This Easy Peach Galette has a delightfully flaky, light, and crisp pie crust, topped with fresh, juicy peaches! It’s such a simple enough dessert to make for your family in a pinch, yet fancy enough for company!
Learn how to make the PERFECT pie crust and filling for this gorgeous summer dessert with my detailed, step by step recipe!
- Why I love this peach galette recipe
- Ingredients for this galette
- How to make a peach galette
- Pro tips and secrets to my perfect galette crust
- How to make the peach galette filling
- How to choose the right peaches for this galette
- How to choose ripe peaches for this galette
- My peaches are not ripe, can I still use them?
- How to serve this galette
- How to store this galette for later
- More Tips and Frequently Asked Questions
Summer doesn’t mean that baking takes a back seat in our house. Au contraire! With the bounty of fruits that comes with the season, tarts, pies, galettes like this strawberry tart, strawberry galette, and mixed berry pie are unavoidable.
While I do love a homey pie or tart, they just take too much time to make. That’s where these simple, rustic galettes come into the picture! Short of eating them straight out of your hand, galettes in my opinion are the best way to enjoy summer stone fruits.
Why I love this peach galette recipe
- Simple recipe. Much easier to make than pies and tarts, and they are free-form, so you don’t need any special pans to make them.
- The crust is an all butter pie crust which makes an incredibly light, flaky, and crisp crust, and then it’s topped with fresh, sweet, juicy peaches!
- This recipe ensures that your crust is not at all soggy, or too hard. Just the perfect flaky, buttery texture you’ll love in a galette crust.
- Versatile and adaptable recipe. You can use this peach galette recipe to make any type of fruit galette – plums, nectarines, pluots, apricots, apples, strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries etc.
- I provide detailed, step by step instructions to ensure perfect results for your easy peach galette!
There are only 2 components to this peach galette
- Pie crust – pie crusts are very easy to make. And they are very forgiving, especially when you make them free-form like for this easy galette. It’s completely OK even if it shrinks, and you don’t have to blind bake.
- Filling – pretty much anything goes. I’m making a peach galette here to make the most of the juicy peaches that I got my hands on recently at our local grocery store. You could even make a mixed stone fruit galette instead, and maybe throw some berries in there too!
Ingredients for this galette
Pie crust
For a perfect, flaky crust, you have to ensure that all the ingredients for the crust are chilled.
- Unsalted butter – You can use salted butter as well, but adjust the salt in the recipe to compensate for the salt in the butter if you do so.
- Water – Water is necessary to bring the dough together. However, too much water in the dough can result in too much gluten development. This could make it hard to roll out the dough.
- Vodka – This is optional. I use vodka as a substitute for some of the water in the recipe. You can replace it with water instead. But the vodka helps to prevent gluten formation by adding moisture to the dough without adding water.
- Vinegar – Vinegar is another ingredient that helps to reduce gluten formation in the dough. The acidity inhibits gluten formation.
- AP flour – All purpose flour is a great flour to use to make pie crusts. I do not recommend using bread flour due to the higher protein content. You can use cake flour if that’s all you have at home. But AP flour is what works perfectly well for this recipe.
- Sugar and salt – Added for flavor. Sugar can also help with the coloring of the dough (due to caramelization). Salt prevents the pie crust from tasting bland. But do adjust the salt level if you’re using salted butter.
Peach filling
- Peaches – Can’t make peach galette without peaches of course. I recommend going by weight rather than quantity, since weight will change depending on the size of the peaches you have available. If in doubt, have more peaches at hand so you have more than enough for the filling. How can you say no to more juicy, ripe, in season peaches?
- I prefer to use fresh peaches over canned peaches for this recipe.
- Cornstarch or tapioca starch – The starch in the recipe acts as a thickener for the pie filling. As the galette bakes, the juices in the fruit will leech out and start to heat up. The starch molecules in the cornstarch / tapioca will absorb the liquid and swell up and thicken the mixture. This is crucial to prevent the juices from making the crust too soggy.
