Mini Rhubarb And Orange Galettes
I am always a fan of a cute little dessert and these mini galettes are just delightful. The combination of sweet rhubarb paired with the tartness of the orange and a dash of vanilla to bring it all together is really just delicious. These mini galettes can also be made with an unlimited combination of flavours to suit your tastes. Serve these warm with some ice cream for a dessert or cold as a tea time treat.
In this post:
How to store mini rhubarb and orange galettes
The mini galettes can be kept for 3-4 days in the fridge. Keep in an airtight container and then when you want one then you can, either, eat them cold or gently warm them in the oven. The pastry actually keeps its freshness rather well so there is no need to heat the oven on a very high temperature to crisp it up.
Can I make mini rhubarb and orange galettes in advance?
The pastry can be made a couple of days in advance. I actually, sometimes, roll and cut the pastry and then stack the discs. I keep the discs in the freezer until the day that I want to make the galettes. It saves me from doing it all in one day. The filling, however, is best made and baked on the same day.
Can I use different fruits for the mini rhubarb and orange galettes?
Definitely! Just make sure the filling is cooked until any liquid becomes syrupy. If the filling is too watery you could end up with soggy pastry.
Some really great combinations are strawberry and orange, peaches and mint or gooseberry. For any of these combinations, you can use this recipe in just the same way, just skip the poaching rhubarb step. You can also add a little extra icing sugar to the filling if you are using any sour fruits such as gooseberries.
Mini Rhubarb And Orange Galettes (extended)
Prep time
1hr 30mins-1hr 45mins
+1hr refrigeration
Cook time
30-35 minutes
Makes
12
For the Pastry
155g Salted butter
200g Plain flour
2 Medium eggs
Making the pastry
For the pastry, rub the butter and flour together with the tips of your fingers until you get a breadcrumb texture.
Tip: shake the bowl from side to side. Any lumps left in the mix will rise to the top. Keep mixing until there are more lumps. This technique helps make sure that there are no large lumps of butter left in the bowl.
Add the eggs and bring the pastry together— you may need to add more flour if the pastry is stick, it all depends on the size of your eggs. Turn the pastry on to a well-floured surface and knead it until it comes together into a smooth ball.
Rolling and cutting the pastry
Roll the pastry out to 1/2cm thickness. Using an 98mm diameter cutter, cut out 12 discs. Keep re-rolling the dough as needed. Place the discs of pastry in the fridge until needed. If you are stacking the pastry, just make sure there is a good amount of flour between each layer.
For the Poached Rhubarb
2 sticks Rhubarb
250ml Orange juice
80g Demerara sugar
Poaching the rhubarb
Chop the rhubarb into 1 cm slices and then set aside.
Mix together the orange juice and sugar together in a small pan. Place the pan on a low heat and stir until the sugar has dissolved. Bring the orange syrup to the boil and add the rhubarb. Remove from the heat and place a lid on top of the pan. Leave the rhubarb in the syrup to cool. Once cool, drain the rhubarb and place in a container.
Once you are comfortable poaching rhubarb you can try different infusions. Try poaching the rhubarb with whole spices or herbs like whole cardamom, cloves, mint leaves etc. Just add your chosen spice or herb to the sugar syrup as it starts to boil.
Note: the leftover syrup can be kept for a week in the fridge and used to make drinks or cocktails.
Tip: It's best to use fresh orange juice for this part of the recipe— it creates a much fresher flavour.
For the Filling
2 Oranges, peeled and chopped
1tsp Vanilla extract
1tbsp Cornflour
2tbsp Icing sugar
100ml Water
1 Stick Poached Rhubarb
Making the fruit filling
Place the chopped orange and vanilla in a small pan and place on a low heat. Mix until the juice from the oranges begins to release (about 1 minute). Add the icing sugar and cornflour and cook for about 30 seconds before adding the water. Simmer the oranges for around 2 minutes and then stir in the rhubarb. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.
Assembling the mini galettes
1 Egg, beaten (optional)
4 tbsp Demerara sugar (optional)
Once the filling is cool, remove the pastry from the fridge and spread the disc out onto a surface to allow them to soften slightly. Place about 2 tbsp of filling into the centre of each pastry disc, evenly distributing the rhubarb and orange slices and leaving a 1cm border. Gently fold the edges in towards the filling— this can be done in any manner and doesn't need to be neat.
Place the galettes onto 2 large, lined baking trays. Brush the pastry with egg and then sprinkle the demerara sugar over each galette, focusing the sprinkling of sugar over the pastry.
Place the tarts in the fridge for an hour.
Baking the mini rhubarb and orange galettes
Preheat the oven to 180C/160C fan. Bake the galettes for 20-25 minutes or until the pastry is golden. Remove from the oven and place the mini galettes onto a cooling rack. Enjoy warm with some ice cream or custard.
