Before they were sweet, pies were savory. The dough that bakes up into our beloved flaky crust was, way back when, merely a convenient holder of filling, a means for peripatetic medieval types to wrap up meat or vegetables and take them on the go. Sort of like a pop tart.
Now that a pie usually refers to the kind of double-crusted or meringue-topped thing of dessert beauty (or terror, if dough always seems to stick to your rolling pin), I love the idea of taking the pastry back to its roots in my holiday cooking this year-whether at Thanksgiving or Christmas, or sometime in between.
This is happening in two ways. One, we’re making savory pies, not sweet ones; and two, we’re choosing a rustic presentation over a perfect, fussy one. Put away your rolling pins and deep-dish fluted pie pans. This is going to be simple.
At your pie party, I envision an array of savory pastries, with crust and filling mixed and matched to suit your tastes. To add even more visual fun, play around with shapes, too. There are mini galettes, dough wrapped around filling that’ll disappear in three bites. There are long and skinny galettes containing bright seasonal vegetables; they’re to be cut into manageable squares for serving. Others are more or less round, like, well, pies. We can even pick and choose the name of these savories: galette, crostata, pie, tart, tartlet, pizette. Though some of these have specific meanings and others are sort of made up, a good diverse spread should have good diverse names - don’t you think?
The first recipe here makes a couple of Apple Crostatas. With a whole-wheat crust and a melted brie topping, the cute rounds make an awesome vegetarian lunch (with a green salad) if you’re not having a pie party or looking for a great starter for Thanksgiving.
But that’s not all. There’s a big Sweet Potato-Rosemary Galette with a rustic cornmeal crust that’s punctuated by delicious roquefort. Click over to ArtofCheese.com to get the recipe for these delicious, seasonal gems.
This post is sponsored by Lactalis, who provided cheese and compensation. All opinions, of course, are my own. Thanks for supporting the sponsors that keep BGSK delicious! If you’d like to enter to win $50 worth of your own Président cheese, visit ArtOfCheese.com, where you can download a coupon and enter the Pinterest sweepstakes, plus find more holiday recipes and product information.
**Recipe**
Mini Whole Wheat Apple Crostatas with Triple Crème Brie
Makes 8 small crostatas
Ingredients
For the crust
1 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling
2/3 cup whole wheat flour
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
9 tablespoons cold butter, cut into chunks
1 egg yolk beaten with 2 tablespoons of very cold ice water
For the filling
1 lemon
3 small apples, peeled and cut into a ½-inch dice
¼ cup chopped onion
lots of ground pepper
1 tablespoon cornstarch
Salt
1 Président Triple Creme Brie cut and wrap wedge, cut into 3-inch slices
Combine the flour, salt, and sugar in a food processor. Add the butter and pulse just until the mixture looks like crumbs. Add the 2 tablespoons of water and pulse again. If the dough doesn’t form a ball, add water by the teaspoonful until it does.
Flatten the ball into a disk and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate at least 1 hour, until firm. If you keep the dough in the fridge longer, leave it at room temperature for about 15 minutes before trying to roll.
While the dough is chilling, zest the lemon and add it to a small bowl. Juice the lemon and add the juice as well. Add the apples, onion, pepper, cornstarch, and a few pinches of salt. Toss to coat the apples with the juice.
Make the crostatas: Preheat the oven to 375°F. Break the dough into 8 pieces. Form them into small balls. On a floured surface, roll them into disks about 5 inches in diameter. Don’t worry if they’re uneven. Put a disk on a lightly greased baking sheet, then place a heaping spoonful of apple mixture (about an eighth of what’s there) in the center of the disk. Fold in the edges, overlapping them.
Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until the apples are cooked and brown on top and the crust is golden. Remove and turn off the oven.
Place a slice of brie on top of each crostata. Return to the turned-off oven for about 2 minutes until the cheese melts. Serve warm or room temperature, with another wedge of softened Triple Crème Brie on the side.