- Sugar – Sugar adds sweetness to the filling and brings out the fruity flavor of the peaches as they cook.
- Lemon juice – The citric acid in lemon also helps to brighten up the flavors of the peaches.
- Vanilla and salt – Added for flavor.
Egg wash
- Raw sugar (optional) – The addition of the sugar helps to create a lovely sweet crunchy texture on your crust. The sugar will stick to the crust only if you have an egg wash or milk wash on the crust.
- Egg yolks and milk – The egg wash helps to create a golden brown shiny crust on your galette. You can substitute this with a plain milk or cream wash instead as well. It just won’t be as shiny then though.
How to make a peach galette
How to make the galette crust
You can make the pie crust in two different ways – using the food processor OR by hand. Use whichever is easiest for you.
The reason why the crust for this galette is special is that it’s an all butter pie crust which not only makes it super easy to make, but it’s also incredibly light, flaky and delicious!
Pro tips and secrets to my perfect galette crust
Galette crust is simply pie crust that is used as a tart. The tips for making this galette crust are identical to the tips for making perfect pie crust as well! The perfect galette crust will have some gluten in the dough so that it can create flaky layers and be cohesive, BUT not too much gluten that it becomes rubbery and hard to roll out.
The goal for this galette crust is to be buttery, flaky, and tender. Not thick, hard, and rubbery. These are the tips and tricks I use to achieve that.
Vinegar – A trick that I learned several years ago when making dough for pastries (such as puff pastry or shortcrust for pie crusts) is that vinegar is truly a magic ingredient! The addition of this acid inhibits some of the gluten formation in the dough, making it easier to handle and roll out the dough. As a result, the baked crust is just so light and flaky!
Vodka – Another secret ingredient to prevent gluten formation in the dough! Gluten loves water, and flour will form gluten in the presence of water, even while the dough is just resting. Vodka doesn’t contribute towards hydrating the flour in the dough, but still helps with binding the dough together. Substituting some of that water with vodka lessens the amount of gluten that can form in the dough (as a reminder, too much gluten = thick, tough, rubbery pie crust).
Vodka is flavorless, and the crust does not become boozy at all because of the alcohol, due to the small amount that is added.
However, do keep in mind that not all of the alcohol will burn off during the baking process, and if that is of concern to you, you can leave it out. I personally would not have any hesitation or issues with the trace amounts of vodka left in the final peach galette, but again, if that is of concern to you if you’re serving this for kids for example, please use your discretion and leave it out if you prefer.
Using chilled ingredients – Make sure everything you use (flour, butter, and the liquids) is nice and chilled. This is to prevent the butter from melting in the dough. The cold butter in the dough will help to create beautiful flaky pockets in the pie crust as it bakes and melts. If the butter is soft, it’ll completely incorporate into the dough, which would prevent the dough from forming flaky layers and a tender pie crust – not good.
If the butter softens at any point, return the dough to the fridge or freezer to let the butter harden again.
Handling the dough – It’s crucial not to over-mix or over-handle the dough. The process of making galette dough is quick. You can use a food processor or a pastry cutter, OR just your hands to make the pie dough. The key is to make sure that you don’t over-work the flour and develop too much gluten. The more you “knead” or mix the dough, the more gluten you will form.
To keep it tender, the galette crust should only be handled just enough to bind it together and create the layers.
Size of the butter pieces – As you cut the butter into the flour, keep an eye on the size of the butter pieces. Larger the pieces of butter = more flaky pockets in the pie crust. Smaller the pieces of butter, the more mealy and sandy the crust will be (like a shortcrust pastry).
For this peach galette recipe, we are looking for butter pieces that are about the size of hazelnuts or chickpeas. This will yield that flakiness we desire, while still maintaining a thinner crust.
