I love pumpkin and pumpkin spice as much as the next person (just look at my recipes for pumpkin spice panna cotta and spiced pumpkin and carrot soup), but I also love the fact that fall is apple season! And there’s almost nothing as perfect to celebrate apple season with as this warm Calvados apple galette! It’s fall in a crust—seriously! Warm, spiced, and everything you think about when you think cozy!
When it comes to dessert, galettes are probably some of the simplest and easiest to make, especially if you’re using pre-made pie dough. It’s also an elegant way to showcase the fruit of the season, whether that be peaches, pears, cherries, berries, or, in this case, apples! All you have to do is prepare the fruit, place it in the crust, and bake it. It will come out beautiful, delicious, and is quite the impressive dessert-in-a-hurry! Plus, you can easily make this gluten free by using a gluten-free pie crust!
I’m also upping the apple flavor by using apple brandy, like Calvados. The alcohol is almost entirely cooked out, but remains is a bright, slightly spicy, complex layer of flavor that just makes this galette—it’s not quite the same without it.
Okay, so I know I titled this “warm Calvados apple galette,” but if I’m honest, I used another brand of apple brandy instead of Calvados (you can only call apple brandy Calvados if it comes from the Normandy region of France). The apple brandy I’m using is from a small spirits company here in New Mexico called Santa Fe Spirits. They make their apple brandy in small batches using local apples (plus, the bottle is pretty, which, apart from being a local company, is what caught my eye).
If you don’t feel like using alcohol or don’t want to buy brandy, or if you want even more of an apple cider taste, you can certainly swap the apple brandy with apple cider.
Also, you’re going to combine the brown sugar with a tablespoon of water and microwave it. I know it sounds strange, but trust me on this. It’ll be a little soupy, but once you combine it with the apples and apple brandy over heat, it will become this delicious, syrupy sauce. Some of it will leak out of the crust, but it adds so much flavor to the apples and galette as a whole!
You can make this galette in under thirty minutes, although it will take a bit longer to cook, but you’ll be out of the kitchen pretty quickly, and you’ll have a very impressive, and very delicious, dessert to show for it.
And, as always, there are allergy- and diet-friendly swaps after the recipe card.
- 1 pie crust (homemade or store-bought)
- 3 apples, peeled, cored, and cut into slices
- 3 Tbsp. unsalted butter
- ½ C. brown sugar
- 3 Tbsp C. Calvados or apple brandy, plus 1 Tbsp., reserved
- 2 Tbsp. water
- 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
- ½ tsp. cinnamon
- ¼ tsp. nutmeg
- ¼ tsp. fine salt
- 1 large egg
- Turbinado, or raw, sugar, for sprinkling
- Preheat oven to 350°.
- Core and slice the apples. You can peel them if you’d like, but there’s no need.
- Toss the apples with the vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
- Combine 1 tablespoon of water with the brown sugar and microwave for 15 to 20 seconds, until syrupy.
- Heat the butter over medium heat, then place the apples into the pan. Add the brown sugar and apple brandy and stir the apples until softened and the brandy and brown sugar have reduced to a bubbling, syrupy sauce, 10 to 15 minutes.
- Take out the crust and place on a parchment or Silpat-lined sheet pan, then place apples into the middle of the crust, making sure you have enough room to fold the crust over the apples.
- Fold up the crust over the apple and pinch overlaps together to ensure it stays together.
- Mix egg, water, and the tablespoon of Calvados until combined, then brush over the crust. Sprinkle turbinado sugar over the crust and place into the oven.
- Bake for half an hour, or until the crust is golden brown.
- Allow to cool for 10 minutes, then serve.
Swaps:
- Swap the regular pie crust for a gluten-free pie crust
- Swap the butter for a butter alternative
- Swap the brandy for apple cider
- Swap the egg for water and a milk alternative
And this warm galette is so good topped with ice cream, crème anglaise, or even some caramel sauce. Yum!
So take this moment to enjoy apple season with this warm Calvados apple galette!
‘Till next time!
Yum Girl says
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RSGallegos says
Absolutely! Thank you so much 🙂