Vegan Apple Galette

Warm cinnamon and ginger-spiced fruit wrapped up in buttery, flaky pastry topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream is easily one of the highlights of fall. Make yours plant-based with my deliciously rustic Vegan Apple Galette recipe! All you need are 12 simple ingredients and 20 minutes of active prep time to get this showstopping dessert in the oven.

Now that the weather is cooling off, dive into baking season with my Vegan Ginger Cookies, Vegan Pumpkin Pie Bars, and Vegan Apple Cinnamon Rolls recipes.

Jump to:

• What Is An Apple Galette?
• Recipe Ingredients
• Recipe Steps
• Optional Add-Ins/Variations
• Pro Tips
• FAQ
• Why You’ll Love This Recipe
• Related Recipes
• 📖 Recipe
• 💬 Comments

If you’re looking for a delicious vegan dessert to welcome the coming of fall, you can stop your scrolling. This delightfully cozy vegan galette has all the flavor and texture of an apple pie, but without the fuss of making a perfect crust. By its very definition, this free-form apple dessert will always be imperfectly shaped, which only adds to its rustic charms.

Best of all, this easy vegan recipe for apple galette requires just 12 easy-to-find ingredients, 20 minutes of prep, and just a plain sheet pan to make. Heck, making this fall galette is so easy, you don’t even need a pie pan!

What Is An Apple Galette?

Surprisingly, there are many names for a treat with a buttery, flakey crust that's filled with fresh fruit. Galette, pie, tart, and crostata are just a few names you might recognize if you're an avid baker. But what is the difference between a galette, pie, tart, and crostata? Here is the breakdown:

• Galette: A galette is an easy and rustic dessert in which dough is rolled out, then topped with fruit. Then, the edges of the dough are folded up over the fruit towards the middle to keep all the filling in.
•  Crostata: Crostata and galette can be used interchangeably. They are essentially referring to the same dessert. The only difference is that galette is a French term, while crostata is an Italian term.
• Pie: Traditionally, a pie is made in a pie dish with slanted sides and filled with a sweet or savory filling. A pie can be topped with a crust or left without one, but a pie crust is typically crisp, and flakey.
• Tarts: Tarts are also made in a baking dish similar to pies, however, a tart dish typically has straight sides and a removable bottom so the tart can be served without the mold. Many tarts have a custard base and the crust is more firm and crumbly compared to a pie crust.

Recipe Ingredients

As promised, you only need 12 simple ingredients to make this rustic apple galette. To keep things simple, I’ve broken down the ingredients by which stage of the recipe you’ll use them:

Vegan Galette Dough

The most challenging part of making an apple galette vegan is creating a vegan galette dough. Luckily, swapping in vegan butter into a typical pâte sucré is all it takes. Here’s what you’ll need:

• All-Purpose Flour - For a more tender dough, you can use cake flour; for a nuttier, crumblier dough, try white whole wheat pastry flour.
• Sugar - Plain white sugar is my go-to for pie or galette dough because it doesn’t have the extra moisture you’d find in brown sugar or unrefined sugar.
• Salt - A little bit of salt to balance out the sweet is all you need.
• Vegan Butter - Vegan butter has come a long way since I went vegan in 2015! For this recipe, it’s best if you find a vegan butter in stick form. Luckily, there are several brands that offer this now, including Miyoko’s and Earth Balance. There’s also Country Crock plant butter, which I’d recommend only if you can’t find the others as it contains palm oil. 
• Ice Water - Make sure it’s super cold to help your dough come together without any fuss.

Apple Galette Filling

The filling for this rustic vegan apple tart comes together in a snap. Here’s what you’ll need:

• Apples - You can use just one type of apple here, but I find that the flavor is best if I use one each of the Pink Lady, Granny Smith, and Honeycrisp varieties.
• Brown Sugar - Either light or dark sugar will work here. You can also use unrefined sugars like grated jaggery or piloncillo, demerara, or turbinado sugar if you prefer.
• Ground Cinnamon & Ground Ginger - For seasonally appropriate warmth. Feel free to experiment with other warming spices like apple pie spice, allspice, nutmeg, and cardamom.
• Lemon Juice - Fresh is always best. To get the most juice from your fruit, give it a firm roll on the countertop for 10-15 seconds before cutting it open. 
• Cornstarch - To thicken the filling. If you have a corn allergy, try swapping in twice as much AP flour or tapioca starch instead.
• Vanilla - For depth of flavor. You can use extract, powder, or paste with similar results!

