Shortcut apple galette: an original recipe

I am a normal person with a normal, busy life, just like you, which means that I do not turn up my nose at cooking shortcuts or other time savers. One of my favorite shortcut secrets is refrigerated pie crust. Now here's the kicker: I don't actually like pie.

Let me explain. I like the inside of the pie (apple, blueberry, whatever) and I don't mind the soft crust on the bottom, but I just can't abide the edge or top crust. I know, it seems very OCD, but that's the way it's always been. So for years, I just didn't eat pie. Period.

Until I discovered the galette.

Oooh, it sounds so freakin' classy, but a galette is basically just a freeform pie without the thick edge or the top crust. Yep -- pie for pie-haters!  And, as icing on the cake ... uh, pie, I found a recipe that called for refrigerated pie crust, rather than homemade (read: time-consuming), for a quick galette.

And I mean seriously quick. I decided about half an hour before dinner this weekend to make an apple dessert, since I had a few fresh honeycrisp apples and some refrigerated dough. Within 10 minutes I had the lovely galette shown above baking in the oven. Ten minutes, people!

Give this a try with any of your favorite fruit when it's in season: I've made it using peaches, blueberries and pears, in addition to apples. Just vary the spices to complement your fruit of choice (read: don't use cinnamon for a peach galette: barf).

Apple Galette (an original recipe -- inspired by others but ultimately crafted by me! Whoot!)

Ingredients
2 large apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1 refrigerated pie crust roll, such as Pillsbury
1 1/2 tablespoons butter, melted
1-2 tablespoons sugar

Directions

Preheat oven to 425.

Galette, just prior to baking

Combine apples, brown sugar and cinnamon in a bowl and stir gently until apples are well-coated. Place pie crust dough onto a baking sheet and roll it out to about a 12-inch circle. Place the apple mixture in the center of the dough circle, leaving a 3-inch border all around the edge. Fold the dough toward the center, pressing gently to seal at about 2-inch intervals. Brush the dough and the exposed apple mixture with melted butter and sprinkle with sugar.

Bake at 425 for about 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 375 and bake another 20-30 minutes, until crust is golden brown.