Zucchini & Caramelized Onion Galette

This recipe was once again inspired by a post on Deb's Smitten Kitchen blog. I seriously need to block this woman from my blog and twitter feeds, but it's really difficult! Besides, the results are so tasty, it would be impossible to deny myself for too long.

I initially saw the a Zucchini and Ricotta Galette recipe on the Smitten Kitchen blog which reminded me that, mmmmm, I heart zucchinis. They're one of my new favorite vegetables. I then proceeded to check out the rest of the Deb's galette recipes. Within 15 seconds, I stumbled across a post for a Butternut Squash and Caramelized Onion Galette. In case you don't know, I have a lovely obsession with onions. And Caramelized onions are a fave. Since I was drooling over both the zucchini and the caramelized onions, I decided to improvise and combine these vegetables into one galette.

As for the cheese, I decided against using ricotta cheese purely because I always have some left over and usually some pesky mold gets to the rest of it before I do. I really hate throwing away food. I thought feta would provide the galette with a nice tangy flavor. Since feta doesn't melt very well though, I supplemented it with some grated fontina cheese to provide creaminess.

Zucchini & Caramelized Onion Galette

• 1 medium zucchini, sliced into rounds
  
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
• 1-2 tbsp butter
• pinch of sugar
• 2 garlic scapes, finely diced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
  
• ~1 tsp olive oil
• 9-inch Ready to Bake pie crust (I used a store-bought crust that I could just unroll, though you can make your own if you're motivated enough)
• 1/4 cup feta cheese
  
• 1 cup fontina cheese

• Egg Yolk Wash: 1 egg yolk beaten with 1 teaspoon water
  

1) Spread the zucchini out over several layers of paper towels.

2) Sprinkle with a teaspoon of salt and let drain for ~30 minutes. Gently pat the zucchini dry with paper towels before using.

3) Meanwhile, melt butter in a heavy skillet and cook the onion over medium heat with 1/2 tsp of salt and a pinch of sugar. Stir occasionally until soft and lightly golden brown. The exact timing for this step will depend on the level of heat applied. It took about 30 minutes for my onions to be done, but it could take longer.

4) Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

5) Mix the caramelized onions, garlic scapes, garlic, and ~1 tsp olive oil in a bowl. Toss to combine the ingredients.

6) Assemble the galette:

- Unroll the pie dough onto parchment paper. (You'll thank me when the galette comes out of the oven.)

- Sprinkle half of the feta cheese and a third of the fontina cheese in the center of the dough, leaving about a 2-inch border all around.

- Layer half of the zucchini slices on top of the cheese.

- Add half of the caramelized onions mixture on top of the zucchini.

- Add the rest of the feta cheese and another third of the fontina cheese.

- Add the final layer of zucchini.

- Add the final layer of caramelized onions mixture.

- Top with the remaining fontina cheese.

7) Fold the edges of the pie dough up to "close" the galette.

8) Brush the crust with the egg yolk wash.

9) Bake the galette for 30-40 minutes, until the crust is golden brown and the cheese is melted.

10) Allow to cool. Serve warm or at room temperature.

I was so excited to finally taste this galette and let me tell you that I was not disappointed. Wow. The zucchini was still crisp when bitten into and it was accentuated by the soft, sweet caramelized onions. The fontina was creamy and helped to hold the entire galette together. The crumbled feta offered a salty and tangy bite when diving into each slice of the galette. Add the buttery, flaky pie crust to this combination and you will find yourself with the perfect appetizer or light meal.