How to make the peach galette filling
There’s no pre-cooking involved, so the filling for this summer dessert couldn’t be easier. It’s simply sliced fresh peaches, tossed with a handful of ingredients and layered on top of the pie dough.
You can slice the peaches for this galette into wedges and arrange them in a circular pattern, OR slice peach halves and form a criss-cross grid pattern as shown below that looks fancy.
Alternatively, just pile the peaches into the middle of the dough for an even more rustic look. This is obviously easier and less time consuming.
How to choose the right peaches for this galette
You can use yellow or white peaches for this galette. Yellow peaches are definitely more common.
Both have very similar flavors, but the white peaches are said to be a little less acidic than yellow peaches, making them a little sweeter.
If you’re lucky enough to find donut peaches, you can use those too! But if I got my hands on donut peaches, I’d just eat them fresh because they are so hard to come by.
How to choose ripe peaches for this galette
Find peaches that have a little “give” when you gently press them. Make sure to use the pads of your fingers to press the peaches, and not your nails. Also make sure not to squeeze them too hard, as they will bruise.
Slightly overripe peaches are also perfect for this recipe, since you’ll be cooking them. Just make sure they don’t have any large bruises on the skin.
Ripe peaches should also smell sweet when you smell them near the stem.
My peaches are not ripe, can I still use them?
If your peaches are not ripe, I do not recommend using them here as they won’t be sweet enough.
However, you can place the peaches in a paper bag or cardboard box (closed), and leave them in your kitchen. They will ripen fast this way. To speed up the ripening, place an apple or banana in the paper bag or box. Make sure to label your paper bag, so that no one will accidentally eat the peaches or throw them out accidentally (speaking from experience of course).
How to serve this galette
This galette is best served slightly warm, or at room temperature. Since a galette is much thinner than a pie, they cool down much faster, and the filling doesn’t have to “set” for you to cut into it.
But I have had leftovers cold too, and they are still just as delicious. The crust however is best when warm or at room temperature.
And nothing like a slice of this peach galette with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or whipped cream in the summer heat!
How to store this galette for later
Leftovers can be stored at room temperature for about 1 – 2 days, and then in the fridge for another 2 – 3 days. The flavors will become stale as time goes by.
You can wrap a baked galette and freeze it for up to 4 months. Then let it thaw out at room temperature before serving. However, this may change the texture of the pie crust, since it won’t be as “crisp”.
Warm up the galette in a preheated oven for a few minutes to make the galette taste better before serving.
More Tips and Frequently Asked Questions
There are two tips for making sure your crust isn’t soggy.
Make sure the crust doesn’t soak up too much liquid.
As the fresh peaches cook, they release their juices which can make the pie crust soggy. Some galette recipes call for a filling (such as frangipane) below the fresh fruit layer to prevent soggy pie crusts – but that’s just more work.
Instead, the fresh peaches here are gently tossed with some cornstarch (or tapioca flour) and lemon juice (or a generous pinch of citric acid), before being layered over the pie dough. So, as the peaches cook and the juices are released, they’ll be thickened by the starch. This makes the peach filling very juicy WITHOUT being too liquidy or soggy in this easy peach galette.
Bake the crust in the lower third of the oven, WITH a preheated tray or stone.
This works best if your oven has a heat element at the bottom of the oven. Making sure that the galette bakes in the lower third of the oven means that the crust gets a direct heat source, ensuring that it caramelizes and bakes from the bottom. Preventing a soggy bottom on your galette.
Preheating a baking tray or pizza stone in your oven before baking the galette will mimic this as well. Place the galette directly on the preheated tray, and the stored heat energy will cook the crust from the bottom as well.
Both the pie crust and filling can be made ahead of time! However, I would not store the galette WITH the filling. This is because the crust will absorb the juices from the filling as it sits in the fridge.
Roll out the pie dough and cover it with plastic wrap and store it in the fridge for up to 2 days. The filling can also be mixed and stored in the fridge for up to 2 days in an air-tight container.
