When I travel to other regions of the country, I like to notice differences in food. Sometimes it's totally unique experiences, like the kick-ass Mexican food I ate in Tucson, or the wow-we-don't-actually-eat-pizza-in-America moment I had in Italy. And sometimes it's just interesting perspectives on things I generally take for granted, like how lobster, fine dining fare to me, is insanely cheap in the Northeast, or, by contrast, how precious figs are in the same area. Don't get me wrong, it's not that figs aren't special in the South. They have a short growing season and so can't help being that. It's just that they aren't exotic. There's a fig tree in every other yard down here and I don't even remember not knowing the proper way to eat one (ditto muscadines, but that's another post). Also, of course, my grandmama made the best fig preserves (so did her mother, and her mother, etc etc).
A galette is simply a pie that doesn't need a pan. It's free-form, and the edges are folded up around whatever you put inside (typically fresh fruit). You might say it's as easy as...someone else doing your taxes.
Fresh Fig Galette with
Fig Preserve Cream Cheese Spread
Fig Preserve Cream Cheese Spread
Recipe adapted from kitchenconfidante.com
