This recipe is my take on the amazing ice cream pie that was served at San Francisco’s Tartine Manufactory when it first opened in 2016. I posted it once and again and another time just in ice cream form. My love for Concord grapes came from eating this particular dessert. Sadly, a year or two later, they stopped making the pie. I still have such a fond food memory of it, so I decided to make my own and I’m quite pleased with how it turned out.
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Shortbread is my favorite kind of cookie and I was inspired to create my own recipe to celebrate the Ted Lasso series finale (sobbb!). There are few ingredients so each one is crucial to the outcome.
The two most important things are the butter and salt. I use half European and half American butter. I first tried a batch using all European and it was much more flavorful than American style butter but the shortbread were too rich. The 50/50 mix was the perfect balance. As for the salt, I use a generous amount because it really brings out the butter flavor.
I added a bit of rice flour to give the cookie a more crumbly sandy texture but feel free to omit and substitute for an equal amount of the all purpose flour.
I’ve seen some recipes include vanilla. I tested a batch with it but thought it took away from the butter flavor, which is what I wanted to be most prominent. If you’d like a sweeter taste, you could add 1 teaspoon of vanilla paste or extract.
Ingredients:
Dough:
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
8 tablespoons cold, unsalted butter, cut into 1/2″ cubes
3 tablespoons ice cold water
1 large egg, beaten for egg wash
Coarse sanding sugar for sprinkling
Filling:
3-4 small apples, peeled, cored and cut into 1/4″ slices
2 tablespoons butter, melted
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
Apricot jam for glazing
Directions:
For the dough:
In a food processor, add the flour, granulated sugar and salt. Pulse until combined. Add the butter and pulse until the butter pieces are the size of small peas. Drizzle in a tablespoon of water at a time, pulsing between each addition, until the dough just starts to clump together. To test, take a small portion in your hand and if the dough holds together, you’re done. If it’s still crumbly, add 1 tablespoon of water at a time until it holds.
Transfer the dough to your counter and bring together to form a round disc. Let chill in the fridge for at least 1 hour or overnight.
For assembly:
Preheat oven to 400 F. Place a rack in the middle of the oven. Line a half sheet pan with parchment.
Let the dough rest on the counter until pliable but still cold, about 10-15 minutes, before rolling it out. Roll out into a round, pudgy triangle, about 1’4″ thick. Have the two points at the top (like a heart). At the top center, cut a 2″ slit straight down. Transfer the dough to the prepared sheet pan.
In the middle of the dough, arrange your apple slices overlapping in a heart shape, leaving a 2″ border. Then fold the dough over the apples to form the crust. See how-to video here.
Brush the border with egg wash and sprinkle with sanding sugar.
Brush the apples with the melted butter. This will keep them from drying out in the oven. Then, sprinkle the granulated sugar over the apples.
Bake for 25-30 minutes, until the edges are golden. Let galette cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Brush with apricot jam. Then transfer the galette to a cooling rack. Enjoy warm or at room temperature. I like to pair with vanilla ice cream.
Serves 2.
This is my family’s Thanksgiving pie. We unanimously love apple. I use a mix of baking apples to get different flavors in the pie. Granny Smith, Macintosh, Cortland, Braeburn and Jonagold are all good varieties to use. I chose a crumble top because it adds great texture, plus it’s less fussy than decorating the top of a pie. Normally, I’d challenge myself to do something elaborate, but my family and I cook the entire Thanksgiving meal from scratch which is so tiring but worth it, and there are just some things we need to keep simple. I blend up the oats until they’re finely ground, because the pieces of oats makes it to much like granola for me.
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I’ve said it before that shortbread are my favorite holiday cookie. It’s classic and simple, but the pan makes them a bit more special. I love the intricate design. It comes with a recipe booklet and the recipes are very simple, all 4-5 ingredients. I’ve adapted the lemon cookie here. If possible, use Meyer lemons which have a sweeter, less puckery tart flavor than the traditional Eureka.
