Vegetarian Savoury Greens Galette with Olive Oil Spelt Crust

A galette is basically a rustic pie and they can be made either savoury or sweet.

A good savoury galette should be a part of everyone’s meal repertoire. While they’re certainly not as “easy” to throw together as a one pot soup or a quick pasta, they’re simple enough and make for an impressive center of the table meal that looks way more complex to make than it really is.

You really don’t even need a recipe once you’ve learned to make a savoury galette. The process is quite simple, once you’ve got a pie crust and your favourite vegetables cooked.

Cook the Filling
My go to galette filling is greens. I sometimes add other vegetables based on the season. This one is loaded with Italian ribbed chard (bietole da coste) and spinach with the addition of leeks. You could easily use onions or shallots instead of leeks, replace some of the greens with kale, add in mushrooms. Dandelion greens and caramelized onions are also an incredibly delicious filling option if you enjoy bitter wild greens. Just be sure to cook everything well ahead of time. Uncooked ingredients will leach water during baking, making the crust soggy, undercooked and inedible.
Jazz Up the Filling
This is entirely optional. The most traditional way to finish a savoury galette is with cheese. Italians stir ricotta into the filling mixture before adding it to the crust. Parmiggiano and pecorino are also popular additions. I do mine dairy free, using a mixture of cashews, nutritional yeast and one egg for some added lift, but the egg is totally optional if you want a vegan galette, just leave it out.
Preheat your oven
You’ll want an oven temperature of 180 - 200 C(350 - 400 F). At 180 C you get a slower rise on the crust, while at 200 C the crust rises higher and more quickly. Baking time is about 30 - 40 minutes, or until the crust is a nice golden brown on top, which depends on your oven temperature. Give it at least 20 minutes before you start checking on it.
Make a Crust
Galettes are typically made using a pie crust. I like to use the recipe I provide below, it’s a light spelt olive oil crust which Italians call Pasta Matta (aka crazy dough) with the addition of baking powder, giving is a slight rise and softness without the yeast. You can use any pie crust recipe you like though, so if you have a favourite/go to recipe, feel free to use that one.
Roll out the Crust
The wonderful thing about a galette is that you don’t need a perfectly rolled out crust. The beauty of it is it’s rustic nature and appearance. A good trick I picked up is to pound the ball of dough with the rolling pin a few times before you roll it out. It flattens it out and widen it a bit before you start rolling it out. Turn it every few rolls to keep the shape relatively round and roll it out to about 30 cm (11-12 inches). I like to roll it out directly onto a piece of parchment paper, which makes it easier to transfer to an oven tray.
Fill the Crust
Once the crust is rolled out and the filling is cooked, add the filling to the center of the crust, leaving a 3 - 5 cm (1 or 2 inch) border. Then gently fold the border over the filling, then brush border with an egg wash or your favourite vegan alternative and sprinkle the whole galette with nutritional yeast.
Bake The Galette
Place the galette on the center rack of the oven and bake for 30 to 40 minutes.
Serve
Remove your galette from the oven and let cool slightly before serving with a side salad.

Here’s my go to recipe for a savoury galette, which you can customize to your liking.

Savoury Greens Galette

Author Nissrine Boufawaz @ HolisticNiss.com

Time 60 minutes
Difficulty Easy
Servings 4-6
Diet vegetarian with vegan option
Category Main Course

Ingredients:

For the Crust

250g (1.75 cups) Light Spelt Flour
2 Tbsp Baking Powder
1/2 Tsp Fine Sea Salt
1/2 C (125ml) Filtered Water
1/4 C Extra Virgin Olive Oil

For the Filling

1 Leek
400- 500g Dark Leafy Greens (I used ribbed chard and spinach)
Fine Sea Salt, to taste
Extra Virgin Olive Oil for steam sautéeing
1/3 C (50g) Cashews, soaked for 20 minutes in boiled water
1/4 C (20g) Nutritional Yeast
1/4 C (60ml) Filtered Water
1 Egg, whites and yolks separated**
1/4 Tsp Fine Sea Salt

For the Wash/Topping

Egg Wash: 1/2 Egg Yolk with a smal amount of water (replace with soy milk, coconut milk, or coconut oil for a vegan alaternative)
Nutritional Yeast, as needed

**for a vegan alternative, omit the egg in the filling or replace it with 1 tablespoon of arrowroot powder diluted in 2 tablespoons of water

Method:

Preheat oven to 180 C and line a baking sheet with parchment paper
Add strained and rinsed cashews, nutritional yeast, egg whites and half the egg yolk (or arrowroot mixture if keeping it vegan), water and sea salt to an upright blender and blend on high speed until completely smooth.
Wash and roughly chop and dry the greens. I use a large kitchen towel to pat them dry. Chop and wash the leeks thoroughly to remove any dirt stuck inside.
Add extra virgin olive oil, leeks and a pinch of fine sea salt to a pan and sautée on medium high until leeks are soft. Add greens, lower the heat to medium low, cover and allow to steam sautée for a few minutes until they begin to wilt and reduce in size. Remove the lid and stir them throughly to mix them with the leeks, then cover and continue to steam sautée until they are completely wilted, stirring frequently. Remove from heat once the greens are fully wilted, but remain a vibrant green.
Make the dough by combining flower, salt and baking powder to a large bowl. Combine oil and water and add to the flour mixutre. Stir or knead together until you have a uniform smooth ball of dough.
Pound the ball of dough with the rolling pin a few times before you roll it out. Turn it every few rolls to keep the shape relatively round and roll it out to about 30 cm (11-12 inches), directly onto a piece of parchment paper, then transfer it to the baking sheet/tray.
Remove any residual liquid from the greens then add the cashew mixture and stir to combine well. Remove any excess liquid by heating the mixture slightly, but don't worry about a small amount of liquid as it will dry up in the oven.
Add the filling to the center of the crust, leaving a 3 - 5 cm (1 or 2 inch) border. Then gently fold the border over the filling, and brush with egg wash or your favourite vegan alternative and sprinkle the whole galette with nutritional yeast.
Place the galette on the center rack of the oven and bake until the edges are golden brown, about 30 to 40 minutes.
Remove your galette from the oven and let cool slightly before serving with a side salad.