A free-form tart that practically folds itself — and rye pastry that makes the plums taste more like plums.
Stone Fruit, Rough Edges, and a Forgiving Dough
A galette asks nothing of you. No tin, no blind-baking, no tidy crimping — just pastry folded over fruit and slid into the oven. The ragged edges are the point. What does require a small decision is the flour, and here rye is the answer. Even a partial swap — half plain flour, half wholegrain rye — gives the pastry a nutty, faintly earthy depth that amplifies stone fruit rather than softening it. Plums especially respond well: their tartness sharpens, their jam-dark sweetness comes forward.
Use ripe but not collapsing plums. If they give slightly when pressed, they're ready. Halve and stone them, slice each half into three or four wedges, and toss with a little sugar — around a tablespoon per four or five plums, adjusted for how sweet they are — and a pinch of ground cardamom.
You’ll need
- 75 g plain flour, plus a little for rolling
- 75 g wholegrain rye flour
- Pinch of fine salt
- 1 tsp caster sugar, plus 1 tbsp for the fruit
- 100 g cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes
- 2–3 tbsp ice-cold water
- 500 g ripe plums (about 6–7 medium), halved, stoned, sliced
- ¼ tsp ground cardamom
- 1 tbsp ground almonds (optional — keeps the base from going soggy)
The method
- Combine both flours, salt, and 1 tsp sugar in a bowl. Add the cold butter and rub in quickly until the mixture resembles rough breadcrumbs — a few larger flakes of butter are fine, better than fine.
- Add ice-cold water a tablespoon at a time, mixing with a fork until the dough just comes together. Flatten into a disc, wrap, and chill for 30 minutes.
- Heat the oven to 200 °C / 180 °C fan. Roll the dough on a lightly floured surface into a rough circle about 30 cm across — irregular edges are good.
- Transfer to a lined baking sheet. Scatter ground almonds over the centre if using. Pile the plums in the middle, leaving a 5–6 cm border. Fold the edges up and over the fruit, pressing gently to hold.
- Bake 35–40 minutes until the pastry is golden and the plums are bubbling at the edges. Cool for at least 15 minutes before cutting.
Serve with crème fraîche, nothing fancier.