Since the prep work has already been done, just assemble the galette and bake on the day you need it.
Galette is best eaten the same day it’s made.
I prefer to bake my peach galette and then freeze it. Here’s why.
The fruit filling will expel more liquid as it thaws out, and this can lead to a soggy crust as you bake it from frozen.
Instead, bake your peach galette first, but take it out just as the crust turns a light golden brown. Let the galette cool completely, and wrap and freeze the galette. The galette should be good for up to 4 months this way.
When you’re ready to serve, let the galette thaw out (in the fridge or room temperature). Preheat a baking tray in the oven, and then place the galette on top of it and let it bake until the crust is a dark golden brown.
Serve warm.
Yes it is! This is why the same tips for maintaining a tender and flaky crust applies for both types of crust. Just like a pie crust, you can choose to have a flaky crust or a mealy crust for a galette as well.
Absolutely! This makes this recipe even more easy. If you have access to pre-made shortcrust pastry, you can use this as well, because it’s the closest in texture to pie crust.
You can, but be careful. Puff pastry is known to “puff up” a lot as it bakes. This is because it has so many flaky layers.
When you make this galette with puff pastry, the crust will puff much more than the center.
The recipe for the galette crust is actually for TWO galettes. So you can double the peach filling recipe and easily make two galettes.
I prefer not to make more than two pie crusts at a time. If you double the recipe that I have provided in one go, you may find that it’s harder to create a dough that comes together without overworking the dough. Then you will have to sacrifice the tender, buttery flaky texture of the crust. Not good.
This is because the gluten in the dough was overworked. So the dough isn’t relaxed enough. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and return it to the fridge. The longer the better. This will allow the dough to relax again, and it should be easier to roll out afterwards.
This easy peach galette is the perfect summer dessert! It’s simple enough to make for your family in a pinch, but also fancy enough for company! The peaches are perfectly cooked with a great balance of sweetness that brings out the fresh, juicy flavor of the peaches. The melted sugar on top makes the peaches taste almost as if they’ve been poached. And the crust is flaky and crisp. Just a dollop of whipped cream or mascarpone, or a scoop of vanilla ice cream – and you’ve got the perfect summer dessert for all occasions! 🙂
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Easy Peach Galette
Ingredients:
Pie Crust (makes 2 pie crusts)
- 225 g unsalted butter 2 sticks, chilled
- 60 mL vodka ¼ cup, chilled (optional – read the notes on vodka in the post for more information)
- 30 mL water chilled (replace vodka amount with same amount of water if you're not using vodka)
- 30 mL apple cider vinegar chilled
- 350 g AP flour about 3 cups, spooned and leveled, preferably chilled
- 24 g sugar white or brown sugar
- ¾ tsp fine sea salt
Peach Filling
- 560 g peaches 1.25 lbs, or about 6 medium peaches, pitted and cut in half
- 1 tbsp cornstarch or tapioca starch
- Generous pinch of salt
- 30 mL lemon juice 2 tbsp
- 5 ml vanilla 1 tsp
- 50 g white sugar ¼ cup
Egg Wash
- 1 egg yolk
- 45 mL milk or cream 3 tbsp
For finishing the galette
- Extra flour for dusting
- Raw sugar optional, to sprinkle on top of the galette
- Semolina flour optional, to sprinkle on the crust
Instructions:
Pie Crust
- Slice the chilled butter into small pieces (each stick of butter into 16 pieces). Freeze this butter on a plate for about 10 – 15 minutes.225 g unsalted butter
- Next, make sure the vodka, water, vinegar, and flour are all chilled as well.60 mL vodka, 30 mL water, 30 mL apple cider vinegar
- Place the flour, salt, and sugar in a food processor. Pulse to mix the ingredients.350 g AP flour, 24 g sugar, ¾ tsp fine sea salt
- Add the chilled unsalted butter and pulse a few times, until you have chickpea-sized butter pieces mixed in with the dough.
