A gluten-free and vegan galette that’s made with butternut squash, fresh apple, and fennel bulbs, not to mention beautiful.
I’m all for presentation with dishes, especially those you’re actually presenting to a group of people, your loved ones, and community gathered around the table. This Butternut Squash Fennel & Apple Galette is not only incredibly beautiful but a crowd pleaser. It’s made with slightly sweet and creamy butternut squash, tart apples, and fragrant fennel- a winning trio of fall flavors wrapped into a rustic gluten-free and vegan galette then sprinkled with fresh herb and a drizzle of olive oil.
I was brainstorming new recipes to try this Thanksgiving on my family, i.e. willing recipe testers, as a way to bring something new to our traditional table, I hope this recipe can serve as that for your holiday tables as well. Galettes are nothing new here, they’re a classic free-formed pie made with various fillings, yet my goal for this recipe was to take a savory galette, which is typically served with cheese and make it dairy free. I use my Classic Cashew Cheese as a garnish option on this, actually no, I highly recommend this to be used as part of the dish rather than just a garnish!
The word on fennel.
Fennel used to be a vegetable/spice that I had no idea how to use in cooking, no idea! It wasn’t until my step mom made a potato au gratin dish using fennel in it (she’s like the Ina Garten of Ohio I swear), and it turned my life around. If you’ve never tried fennel or are new to using it, it tastes light and refreshing yet with a strong licorice flavor. It’s crunchy and is great to use sliced in raw salads, sauteed, or baked/cooked like it is in this dish. There are two parts to fennel, the bulbs and the stems similar to a carrot and it’s carrot greens, both are edible. Fennel is a great source of vitamin C, fiber, manganese, copper, calcium, and a bit of iron. Besides it’s nutrient content, it also contains antioxidants, anti-inflammatory compounds that help reduce cardiovascular risk. The fennel seeds have been used for centuries to help aid digestion along with the essential oil used for natural flavoring and scents.
Galettes are one of my favorite ways to present fillings in new ways and it’s an added bonus that these crusts can be used with both sweet and savory recipes AND they don’t have to look pretty, it’s all about the rustic touch galettes bring. I love the combination of a rustic loosely thrown together crust with the carefully arranged layers of the squash, apples, and fennel. The cast iron skillet is completely an option for this recipe, you could also make it on a piece of parchment paper on a baking sheet like my Peach Fig Galette recipe here, but c’mon the cast iron is a special look (and it sops up all the natural juices from the filling ingredients).
Ways to serve | I most enjoy this recipe served as a side dish, just a small sliver, with a dollop of my Classic Cashew Cheese and fresh sage or chive. I LOVE that combination and highly suggest trying it with it. Otherwise, simply garnishing it with fresh sage, black pepper, and sea salt to taste is perfect. Enjoy this as an entree with adding a soft cooked farm fresh egg on top, with a side green salad and serve a larger portion of the galette slice- just an idea.
- CRUST
- 1/2 cup brown rice flour
- 1/2 cup quinoa flour
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 8 tablespoons coconut oil, chilled
- 6 tablespoons ice water
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- FILLING
- 1 half large (300g) butternut squash, prepared below
- 1 large green apple, sliced thinly
- 1 fennel bulb, sliced thinly
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon dried sage
- 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, whole
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
- 1/4-1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
- CRUST: In a large mixing bowl combine all flours- set the water and coconut oil aside. Using your hands, create small balls or chunks of the chilled coconut oil, you’ll be working this into the flour and gradually adding in the ice cold water 1 tablespoon at a time. At this point, the dough will look very crumbly. Work your hands into the dough bringing it together- use a pastry scraper to help get the dough off the countertop. Chill for 5-10 minutes in the refrigerator, no longer as coconut oil hardens very quickly and you still want the dough to be pliable. Next, adding a dusting of flour (brown rice or any kind) to a clean countertop, your hands, the rolling pin and spread the dough out and using a rolling pin. If the dough tears (which it will, it’s very delicate), simply squeeze it back together, remember this dough is delicate. Place the rolled dough round into the bottom of a well greased (with coconut oil) cast iron skillet, making sure to leave about 1-2 inches of the crust- enough to reach up the sides of the pan, you have the option to fold over the side crust or leave it as on the sides. The cast iron will serve as the serving dish. Set aside.
- FILLING: First peel the butternut squash, cut in half, and remove the seeds inside. Slice the squash in half again, so you’re left with 4 large pieces, then thinly slice each quarter. In a large mixing bowl gently combine all sliced filling ingredients with olive oil and seasonings. Arrange the sliced butternut squash, sliced apple, and sliced fennel bulbs alternating each layer or simply mix it all together very rustic looking. Repeat until the entire crust is full. Next gently fold the edges of the crust on top of the sliced filling. Drizzle entire galette with additional olive oil and sea salt. Bake for 40 minutes at 400 degrees F or until crust is golden brown.
I hope you all love this one as much as I do, please share with me when you make this for your loved ones this season using #nutritionstripped, and also for a chance to be featured!
xo McKel
