Heavenly Onion Galette with Mustard Cream

In my early days of belonging to a co-op, C and I lived in Brooklyn and subscribed to Urban Organic, a home delivery service of organic vegetables and herbs. This was heaven, now that I look back on it. Imagine stepping into your lobby after work once every week to find a box full of organic vegetables, all of them a surprise. In all fairness, I suppose you could have just about anything delivered to your door in New York City (not that I know anything about that), but this took the cake as far as I was concerned. We learned to cook together based on whatever the farm happened to send our way.

Some of the vegetables delivered to us were a little exotic, of course. When faced with an mystery vegetable, we would consult Deborah Madison’s Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone. A common thing to hear us say went like this.

One of us: “What should I do with . . . dinosaur kale?”

The other: “I don’t know. What would Debbie do?”

As it turns out, Debbie would do just about anything with a vegetable. She subscribes to the nonpartisan “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” school of thought when it comes to the omnivore’s dilemma. (Are you a . . . vegetarian? Shh, it doesn’t matter!) Every dish in her book pairs effortlessly with a meat course or stands gracefully on its own. With her cooking, there’s no need to choose a side.

Here’s the recipe for her Onion Galette with Mustard Cream. I have made this mothership of a galette twice now. Both times, it was for a party, and both to great success. You know you made something delicious when partygoers find you to say good things about your food.

Given how easy it was the first time I made it, perhaps I had a bit of overconfidence in my step. I went to the grocery store without a list. Of course, I forgot something, and it was the bread to make breadcrumbs. Given that I’m eating so well these days, I didn’t have any bread on hand. Without it, I feared the onions might be overpowering, wouldn’t stay bound together, or some other worse fate. So instead, I substituted rolled oats. Yep, that’s right. And guess what? Couldn’t even tell.

When making this, do yourself a favor and remember to schedule enough time to bring the milk and butter to room temperature before starting. Also, lean in to check out the dough after it rises. At a close enough distance, the darn thing seems like it is breathing. Last but not least, be sure to save close to the higher end of the 2- to 3-inch border when piling the onions in the dough. In the galette pictured above, I didn’t save quite enough. It’s forgiving, though. (Of course, it is.)

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Yeasted Tart Dough with Butter

• 2 teaspoons active dry yeast
• ½ teaspoon sugar
• ½ cup warm milk or water
• 1 egg at room temperature
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 2 cups flour, approximately
• 4 tablespoons soft butter

Dissolve the yeast and sugar in the milk in a mixing bowl and let stand until bubbly, about 10 minutes. Stir in the egg and salt, then begin adding the flour ½ cup at a time. After you’ve added a cup, beat in the butter, then continue adding flour until the dough pulls away from the edge of the bowl. Turn it out onto a counter and knead until shiny and smooth, after a few minutes. Add more flour as needed to prevent sticking.

Transfer the dough to a lightly buttered bowl, cover with a towel, and let rise until doubled in bulk, 45 minutes to an hour.

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Onion Galette with Mustard Cream

• 3 tablespoons butter
• 6 cups thinly sliced yellow onion
• 1 tablespoon chopped thyme or rosemary
• ½ cup dry white wine
• Salt and freshly milled pepper
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard mixed with ¼ cup cream
• ¼ cup grated pecorino Romano or Parmesan

Make the dough and set it aside.

Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and thyme and cook, stirring occasionally, until they soften and turn golden, about 15 minutes. Add the wine, cook until it has reduced, then season with salt and pepper.

In a bowl, combine all but 2 tablespoons of the egg with mustard and cream. Stir in the onion, bread crumbs, and cheese.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Roll the dough in to a 14-inch circle. Put the onion on the dough, leaving a 2- to 3-inch edge. Fold the dough over the onion and brush with the reserved egg. Bake until shiny and golden, about 25 minutes.

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