Inside a flaky parmesan crust, fresh tomatoes are layered over creamy pesto ricotta and baked until bursting for a savory tart reminiscent of your favorite pizza.

Serves: 4 Prep time: 50 minutes Cook Time: 40 minutes

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I really enjoy making pizza at home, but I’ll admit I’m not very good at crust. It never quite turns out the way it’s supposed to, and for something as simple as pizza, it’s not worth the hassle. Besides, pizza is one of the cheapest and easiest things to order for takeaway.

Pie crust, on the other hand, I’ve somewhat mastered. I don’t make a lot of pie — actually none at all — but the same formula goes into quiche, of which I make plenty (I’m a savory girl). It’s also a similar blueprint for lemon bars, which I made hundreds of when I worked at Luna Bakery.

My favorite trick for this is to use a food processor. At the bakery, we used the ever-so-fancy Robot Coupe, but at home I use my trusty Vitamix. It’s probably my favorite purchase ever (or close behind my $7 chopping knife), and a total game changer for anyone who shreds cheese, bakes, or grinds meat. Yes, really — have you tried freshly ground sirloin burgers?!

So, this galette is an ode to anyone who, like me, can’t quite get a pizza dough right but can really nail a pie crust. The creamy pesto base perfectly complements the bright, fresh, juicy tomatoes on top, and the hint of lemon and cracked black pepper pulls it all together in that simple Italian way. Not too fussy, but impressive enough to serve to guests at a dinner party.

It’s perfect.

what is a galette?

A galette is an open-faced pie that can be either sweet or savory. The crust is made like a pie with cold cubed butter and flour; but instead of a bottom and a top, only the bottom is used and then folded over to form a crust. This results in a gorgeous, pizza-like pie with perfectly caramelized insides.

So pizza lovers, meet your elegant new best friend. In a tomato galette, the taste is ultimately very similar to pizza, but with all the flaky crust of an apple pie. It’s not totally pizza, of course, nor is it a pie — in fact, it’s way easier, provided you follow the steps.

how do i avoid a soggy crust?

This is kind of the age-old question with crust, isn’t it? The more runny the insides, the more risk your crust takes keeping it together until the end. Quiche crust, for example, is infamously soggy if not blind or par-baked first. A galette can’t really be par-baked, though, since its shape relies on the contents within. So how do you avoid that soggy bottom crust?

The key is preparing the tomatoes. Most will suffice with a quick 10 minute prep, but plan for a few minutes longer for juicier tomatoes like heirloom. Salt extracts moisture from vegetables (savory fruit) like tomatoes. Salting the tomatoes will drain the water from them, preventing them doing so while in the oven. Allow around 10 minutes — or even up to overnight — to drain the tomatoes.

ricotta pesto tomato galette ingredients

flour: Regular all-purpose is all you need. For gluten free, I’d recommend using the cup-for-cup mix — I haven’t tested anything beyond that. If you have a favorite gluten-free pie crust recipe, I’d recommend using it here and mixing the parmesan in as written.

butter: Leave this in the refrigerator right up until you add it to the food processor. Cut it quickly (I find a pastry cutter works best), and fold it in. I always use unsalted.

salt: You’ll need a little bit of salt here and there, so make sure you’ve got quite a bit on hand. First in the crust, then in the ricotta as needed, and definitely, definitely on the tomatoes. It won’t be super-salty, I promise — the salt in this recipe is mostly used to enhance the textures.

parmesan: You only need a little bit for the crust. I highly recommend grating it fresh yourself for the best results. Feel free to add more to the ricotta mixture, or sprinkle it right on top of the galette.

egg wash: Egg, milk (or water), and garlic. The garlic adds a great flavor to the crust. You can swap the fresh grated garlic for garlic powder in a pinch.

ricotta: I use whole-milk ricotta because I find it less runny and more rich in flavor.

pesto: With tomatoes in season, there’s a good chance you have a bounty of basil, too. You can make your own pesto with fresh basil, or simply buy store-bought. If you buy store bought, look for the bright-green pestos found in the refrigerators. These have the best flavor.

tomatoes: This works with any kind of tomato, but I think it looks the best with a variety. If possible, grab 2 beefsteak (or heirloom), 2 tomato-on-the-vine, and a few smaller Roma or grape tomatoes. No need to be picky here; this recipe works best with fresh tomatoes from the garden, so work with whatever you find at the market or in your own backyard!

lemon zest: Just a touch of lemon zest brightens the richness of the ricotta and complements the pesto and tomato. You can totally skip this and add parmesan, instead, but you might be surprised by how much you like the little bit of lemon.

*Mix pesto and ricotta together and season to taste.*

*Unlike a pizza, leave a good amount of room around the edge for folding.*

ricotta pesto tomato galette pairing options

Here’s the truth: A galette is much smaller than you’d think. It starts about the size of a medium pizza, but it folds into a small size. That being said, galettes are better reserved for a heavy appetizer or a filling side dish. It’s why sweet versions work so well: one slice is plenty for dessert. For an entrée? Not so much.

If I was serving this, I’d prepare a spread of heavy, shareable dishes. Here are some ideas for things to serve with this particular galette:

Grilled sausages, such as Italian sausage or chicken sausage
Dijon-roasted chicken thighs
Italian-sausage stuffed peppers
Prosciutto-wrapped asparagus
Grilled summer squash
Parmesan-crusted cauliflower
Caesar salad
Meatballs in fresh tomato sauce