- Next, add the vodka and vinegar and pulse just 3 – 4 times to mix them in. IF the mix is too dry, add the rest of the water. Pulse to mix, until there's no dry flour left.
- Squeeze a little of the dough in your hands to see if it has just enough moisture to stick together. If it does, then the pie dough is ready. If it still seems dry, add another tbsp of water. Try not to add too much water, since you don't want the pie dough to be wet.
- Turn the dough out onto a clean work surface and bring the mixture together to form a rough dough disc. Cut the disc into two, and form two flat discs that are about 5 – 6 inches across. Wrap each disc in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
- When you’re ready to make the galette, remove 1 portion of the crust from the fridge and let it soften for a bit (about 10 – 20 minutes). The dough should be cold but malleable.
Peach Filling
- While the pie crust is chilling in the fridge, make the peach filling.
- Slice each peach half into ¼ inch thick slices or ¼ inch thick wedges.560 g peaches
- Place the peaches in a bowl. Add the lemon juice, vanilla, half the sugar, salt and cornstarch, and gently toss to mix with the peaches. Set it aside in the fridge, until you have the crust ready.1 tbsp cornstarch, Generous pinch of salt, 30 mL lemon juice, 5 ml vanilla, 50 g white sugar
Egg Wash
- Make the egg wash while the galette is chilling in the fridge and the oven is preheating. Mix the egg yolk and milk together and set aside.1 egg yolk, 45 mL milk
Galette Assembly
- Preheat the conventional oven to 400°F / 205°C. Place a baking tray in the lower third of your oven, so it can preheat in the oven as well.
- Dust your work surface with flour, and place the cold (but malleable) pie dough on it. Dust the top of the pie disc with a little flour as well. Roll out the pie disc until you have a rough round-shaped disc that's about 12 – 14 inches in diameter.Extra flour
- If the pie crust softens too much at any stage, or starts to shrink, return the dough back to the fridge to chill and rest.
- Place the rolled out pie crust on a parchment paper. OPTIONAL – sprinkle a light coating of semolina flour on top of the pie crust. This can act as a barrier between the fruit and the crust.Semolina flour
- Starting from the middle of the crust, place the peach slices / wedges on top of the pie dough, leaving a 2 inch border from the edge of the pie crust.
- If you cut the peaches into wedges – You can arrange the peaches in circles (about 2 – 3 circles), with each wedge overlapping the next one.
- If you sliced the peaches – Arrange the peach slices together and create patterns with them starting from the center. Create a criss-cross pattern with most of the slices. Use any extra slices to fill in gaps.
- Sprinkle the remaining sugar over the peach slices / wedges.50 g white sugar
- If you have any very thin and frayed edges on the pie crust, you can trim these off. Then fold the pie crust edges OVER the edge of the peach filling. Repeat the process along the entire border of the galette so that the edge of the peach filling is enclosed in the pie crust. See pictures in the post for reference.
- Place the galette (along with the parchment paper) on a different plate or tray, and transfer it to the fridge. Refrigerate the galette for about 15 – 20 minutes until it firms up.
- The oven should have been preheated for at least 30 minutes at this point, with the baking tray inside the oven.
- Remove the galette from the fridge and generously brush the top of the pie dough with the egg wash. OPTIONAL – sprinkle some raw sugar over the pie crust and peaches.Raw sugar
- Carefully remove the preheated baking tray from the oven and place the galette with the parchment paper on top of the preheated baking tray. Then return this back to the lower third of the oven.
- Bake in the preheated oven for about 30 – 40 minutes, until the crust is a golden brown. Remove the galette from the oven and let it slightly cool down for a few minutes.
- While still hot, gently lift the galette from the parchment paper (be careful as the galette will be a little soft and delicate at this point), and place it on a baking rack to cool. This will help prevent the bottom from getting soggy as well.
