Heirloom Tomato Galettes with Goat Cheese Filling
Peak Summer in a Pastry: Heirloom Tomato Galettes
There is a fleeting window in late summer when tomatoes are so good they don’t even feel like the same vegetable you buy in January—they’re heavy, sweet, deeply aromatic, and dripping with juice. When peak season hits, I want them on almost everything, but especially tucked inside a buttery, flaky pastry crust with a rich, savory filling. For these individual galettes, I partnered up with my friends at Farm to People to showcase some of the absolute best local produce available.
For this recipe, I used Fiorentino Costoluto Heirloom Tomatoes. This Italian heirloom is famous for its deeply lobed, ribbed skin and incredible flavor profile. They bring a rich, meaty texture with very few seeds and a perfect balance of sweet, rich tomato flavor and bright acidity, which I think pair wonderfully with the rich, flaky pastry.
*Click here and use code AUDREYSTABLE to get $25 off your first Farm Box, either a seasonal produce or cook's box!
Visual Guide and Process Checkpoints
Some general tips for galette success.
Salt Your Tomatoes
Before we even touch the pastry, there is one step in this recipe you cannot skip: salting your tomato slices.
Peak-season heirlooms are packed with water. If you place raw, unsalted tomato slices directly onto your dough, all that liquid will release in the oven, turning your beautiful, crisp crust into a soggy, underbaked mess (NOT Paul Hollywood approved!).
By slicing your tomatoes into ¼-inch rounds, laying them out on paper towels, and sprinkling them with kosher salt, you’re able to draw out that excess surface moisture. After about 15 minutes, gently patting them dry leaves you with concentrated, deeply flavorful tomato slices that will bake up beautifully without ruining your pastry layers.
Dough Talk: Rough Puff vs. Store-Bought
Let’s talk crust. If you are short on time or feeling intimidated, you can absolutely use a good store-bought puff pastry for these. Cooking should fit your life, and a ready-made sheet will still yield a delicious galette.
However, if you have a little extra time on a quiet afternoon, making a scratch-made Rye Rough Puff Pastry is so much easier than you think, and the flavor payoff is massive. Unlike traditional French puff pastry, which requires rolling a block of butter inside a dough envelope, rough puff comes together by tossing cold butter cubes directly into your flour, adding ice water, and doing three quick envelope folds (laminating).
But, regardless of what you’re using - keep the pastry cold.
The magic of a flaky pastry happens in the oven when the cold pockets of butter melt rapidly, creating steam that puffs the flour layers apart. If your kitchen is warm and the butter starts to feel soft or greasy at any point while you're rolling, cutting, or assembling—stop. Slide the dough back into the fridge for 15 minutes to chill. Keeping that butter cold right up until the galettes hit the hot oven is the single secret to getting those sky-high, golden, shatteringly crisp pastry edges.
If you’re interested in learning more about Farm to People, check out their website here. If you haven’t shopped with them before, you can get $25 off your first box! I’ve linked the Farm to People ingredients in the recipe below.
Now for the recipe!
Heirloom Tomato Galettes with Goat Cheese Filling
Prep Time: 45 minutes (plus 3 hours minimum chilling time)
Cook Time: 1 hour 25 minutes
Servings: Makes about 9 small galettes
Ingredients
Rye rough puff pastry
195–200 g (1 ½ cups + 2 tbsp) all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling
60 g (½ cup) rye flour
1 tsp granulated sugar
1 ½ tsp kosher salt
227 g (2 sticks / 1 cup) cold butter, cut into small cubes
120 ml (½ cup) ice water, plus more as needed
5 ml (1 tsp) apple cider vinegar
Flaky salt, for finishing
Goat cheese filling
1 head of garlic
Olive oil, for drizzling
225 g (8 oz) Lively Run Dairy Za'atar goat cheese (2 logs)
Zest of 1 lemon
Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
To assemble
3–4 medium-to-large heirloom tomatoes (I used Fiorentino Costoluto Heirloom Tomatoes)
Kosher salt
1 large egg, lightly beaten (for egg wash)
Dill, to garnish
Directions
Rye rough puff pastry
Whisk the all-purpose flour, rye flour, sugar, and salt together in a large bowl.
Add the cold cubed butter and toss by hand until coarse, pea-sized crumbles form with a few larger butter pieces remaining.
Drizzle in the ice water and apple cider vinegar. Mix just until the dough comes together into a shaggy ball (add 1–2 tsp extra water if too dry). Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for 1 hour.
On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough into an 11x5-inch rectangle. Fold into thirds like a letter. Rotate 90 degrees, roll out into an 11x5-inch rectangle again, and fold into thirds. Repeat this process one more time (3 total folds).
Roll out one final time, fold in half, wrap tightly, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours (or overnight).
Goat cheese filling
Preheat the oven to 400°F. Slice ¼ inch off the top of the garlic head to expose the cloves. Place on a square of aluminum foil, drizzle with olive oil, and season with salt. Wrap tightly and bake for 45–55 minutes until golden and soft. Cool slightly.
In a medium bowl, combine the goat cheese and lemon zest. Squeeze the warm roasted garlic cloves out of their skins into the bowl. Mash with a fork until smooth and uniform. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Assembly
Slice the tomatoes into ¼ inch rounds and place them on a paper towel-lined tray. Sprinkle both sides with kosher salt. Let sit for 15 minutes to draw out excess moisture, then gently pat dry with paper towels.
Preheat oven to 425°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
Roll the chilled dough out on a floured surface to ⅛-to-¼-inch thickness. Cut into circles roughly 1 to 1 ½ inches wider than your tomato slices. Keep dough rounds chilled until ready to assemble.
Prick the center of each pastry round with a fork. Spread a layer of goat cheese filling in the center, matching the size of the tomato slice. Top with a tomato round, then fold the outer pastry edges up and over the sides of the tomato, pressing overlapping seams gently to seal.
Brush the exposed pastry edges with egg wash and sprinkle with flaky salt. Transfer to prepared trays. Bake at 425°F for 12 minutes, then reduce oven heat to 375°F and bake for another 18–22 minutes until deep golden brown and crisp. Cool slightly on a wire rack before garnishing with fresh dill and serving.
Click here and use AUDREYSTABLE to get $25 off your first Farm Box, either a seasonal produce or cook's box!