For Assembly & Serving

Technically, these ingredients are optional but are very highly recommended. 

• Turbinado Sugar - A sprinkling of Sugar in the Raw on your galette dough prior to baking adds a beautiful sparkle and an irresistible crunch. 
• Vegan Vanilla Ice Cream - Warm apple desserts basically beg to be accompanied by a scoop of frosty vanilla ice cream. Other good options include almond or salted caramel.
• Whipped Coconut Cream - If you’re more in Camp Whipped Cream than Camp Ice Cream, chilled canned coconut cream (not cream of coconut) will whip up just like the delicate chantilly from your previous, non-vegan life.

Recipe Steps

1. In the food processor, pulse together the flour, sugar, and salt. Add the cold butter cubes and pulse until no large chunks of butter remain.
2. Add in the ice cold water 1 tablespoon at a time and pulse until a dough ball starts to form. You might not need to add all of the water, but if the dough is still crumbly add more water.
3. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and form the dough into a ball. Don't overwork the dough here so it remains light and flaky. Put the dough ball in a bowl and place in the refrigerator to chill for 30 minutes to an hour. The longer the better!
4. Preheat your oven to 375°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Peel and core the apples. Cut the apples in half, and slice into ¼-inch thick slices.

5. Add the apples along with all of the other filling ingredients (brown sugar, cinnamon, ground ginger, lemon juice, cornstarch, and vanilla extract) to a mixing bowl and toss to fully coat the apples.
6. Take your dough out of the refrigerator and place it back onto your lightly floured surface. Roll the dough into a 12-inch circle and transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet.
7. Arrange the apples (leaving the excess juices in the bowl) in a circular pattern, overlapping slightly in the center of the dough. Leave about a 2-inch border around the edge.
8. Fold the excess 2-inches of dough up and over the edges of the apples, folding every 3-inches as you go around. Brush the dough with the melted butter and sprinkle with turbinado sugar.
9. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and the apples are soft and bubbling. Let the galette cool for 10 minutes before slicing into wedges and serving with vegan vanilla ice cream or coconut whipped cream.

Optional Add-Ins/Variations

I think this rustic apple tart is perfect just the way it is, but there’s always room for customization here at Best Served Vegan. Here are a few variations to consider:

• Gluten-Free Apple Galette - While I haven’t tried it myself, reason leads me to believe that this vegan galette dough recipe will work equally well with a gluten-free cup-for-cup flour mix. If you try it, will you let me know how it works out in the comments below?
• Apple Cranberry Galette - Cut down to just two apples and toss in a cup of fresh cranberries for a sweet-tart remix. Alternately, keep the apple proportions the same and scatter in dried craisins and some toasted nuts for a bit of texture!
• Vegan Pear Galette - Swap out apples for another fall favorite: pears! 
• Or any other fruit galette - This recipe should work for just about any kind of fruit, including berries, peaches, and plums.

Pro Tips

Making this simple apple pie galette is easy enough for even kitchen novices. That said, I’ve learned a few tricks along the way to ensure your dessert comes out perfectly every single time:

• Don’t overwork the dough. Make sure your butter is very cold, and blitz in the food processor until the butter pieces are quite small. Work in batches as you add the water; you might not need it all. As soon as the dough comes together in a single mass, you’re done! Don’t keep kneading it or you’ll lose all the flakiness.
• Use a variety of sweet and tart apples. Tart apples like Granny Smith add a little pucker, whereas sweeter varieties like Honeycrisp and Pink Lady help to balance it out.
• Feel free to make the dough ahead of time. You can prepare the dough and freeze it for up to two months in advance.

FAQ

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Sweet, tart, warm, and cozy, this gorgeous apple galette is a real showstopper. Make it for any fall gathering and watch even your omnivorous friends go wild with enthusiasm! 

Aside from being utterly delectable, this delightfully simple recipe for my vegan apple galette:

• Requires Just 12 Ingredients - Most of which I’d bet you already have on hand.
• Is Quick & Easy - Ready for the oven with just 20 minutes of prep, and ready for the table in under an hour!
• Is Versatile - Use this recipe as a template for all your sweet vegan galette needs. Swap in (or add) different fruits and/or nuts, or make it gluten-free to fit your needs.

Let me know if you try out this vegan apple galette, and if you do, I would love it if you left a rating and review below! Make sure you also follow along on Instagram and Pinterest for more food inspiration.

Related Recipes

Craving more warm fall flavors and all things apples? Try these recipes next:

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