Butternut Squash Galette with Goat Cheese and Sage - Savory Simple (2024)

This butternut squash galette with goat cheese is an elegant, rustic tart. It’s perfect for both novice and more advanced cooks, and works well as a fall or winter party appetizer. You can prepare the dough and filling up to two days beforehand, then bake everything before guests arrive! Your kitchen will smell amazing.

We had many requirements at culinary school, one of which was to assist three recreational cooking classes. I loved doing this and volunteered often.

On one particular evening, I assisted a pastry class where the students were making an assortment of tarts. The chef described a galette as a “rustic tart” and then smirked, stating:

“I love the word ‘rustic’. It means it doesn’t have to be pretty.”

Looking back, I both agree and disagree with this statement. When using tart molds, I often spend a lot of time making sure the dough is perfectly formed.

Patience and practice yields a stunning result. Galettes are much easier, and their imperfections are what make them beautiful, in my opinion.

What is a Galette?

A galette is a rustic, free-form tart (either sweet or savory) prepared with a single crust, typically pastry or bread dough. Galettes are great for beginners because there’s no rolling the dough to an exact size, crimping the edges, or worrying about the dough shrinking in the oven. You simply place the filling in the center, leaving some space (about 1 1/2 to 2 inches) around the edges, and then you fold the ends around the filling.

I’ve noted in the recipe that you can substitute store-bought pie dough, but if you’ve been hesitant to try working with homemade dough, I think galettes are the perfect place to start.

This butternut squash galette recipe has a wonderful balance of flavors, and is perfect for entertaining. The shallots and goat cheese are savory and rich. You can get anywhere from 6-8 servings, depending on how thin you roll the dough, how big you want your slices and how much additional food is being served.

Butternut Squash Galette Ingredients

• All-purpose flour
• Unsalted butter
• Butternut squash
• Olive oil
• Shallots or yellow onions
• Cinnamon
• Nutmeg
• Sage
• Goat cheese

Tips For a Perfect Butternut Squash Galette

• Make the dough and filling in advance (up to two days), then roll and bake before guests arrive. Both can be covered and stored in the refrigerator.
• Butter temperature is always an important factor to keep in mind when working with dough. If the butter is warm, the dough will become sticky and difficult to manage. If the butter is too cold, the dough might crack when you try to roll it. You want to work with chilled dough, but I recommend letting it rest for 3-5 minutes after removing it from the refrigerator.
• When using a food processor to prepare dough, you ideally want the machine running for the least amount of time possible once you add water. This helps create a flaky crust. You can let the dough form a ball, but it result in a tougher crust. If you stop the machine once the ingredients are mixed but still crumbly, you can press them together by hand. I do this while wrapping the dough in plastic wrap.
• One time I made the filling and skipped the galette. It’s freaking amazing over baby arugula.

More Galette Recipes

If you love this recipe, you should also try my Plum Galette with Mascarpone and Rosemary. my Apple, Cheddar, and Caramelized Onion Galette. and Mini Zucchini Ricotta Galettes!