If you’re looking for a rhubarb galette that actually tastes like rhubarb, this one is for you. There are no strawberries here, no syrupy glaze to water down the rhubarbiness. It’s just bright, tangy rhubarb with a few simple ingredients, nestled over a layer of pistachio frangipane, all baked into a rustic crust.
Read on to learn more about why this is my favorite rhubarb galette recipe or jump to the recipe to hit the ground running.
Why I love this Rhubarb Galette
1. It actually tastes like rhubarb.
I love strawberry rhubarb, but sometimes it’s nice to let rhubarb shine on its own. Its flavor is sharp and a little bit earthy. It’s like spring, distilled. With just the right amount of sugar, it turns into something bright and clean that doesn’t need any help from berries.
2. The frangipane highlights and smooths out the rhubarb.
The frangipane softens the rhubarb’s tanginess just enough and adds a little bit of creaminess, but rhubarb still takes the lead. It’s sort of like how coffee’s flavor rounds out when you add a splash of milk, or how you can taste the spices in chai more distinctly after adding milk and sugar. It helps you taste more of what’s already there.
3. It’s forgiving.
You can line up the rhubarb in perfect rows or you can toss it together in a total jumble. You can roll the dough into a perfect circle or leave the edges lopsided. I guess you could even pipe on the frangipane, but my recipe just asks you to spread it in an even layer. A galette looks (and tastes) great whether you’re a perfectionist or a well-adjusted, chill person.
Tips for dough success
My recipe for rhubarb galette will walk you through everything, but here is a bit more context about the galette dough:
- Cream cheese crust: You can use any crust you’d like for this, but my cream cheese crust is super forgiving. It doesn’t tend to crack or develop holes, so the filling stays put as it bakes. Rolling it out is as smooth as rolling out a new can of Play-Doh. And after it bakes up, it’s flaky and delicious.
- Disk shaping: Don’t skip the step where I have you carefully shape your dough into a disk. Making sure the disk is smooth and does not have cracks on the sides will lead to a smoother roll-out process. I have a specific method of doing this, which I describe in the recipe.
- Chill it: Make sure you chill your pie dough before rolling it out. If you accidentally let it chill for too long, leave it at room temperature for a little while, just until it’s pliable. This also leads to a smoother roll-out.
Rhubarb Galette with Pistachio Frangipane
Ingredients
For the pie dough:
- 1⅓ cups [175 g] all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
- ½ cup [115 g] cold unsalted butter, cut into chunks
- ¼ tsp salt
- 4 oz [115 g] cold cream cheese, cut into chunks
- 2 Tbsp very cold water
For the pistachio frangipane:
- ½ cup [60 g] finely ground pistachios, plus extra for sprinkling
- 1 large egg white
- 2 Tbsp granulated sugar
- 1 Tbsp unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 heaping Tbsp all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
For the filling:
- 4 cups [400 g] ½ in [13 mm] sliced rhubarb
- ⅓ cup [65 g] granulated sugar
- 2 Tbsp cornstarch
- 2 Tbsp water
- ¼ tsp salt
- Egg wash (1 egg yolk beaten with 1 tsp water)
Instructions
For the pie dough:
- Place the flour, butter, and salt in a food processor fitted with the blade attachment (see Note). Pulse about ten times and stop once the butter has blended into the flour with lots of pea-size lumps left. Add the cream cheese and pulse a few more times, just until the cream cheese has blended in but the mixture is still quite lumpy. Sprinkle the water over the surface and pulse a few more times, just until the mixture can be squeezed together into a ball.
- Shape the dough into a ball by squeezing it together, flatten the ball into a disk, and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Gently tap and roll the sides of the disk on the counter to help them become less jagged. Once they’re smooth and no longer have big cracks, place the disk flat on the counter and gently press and pat the top to make sure it’s nice and flat. As you gently press down on the top, the plastic wrap compresses the sides and ensures that any jagged edges are smoothed out. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. If you chill it completely, let it sit at room temperature for 30 to 50 minutes, just until it’s pliable but still chilled.
For the pistachio frangipane:
- Combine the pistachios, egg white, sugar, and butter in a stand mixer and beat at high speed with the paddle attachment until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Stir in the flour once it’s fluffy. Set aside at cool room temperature.
- Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400°F [205°C] and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
For the filling:
- In a medium mixing bowl, fold together the rhubarb, sugar, cornstarch, water, and salt.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll out the chilled dough to just under ¼ in [6 mm] thick and about 12 in [30.5 cm] across. Rotate occasionally as you work but try not to handle the dough too much and try to keep the edges from cracking too deeply.
- Once it’s rolled out, gently wrap the dough around your rolling pin to transfer it to the prepared baking sheet. Spread the frangipane in the center of the rolled-out dough, leaving a 2 in [5 cm] border around the edges.
- Place the rhubarb filling on the frangipane layer and be sure to scrape the bowl with a spatula so you don’t miss anything. Arrange in an even layer, leaving a 2 in [5 cm] border around the edges. Fold the edges over in a rustic overlapping pattern so that the middle stays open and brush the crust’s surface all over with the egg wash.
- Bake for about 50 minutes, until the whole thing is bubbly and the crust is golden brown.
- Let cool before slicing (at least 15 minutes, ideally 1 hour). Serve plain or with extra pistachios.
Psst… by the way, I wrote a whole cookbook of adaptable recipes like this one. It’s called A Dish for All Seasons!
Check it out for adaptable base recipes + ideas for seasonal (and evergreen!) variations.
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