Sharing a Sweet Summer Treat & Some News

Hooray for Summer!

I love berry season and I love sweet treats, so today I'm sharing a favorite recipe for a pie made without a pie plate. It's based on the French Galette, which can be sweet or savory, but it's made by spreading your pie crust on a flat surface rather than in a pie plate. And then you fill it with a cream cheese base topped with 2 cups of sliced berries. Mine has half fresh strawberries and half fresh blueberries. Here's a photo to whet your appetite. 

To make this, you'll need the following ingredients:

1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened

½ cup powdered sugar

3 tablespoons cornstarch, divided

1 whole egg, separated

2 tablespoons sugar, plus a little extra for sprinkling

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 refrigerated pie crust (or make your own single-layer crust from scratch)

2 cups fresh fruit (Or use a 10-12 ounce package of frozen fruit or berries, thawed.)

Directions: Adjust oven rack to lowest position and heat oven to 400. Line a pizza pan or cookie sheet with parchment paper.

Mix cream cheese, powdered sugar, 2 tablespoons of the cornstarch and the egg yolk in a medium bowl. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, mix fruit, 2 tablespoons of sugar, remaining tablespoon of cornstarch, and vanilla extract. Set aside.

Unfurl pie dough on a lightly floured surface and roll to about 13 inches in diameter. Slide onto parchment paper-lined cookie sheet or pizza pan. Spread cream cheese mixture evenly over dough, leaving a 2-inch border. Scatter fruit evenly over cream cheese mixture. Fold pastry border over the fruit, overlapping where necessary. Brush dough perimeter with egg white and sprinkle with a little sugar.

Bake galette until golden brown and bubbly, about 30 min. Grip parchment paper with tongs and slide onto a wire rack to cool slightly. Serve warm. Refrigerate leftovers.  Makes 8-12 wedges, depending on your desired portion size. Tastes great with topping or ice cream.

Now to the news! 

My children's fantasy chapter book FREDERICK FLY-CATCHER is only 99-cents in ebook all the month of June. If you want to get those "littles" reading over summer break, I'd love it if you'd check out my book. Here's the universal link: https://books2read.com/u/4Ekjo0