Sablé Galette Cookies Recipes

SABLé BRETON GALETTE WITH BERRIES

Steps:

• To make the galette: Whisk the flour and baking powder together.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or in a large bowl with a hand mixer, beat the butter on medium speed until soft and creamy. Add the sugar and salt and beat for another 2 minutes, or until the mixture is very smooth. Beat in the egg and mix for 2 minutes more. Reduce the mixer speed to low, add the flour, and mix only until it is blended into the mixture - you'll have a very soft dough.
• Working with a rubber spatula, give the dough a few turns to make sure you've picked up all the dry ingredients at the bottom of the bowl, then scrape the dough onto a piece of wax paper or plastic wrap. Press down on the dough to form it into a disk, wrap it well, and chill it for at least 3 hours. (The dough can be refrigerated for up to 3 days.)
• When you are ready to bake the galette, center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Butter a 9- to 9 1/2-inch fluted tart pan with a removable bottom and put it on a baking sheet lined with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper.
• To get the dough going, put it between two pieces of wax paper or plastic wrap and roll it into a circle. If it's too difficult to roll - it's soft and it has a tendency to break - skip the rolling part and go directly to the patting part: Put the dough in the center of the tart pan and pat and press it into an even layer. Don't press the dough up the sides of the pan - you want as flat a surface as you can get. Place the pan on the baking sheet.
• Bake the galette for 40 to 45 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and the edges come away from the sides of the pan; if you press the galette gently, it won't feel completely firm, but that's just fine. Transfer the pan to a cooling rack and let the galette rest for 3 minutes or so, then invert it onto another rack, invert again onto a rack, and let cool to room temperature right side up.
• Just before you're ready to serve, top the galette: Put the galette on a flat serving plate and spoon over as much lemon curd as you'd like, spreading it in swirls but leaving a little border around the edge bare (the curd will spread when you cut the base). If you're using strawberries, hull them, leave them whole or slice them in half, and arrange the halves attractively over the curd. If you've got raspberries or blueberries or a mélange, scatter the berries over the curd or arrange them neatly in pretty circles.
• If you want to give the galette a little glaze, warm ¼ cup or so of currant jelly with a tiny splash of water until it liquefies (you can do this in a microwave oven or a saucepan). Either drizzle the glaze over the berries - this is my preferred technique - or use a pastry brush or feather to paint the berries with the jelly.
• If you haven't glazed the berries, you might want to give them a dusting of confectioners' sugar just before you're ready to bring the galette to the table.
• To serve, cut the galette into wedges and serve as is - nothing more is needed.

SABLé GALETTE COOKIES

Steps:

• 1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Place the flour, margarine, salt and 1/2 cup of the sugar in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Pulse about seven times, or until the mixture looks like sand. You can also do this by hand in a large bowl with two knives or a pastry cutter. Add 1 egg yolk, the vanilla, orange blossom water, if using, and the tablespoon of cold water. Process or mix just until the dough comes together.
• 2. Place a large piece of parchment on the counter and grease lightly using the paper or foil wrapper that wrapped the margarine. Dump the dough onto the greased parchment and, using a rolling pin, roll into a large circle, about 9 inches in diameter.
• 3. To decorate the edge of the cookie, using the flat end of the handle of a wooden spoon, or the tip of your index finger, make indentations one after the other all around the outside of the circle.
• 4. Whisk together the remaining egg yolk with the 1/2 tablespoon of water. Brush the top of the cookie with egg wash. Using the tines of a fork, make one set of lines straight across the top of the cookie. Make another set about 2 inches below the first. Repeat until you have four to five sets of lines. Now slide the parchment a quarter turn to the right and make four to five additional sets of lines, each about 2 inches apart. The new set of lines should cross the first set of lines on an angle, creating a diamond-shaped grid.
• 5. Sprinkle the top of the cookie with the remaining teaspoon of sugar. Slide the parchment onto a cookie sheet and bake for 35 to 37 minutes, until the edges start to look golden. Remove from the oven and immediately cut the cookie into 8 or 12 large wedges or about eighteen 1 x 3-inch bars, if you like. If you wait until the cookie cools to cut it, you will not get nice clean edges.

SABLE COOKIES

Steps:

• Line baking sheet with parchment paper or a nonstick baking mat; set aside.
• Place butter and sugar in the bowl of a food processor; process until creamy. Add egg yolks, salt, and vanilla; process for 30 seconds until combined. Add 1 cup flour and process until smooth. Add remaining cup of flour to processor; process to combine. Turn dough out onto work surface and form into flat square; wrap with plastic wrap and transfer to refrigerator until chilled.
• Place a nonstick baking mat on work surface. Place half of the chilled dough on baking mat; top with a sheet of plastic wrap. Roll out dough between baking mat and plastic wrap until it is 1/8-inch-thick. Transfer to fridge to chill until firm, about 30 minutes. Repeat process with remaining dough.
• Using a 2-inch round fluted cookie cutter, cut out dough and transfer to prepared baking sheets. Transfer baking sheets to refrigerator until dough is chilled, about 20 minutes. Roll out scraps, and repeat. Repeat process with remaining dough. Transfer to refrigerator and chill until firm, about 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
• Mix together remaining egg yolk with 1 teaspoon water; brush tops of cookies with egg white mixture. Sprinkle with sanding sugar, if desired. Transfer to oven. Bake until cookies are pale golden, 12 to 15 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.