Having people over for dinner presents a dilemma when Christmas is just around the corner. The season demands a bit of spectacle, but you’ve neither the time nor headspace to make anything too complicated. What you need, then, is something delicious and seasonal, and that looks a lot harder to make than it actually is. This galette is my solution: rich, nourishing and using two of my favourite seasonal ingredients, pumpkin and chestnuts.
Pumpkin, chestnut, mascarpone and red onion jam galette
This is the time to use the pale, mint green crown prince and deep green delica squash varieties.
Prep 15 min
Chill 15 min
Cook 40 min
Serves 4
For the pastry
150g plain flour
100g dark rye flour
½ tsp table salt
125g cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes
2 large eggs, beaten
For the pumpkin puree
250g pumpkin flesh, chopped into roughly 2cm chunks
100g mascarpone
100g Greek yoghurt
¾ tsp table salt
1 bunch sage, picked and finely chopped
For the topping
500g pumpkin flesh, chopped into roughly 2cm chunks
150g mascarpone
100g roasted and peeled chestnuts – I like Merchant Gourmet’s vac-packed ones
3-4 tbsp red onion jam
To make the pastry, blitz the flours, salt and butter in a food processor until the mix resembles breadcrumbs, then pour in the eggs and work until the mixture just comes together (you may not need all the egg). Briefly knead the dough, then wrap and chill in the fridge for 15 minutes.
Tip the 250g pumpkin for the puree into the same food processor (no need to wash it out), add the 100g mascarpone, the yoghurt, salt and sage, and blitz to a puree.
Once the dough has chilled, lay out a rectangle of greaseproof paper big enough to line a large baking sheet or tray and dust with flour. Roll the dough into a circle around 35cm wide and about 3mm thick. Don’t worry if the circle is a bit bigger or irregular – you can trim it later.
Spread the puree mix in a 30cm circle in the middle of the pastry, then scatter over the remaining 500g cubed pumpkin. Fold the edges of the pastry over the filling, then slide the paper on to the baking sheet.
Bake at 200C (180C fan)/390F/gas 6 for 30 minutes, then remove, spoon over the remaining mascarpone, scatter on the chestnuts and bake for 10 minutes more, until the pastry is golden and the cheese melted.
Scatter over dollops of the red onion jam and serve hot.
UK readers: click to buy these ingredients from Ocado