- Serve the galette while warm, or at room temperature, with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.
Tips & Tricks
Nutrition Information:
“This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.”
Duane says
Easy recipe to follow. Just pulled the galette out of the oven; looks great and smells fantastic. Made for a gathering this evening so will have to wait for the taste test. Did bake a few scraps of the crust topped with apricot preserves and the crust is great. Only screw up was I thought I had grabbed vanilla but turned out it was almond extract instead. So, will have to wait and see what adding both vanilla and almond extract did to the flavor.
Gale Clark says
Made it today
Katherine Gelat says
This was the easiest recipe ever, I am horrible at making any type of crust, and I was successful! It tasted awesome.
Fatima Omer says
Hi, I live in a Muslim country & alcohol is not available. What can I add instead
Dini says
Hi Fatima
You can use ice water instead of vodka. I hope that helps!
Victoria says
Can you freeze this dough? How long would this be good for? We mix up the filling. This crust recipe is fantastic! I have now made a peach and plum pie, blueberry, and apricot! I am going to leave out the sugar and try a savory pie soon. Thank you for this!
Susan says
I don’t have any vodka on-hand. Do you feel it is necessary? Can I make it without and still avoid soggy crust? Thanks!
Dini says
Hi Susan!
Yes you can leave out the vodka. Make sure you’re using iced water 🙂
Hope that helps!
Eva Lissia says
This looks amazing! Going to make it tomorrow for company. Can I make it ahead and reheat it slightly?
Dini says
Hi Eva!
Thank you 🙂
I haven’t tried reheating the galette, but it should be do-able. Make sure to reheat it on a slightly lower heat to prevent the crust from over baking!
Kimberly Andreaus says
how much flour is this in cups? thanks 🙂
Dini says
Hi Kimberly
350g flour is about 2.9 – 3 cups (spoon and level method). There can be variations when using cups to measure flour, therefore I would go with 3 cups, but you may need a little extra water to get the same consistency. Hope that helps!
Ev says
Baking is a precise sport! Measuring main ingredients, especially flour, by weight is more precise than by volume. Buy yourself a baking scale; your baking will thank you. 🙂
shamu says
What a fabulous recipe! Made it for a French wine tasting party I hosted and it was a super hit. I used all of the dough to make one giant galette and it looked beautiful and tasted even better. Served it with bourbon creme fraiche. Thanks for sharing this delicious recipe.
Dini says
Thank you so much for letting me know shamu! I’m very glad the enjoyed the recipe. 🙂
Michelle says
I’m a little unclear about the part where it says to divide the dough into two discs before chilling it in the fridge, and to remove only one portion from the fridge when you’re ready to assemble. What happens with the second portion? Is this recipe meant for two galettes?
Dini says
Hi Michelle,
That is correct, the recipe for the pie crust makes 2 pie crusts (good for two galettes). The recipe for the peach filling however is for one galette. Thanks so much for your question, I’ve edited the recipe now with an added note to make this point clear. Hope that helps!
Aly says
Glad I found what to do with the second disc! I don’t think you ever edited the recipe with the added note. Thanks for this recipe.
Dini says
Hi Aly
The recipe notes do state “You can either halve the recipe for pie crust to make just one, or use the remaining pie crust disc for a second galette.”
I hope that helps!
Kevin says
Is it possible to use frozen peaches (appropriately thawed)?
Dini says
Hi Kevin!
I haven’t made this with frozen (and thawed) peaches because they tend to have more moisture that can make the pastry soggy. If you are trying the recipe with frozen and thawed peaches, I would recommend that the peaches be thawed on paper towels to soak up the extra moisture.
I hope that helps! 🙂
Karly says
This looks amazing! Surprised about the vodka. I’ll have to try that!
amal says
oh just in time to use those peaches laying around my fridge it looks gorgeous