If you haven’t already guessed it by now, I’ve got a massive glut of courgettes to use up this summer! Since early June, my worktops have yet to be without an array of round, green gourds piled high upon them, in fact I would probably find it rather strange if they weren’t there at this point. This has of course left me eating a whole load of courgette lately, which in turn means I’ve had to try & find new, exciting ways to cook or bake with them.
Obviously, my preference is usually towards the latter, sweeter side of things but here, I’m combining the two worlds. My usual go-to way to cook up a whole load of these round beauties would be to simply chop them up, toss in olive oil & roast in the oven with whatever other vegetables I’ve got laying around the kitchen. We’ve been living off of this alongside courgette risotto, quiche, pasta & pizza… next on the hit list is a chutney or pickle!
Lovely as each of those dishes are however, there’s an awful lot of faff involved which, some days, isn’t particularly appealing. So, this is why I set my sights on creating a quick & easy recipe to use up my courgettes using just a few staple ingredients from within my kitchen.
This led me to a savoury galette, simple, rustic but still full of flavour (what’s not to love?). Anything can can be deemed as ‘rustic’ is a winner in my book, there’s nothing wrong with good, plain, simple food… something which can easily be forgotten in a modern day world full of fads, trends & everything covered in Biscoff, sprinkles or sometimes even whole chocolate bars just bunged on top (I mean, why, just why?).
Simple ingredients & simple flavours all work together in this cheesy, garlicky, courgetty (pretty sure that’s not actually a word but go with me) galette. Each simple flavour helps to accentuate one another in this rustic tart. Fresh flavours of lemon & courgette cut through pungent garlic & chive, all held together with a smooth, creamy cheese filling & crumbly wholemeal crust. Perfect served hot or cold with a simple, leafy salad, obviously served al fresco for full summer vibes (& to avoid looking at the rest of the courgette pile!).
COURGETTE GALETTE
(makes one 22cm tart)
Ingredients:
For the pastry:
- 125g plain flour
- 125g wholemeal flour
- Pinch of salt
- 150g butter, cubed
- 3-4 tbsp cold water
For the filling:
- 200g cream cheese
- 3 garlic gloves, crushed
- Handful of chives, chopped
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 400g courgette, sliced
To top:
- 30g feta cheese, crumbled
- Drizzle of olive oil
- 1 tsp chopped chives
- A crack of black pepper
Method:
- To make the pastry sift together the flours & salt into a large bowl
- Add in the cubed butter & use your fingertips to rub the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs
- Add the water to the bowl 1 tbsp at a time until, using just enough to bring the dough together
- Shape the dough into a flattened disc, wrap in cling film & leave in the fridge to chill for 30 minutes
- Make the filling by combining all of the ingredients together in a bowl or jug
- Once the pastry has chilled, roll out to rough 30cm round shape approximately 3mm thick
- Spread the cream cheese filling over centre of the pastry base, leaving a 3 inch gap between the filling & the edges of the pastry
- Arrange the courgette slices of the top of the filling, leaving the same pastry gap around the edges
- Take the uncovered pastry edges & carefully fold them inwards over the filling ingredients, towards the centre of the tart (this doesn’t need to be neat!)
- Bake the galette in the oven at 190C for 35 minutes until the pastry has turned golden in colour & the courgettes have softened
- Remove from the oven & sprinkle over the feta cheese & chives, before drizzling with the oil & adding a crack of pepper
