A couple of nights ago, I was making a galette of rutabaga and sweet potato. To get the vegs sliced thin enough to develop the desired crusty surface, I pulled out my mandoline…which has a slider and grabber contraption that keeps one’s fingers away from the blade. Not wanting to waste anything, I decided to shave down an especially lumpy rutabaga without the mandoline’s slicer housing thingy until it would fit. In other words, I freestyled on the sharpest implement in my kitchen.
Surely you can guess what happened next:
It hurt and bled like the dickens. Luckily, the Husband found the finger bit (and the nail!). Safely ensconsed in a tourniquet-tight bandage and rubber glove, I rinsed off the rutabaga slices and proceeded with dinner preparations. Happy to report that the galette was delicious.
Root Vegetable Galette
3# root vegetables, peeled and very thinly sliced
(potatoes, rutabagas, sweet potatoes,parsnips–alone or combined–all work well)
1/4# melted butter (you may need a little more)
2 T. fresh thyme, chopped
salt & pepper to taste
– Preheat the oven to 400F, placing a well-seasoned cast iron skillet in the oven to heat up. Pour half of the melted butter into the skillet. Layer in the sliced vegetables in concentric circles, overlapping slightly, to make a single layer. Drizzle with butter and sprinkle with thyme, salt, pepper. Make another layer, again drizzle and sprinkle.
– Lightly butter a sheet of foil and lay on top of the vegetables. Using a heavy pan (another skillet works well), press down on the foil. Bake the galette –with the additional pan on top–for around 30 minutes or until the edges look browned and the vegs have softened. Remove from the oven and allow to sit around 10 minutes.
– When ready to serve, remove additional pan and the foil. Lay a plate or serving platter that’s slightly larger than the cast iron skillet over the top. Holding the platter to the skillet, flip over to turn out the galette onto the platter. Wear your oven mitts! If any crunchy slices have go astray, just patch in. Garnish with thyme sprigs and cut into wedges to serve.