. Sprinkle the dough edges with coarse sugar or turbinado sugar. Bake the tart in a preheated oven at 425 F. for 20 minutes. Lower the heat to 375 F. and bake the tart for an additional 30-40 minutes until golden. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Print Recipe

Open-faced peach tart

Cookies, Cakes, Pies and Desserts

By Bonnie Stern, published in the National Post modified ever so slightly by me – Serves: 8

Prep Time: 15-20 minutes – Cooking Time: 55-60 minutes – Total Time: 75 minutes

A rustic free-formed tart filled with ripe, sweet peaches.

Ingredients

• Pastry
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 3/4 cup cold butter or margarine (I used Fleishmann's stick margarine), cut into small pieces
• 1/4 cup cold water
• Filling
• 7 medium peaches, sliced but not peeled (3-4 cups of fruit)
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• Topping
• 1 egg, beaten lightly
• 2 tablespoons coarse sugar or raw sugar

Instructions

1

For the pastry: Combine the flour, salt and sugar in your food processor bowl. Pulse to mix. Cut the butter or margarine into 12 pieces and add to the bowl. Pulse until cornmeal type crumbs form. Add the cold water 1 tablespoon at a time until the dough starts to clump together, pulsing the food processor while you add the water. It will probably take about 20 pulses altogether until the dough starts to come together around the s-blade of the food processor. When the dough starts to come together, place the contents of the bowl onto a sheet of plastic wrap and push the dough together into a ball with your hands. Cover the ball of dough snugly with plastic wrap and flatten into a disc. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour and preferably overnight.

2

Cut out two large pieces of parchment paper. Dust one sheet generously with flour. Place the dough on this piece of parchment paper. Dust the surface of the dough with flour and place the second piece of parchment paper on top of the dough. Roll out the chilled dough between the two large sheets of parchment paper until it is approximately 1/8 of an inch thick, or 12-15 inches in diameter. Carefully remove the top sheet of parchment paper and slide the bottom sheet of parchment paper with the rolled out dough on it, onto a baking sheet.

3

Preheat the oven to 425 F.

4

Combine the sliced peaches, brown sugar, cinnamon and flour in a medium bowl. Stir to mix everything together thoroughly.

5

Arrange the fruit mixture in center of the dough circle, leaving a 1 1/2-inch border (the border may be wider in some parts because of the uneven nature of the circle. That's just fine.) Fold the dough edges up and over the filling (dough will only partially cover filling), pleating every 3 inches. Lightly brush the folded dough edges with a beaten egg. Sprinkle the dough edges with 2 tablespoons of coarse sugar or turbinado sugar.

6

Bake at 425 F. on the center rack of the oven for 20 minutes. Lower the temperature of the oven to 375 F. and bake for 30-40 minutes until golden. Allow to cool and serve.

Notes

This pie tastes best the day that it is made. If you choose to freeze the raw tart, do not egg the crust before freezing. Wrap it tightly. When ready to bake, egg the crust and sprinkle with sugar. Bake the frozen pie as instructed, however add an additional 10-15 minutes of baking time. Should you have any leftover pie, store it uncovered or the crust will get soggy.