Roasted Potato, Broccoli and Cheddar Galette

Ugh, my kitchen lighting is literally the worst. This is as good as it is gonna get.

My baking practice with simple, free forming galettes continues with this comforting dinner. Thinking about it now, it would probably “fit” better in the Fall, but oh well.

I don’t usually enjoy making a dinner where one element has to be assembled then chilled for an hour before I can even start cooking the other ingredients. However, visions of buttery, flaky crust, melted cheddar and spicy roasted potatoes convinced me one evening the other week. Since it isn’t very healthy, I threw in a handful of broccoli, which I’m sure helped immensely. Plus it reminded me of when I was a kid and my mom would entice us to eat our veggies by topping them with wisps of bright orange, sharp cheddar cheese. That is probably why I’ve never met a broccoli cheddar quiche I didn’t like. Also probably why anything less than Double Xtra Sharp cheddar is dead to me.

Consider pairing this with a light salad dressed with tangy vinaigrette to break up the heaviness.

 

barely adapted from  Joy the Baker’s recipe

Crust:

Stir 1 1/4 cups flour, 1 teaspoon of  sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Add 1 stick (or 1/2 cup) of cold, cubed butter and use your fingers to break up into the mixture. Some pieces will be larger than others, which is fine. Pour in 1/3 cup of cold half and half and stir till the flour is moist. Assemble dough into a ball or disk type shape, wrap in plastic wrap and put in the refrigerator for an hour.

 

Filling:

Pre-heat your oven to 375 degrees. Using a mandolin or a knife, chop  1 or 2 large potatoes into even discs. Spread them out on a cookie sheet, pour olive oil over them and season how you’d like. I used coarse salt and black pepper with some cumin and some paprika type spice. Joy uses Old Bay Seasoning. Roast these potatoes till they get soft, maybe a bit crunchy depending on your preference, about 15 minutes or so. Roast about a handful or so of broccoli covered in olive oil, salt and pepper till they get a tad crispy or however you prefer. These will probably roast for closer to 7-10 minutes. Be sure to check on them and stir once in a while.

While these are roasting, shred as much sharp cheddar cheese as you’d like and chop up some fresh chives. Once your dough has chilled for at least an hour, roll out the disk on a floured surface. I like it best when it have uneven edges and I just call it rustic. Place the rolled out dough on a parchment lined cookie sheet. I’ve found folding it lightly in half twice will make the dough easier to pick up and place on the pan. Once your broccoli and potatoes are done roasting, it is time to assemble! Basically, layer it all into the middle section of your large round of dough. I put a layer of cheese on the bottom, put some potatoes on top, arranged some broccoli and sprinkled chives. Do that until you either run out of filling ingredients or your galette is about to explode. Fold the dough around your filling, layering the folded corners on top of each other pressing lightly to keep together. If you want an egg wash for the dough, beat one egg and brush it on top of the dough of your galette. Sprinkle the dough with salt and pepper and put into the oven for about 15 minutes or so, until its golden brown and smells intoxicating. Sprinkle some more fresh chives on top and serve!

 

 

Foodish Podcasts

Since moving to Seattle last fall, I’ve gotten way into podcasts. I used to only listen to Meet the Filmmaker to hear interviews with the cast, crew and creators of movies and TV shows. Except, for some reason it stopped updating regularly in my podcast app, which made me frustrated so in retaliation,  I haven’t listened to it in a while. Obviously that is their loss.

Anyway, I’ve found a few food themed podcasts to listen to on my walk to and from work which have kept me vastly entertained. I’m the weirdo chuckling to myself, making odd faces or grunting agreeing noises as I stumble down or trudge up the hill.  My tendency with podcasts is to find one, and listen to just about every available episode in some sort of binge listening spree. Then, I get unfairly annoyed when there isn’t an unlimited amount of new content at my beck and call, so I’m forced to find another show to start the cycle over again. These are my favorites:

 

 

 

This is obviously at the top of the list, since I am proud to be their Production Assistant. But I wasn’t when I started listening! I was just another rabid fan like you are about to become. I discovered the Spilled Milk Podcast through reading Molly Wizenberg’s blog, Orangette, as she hosts the show with Matthew Amster-Burton. Each episode centers on one food item, which is tasted and explored in more ways than you ever thought possible. They are a hysterical duo who never miss a chance at a good (or bad) innuendo. Lest you think that these food writers only speak on haughty, artisanal ingredients, let me point your attention to a few previous episodes: Fast Food Frozen Treats, Halloween Candy and Whipped Cream. The episodes are about 15-20 minutes long and occasionally educational along with being hilarious. Check out their amazing, clever and beautiful Facebook page and get ready to be addicted. New episodes are delivered to your podcast app every Thursday.

 

 

 

The Dinner Party Download  is set up around the conceit of a dinner party with various segments. They always have a guest give etiquette tips, tell a little known story from history with an accompanying cocktail, eavesdrop on someone telling a story and have musicians compile their perfect dinner party soundtrack. The episodes are about 50 minutes long and they have top notch guests, like James McAvoy, Kevin Spacey and Wes Anderson. They usually explore some new, experimental or interesting thing going on in the food world as well. I love this podcast as I learn a lot of fun trivia and informational tidbits about an array of topics that wouldn’t normally occur to me to explore. They have a trove of episodes so get crackin. New episodes come out on Fridays.

 

 

 

 The Splendid Table is hosted by Lynn Rossetto Kasper whose melodious voice will make you salivate and swoon. Especially when she says “garlic”. Episodes are on a variety of different subjects and have interviews with the famous along with the obscure. Most episodes have a segment on Roadfood with Jane and Michael Stern   (where does one get their job!?) and there are a few segments that occur every so often like Key Three, where cooks or chefs teach Lynn her/his 3 most vital dishes. There is a plethora of recipes on the blog and in every episode, Lynn takes calls from listeners with questions. It is a fun, educational and always interesting podcast. Well, as long as anything within the realm of food and drink interests you. Some of my recent favorites are True Chef, Tasting in the Dark and Artisan Bread. By the end you’ll wish you were BFF with Lynn. New episodes come out on Thursdays.

 

Radio Cherry Bombe is brand new with only 6 episodes out so far. It is part of Heritage Radio Network and comes from the creators of the Cherry Bombe magazine.  Julia Turshen interviews women within the food world, from Jeni from Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams to the chef and the food stylist behind Buvette: The Pleasure of Good Food. I adore learning about the creative processes behind these women and their hard work to bring their creations to reality. The episode airs live on Wednesdays at 2pm EST and I think is updated as a podcast shortly after. Julia has the same 8 question, rapid fire Q&A for each guest and its so fun to see how each woman answers.

 

 

I’ve only listened to one of these, but since chefs are my rock starts and I love learning their backstories, I know Chef’s Story will become a favorite. Hosted by Dorothy Cann Hamilton, the founder of the International Culinary Center, each episode consists of her chatting with a chef. I just listened to the Barbara Lynch episode which was fascinating and such a compelling story. I’m now desperate for her memoir to come out. I’m stocking up on these episodes so I may be hard to reach for a bit. This is also from the Heritage Radio Network and airs live on Wednesdays at 12:00 pm EST, and is up as a podcast after.

 

Looks like this Heritage Radio Network will supply me with food centric content for a long time to come…