It has been awhile but I thought it was time to share one of my favorite recipes with you. This is easy and out of this world delicious but it does take time and patience to bring it all together. Allow at least 1 hour of prep time and 20-30 minutes of baking time to complete this dish.
First, let’s talk about the crust. There are two approaches and both are equally delicious. The first is using ready-made, frozen puff pastry. That is what I did for this particular galette but plan ahead as it will need at least 2-3 hours of thawing time in the refrigerator. Resist the urge to thaw it on the kitchen counter as it tends to get wet and that makes it sticky. The second approach is to use a pâte brisée recipe to make your pastry from scratch and you can find that here. Don’t be put off by making the pastry yourself, it isn’t complicated and it is forgiving. Just don’t sprinkle with sugar for the savory dishes!
Now that is out of the way and we can move on to the filling. I love caramelized onions, especially Vidalia’s. But add some mushrooms and BOOM! You just went to the next level.
You will need 2 large onions, Vidalia preferred
3-4 Cups of an assortment of mushrooms. I used portabellas, white button, shiitake and oyster
Fresh thyme leaves, about a teaspoon
Now for the seasonings
A dash or two of salt
Olive oil
Balsamic vinegar
2 T butter
Parmesan or other cheese of your choice
Flour
Drag out your cutting board and peel then slice your onions. In a large skillet on medium heat, drizzle the onions with about 2 tablespoons of olive oil.
It will take at least 40 minutes for these onions to get to their happy place, so be patient. Turn your attention to cleaning then coarsely chopping the mushrooms, strip the thyme leaves from the stalks and dance around the kitchen. Stir the onions. Don’t turn them down to low or we will never get this thing together. After about 10 minutes they should begin to look like this
I am getting some nice browned edges and the onions are slowly changing from bright white to translucent.
After 20 minutes:
Browning a bit more and the onions are getting soft. The only ingredients thus far are onions and olive oil. Continue to stir occasionally and then make sure the onions are spread out to cover the entire bottom of the skillet. You want everything to be heated through, browned and then stir and rearrange again.
After 30 minutes:
The onions continue to reduce and brown. At about the 40 minute mark I now add 2 tablespoons of butter and 3 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar
Now is the time to toss in the mushrooms
Gently fold them into the mushrooms and keep the heat on medium. If you feel that the pan is too dry, add one more tablespoon of butter and one more tablespoon of balsamic. Stir the mushrooms and onions to mix well.
As they begin cooking, we want the mushrooms to be soft and flavorful but don’t cook them until they are mush.
Now add a bit of salt and the thyme leaves
The mushrooms are nearly done, but not quite yet. While you are waiting on those to finish up, let’s roll out the puff pastry.
On a lightly floured piece of parchment paper, unfold your purchased puff pastry. Flour your rolling-pin and begin to gently roll out the pastry in a rectangle. Preheat your oven now to 325 degrees for convection or 350 degrees regular bake.
Once your pastry is rolled to the size you desire, transfer pastry and parchment to a cookie or baking sheet.
I know it is hanging over the edges but we will solve that little dilemma shortly. If you like cheese, now is a good time to sprinkle a bit of cheese on the pastry. Don’t go crazy, this isn’t a cheesy dish….use a nice hard cheese to give it depth of flavor and nothing more. My lactose intolerant husband can tolerate a bit of parmesan and so I tossed about 1/4 cup of that in the pan.
The onions and mushrooms should be nearly ready
Nicely reduced, translucent and browned. The scent is amazing!
Turn the mixture out of the pan and onto the puff pastry
We have more room, so spread the mixture out a bit. You don’t want it to be thick in the middle.
Ahhhhh! That’s better
With lightly floured hands, pull the edges of the pastry inward to encase the onion and mushroom mix
You don’t need to press or moisten the pastry together, it will adhere to itself. I got a little overboard with the flour when I rolled out my puff pastry, if you do this too, be sure to brush off the majority of the flour on the pan since it can burn (not as in flames but as in brown and smelly)
Place the baking pan in the oven and allow the galette to cook between 20-30 minutes depending on the pastry. The puff pastry should be moderately brown and dry to the touch. If you find that your pastry falls after you remove it from the oven, next time allow it to cook a few minutes longer. By the way, your kitchen will smell amazing about right now!
Yum! Lovely puffy pastry surrounding this luscious filling. Serve while warm. You can cut this into squares, thin strips, serve as hor d’oeuvres or a side dish but it is best served warm. It would be wonderful with a bite of Maytag bleu cheese and a bold Cabernet. The earthiness of the mushrooms blends so well with the sweetness of the onions. Savory at its best.
Be sure to refrigerate any leftovers.
