Red Plum & Pistachio Frangipane Galette.

Have you ever seen a red plum in the sun? They glow red in an almost translucent way, like a finger with a torch behind it. There's something magical about them. Apricots and peaches don't do this, neither do nectarines. It's a special magic power just for plums.

I'm writing this after having laid out the ingredients for a plum and pistachio galette I'm making today. I bought some red plums at the market yesterday and I've just washed them and placed them in a bowl. The way the sun is coming through the window creates a sharp, bright triangle of light directly over the bowl. I didn't plan on making a sweet galette when I prepared the dough an hour or so ago. I very much intended to make a savoury tart of some description, but these plums are calling me and I have pistachios in the pantry so it's meant to be.

Ingredients:

Pastry:
2 cups plain flour
Pinch of salt
170g cold unsalted butter, cubed
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup ice water Pistachio

Frangipane:
100g unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup caster sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
3/4 cup toasted pistachios, blitzed into a fine crumb

Plums:
8-10 red plums, pits removed and sliced
2 tablespoons raw sugar
Juice of 1 lemon
1 teaspoon vanilla paste
Tiny pinch of salt

1 egg whisked for egg wash
2-3 extra tablespoons of raw sugar for encrusting the pastry
2 tablespoons of icing sugar, for dusting
Good double cream or vanilla ice cream, to serve

Method.

Step 1.

For the pastry, in a large bowl combine salt and flour. Add butter and toss to coat. Using your finger tips in quick pinching motions, squish each cube of butter flat and then continue pinching until you've got a nice yellow mealy crumb.

Step 2.

Add cider vinegar and half the ice water and toss around with a fork until it just comes together, you can add more water until you get the right consistency. You don't want it too wet, it should *just* come together if you squeeze it between your hands, loosely holding shape.

Step 3.

Tip out onto clean bench and pat together until it forms a flat round disc. A knead or two here is okay if you need it to bring it together. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours. 

Step 4.

When the 2 hours is up, remove pastry from fridge, preheat oven to 200 C and prepare your frangipane. In a medium bowl, cream butter and sugar using a wooden spoon. Add eggs one at a time and mix well to combine. Add blitzed pistachios and ground cardamom, combine again. Set aside.

Step 5.

Now prepare your plums. Slice plums and toss with raw sugar and some lemon juice, vanilla and a little pinch of salt.

Step 6.

Unwrap your pastry from the plastic wrap and directly onto a piece of baking paper, roll out to about 35cm diameter. Spread layer of pistachio frangipane over the bottom leaving 5cm border all the way around. Top with your sliced plums, leaving any juice sitting at the bottom of the bowl of plums behind.

Step 7.

Fold in the edges of the pastry to encase the filling, using the baking paper to help you lift and fold the pastry helps here. Then brush the outside of pastry generously with a whisked egg and sprinkle over raw sugar. Use your fingertips to help gently press the sugar onto the pastry if you're having trouble getting it to stick.

Step 8.

Bake in the oven for 40-45 minutes, turning halfway if your oven isn't particularly good at cooking evenly, like mine.

Give it a few minutes upon removing it from the oven before slicing into it, and dust generously with icing sugar. Serve with a good dollop of double cream or vanilla ice cream and enjoy with the people you love.