A featured recipe from my cookbook: BACK PORCH PALEO — HOMESTYLE COMFORT FOOD FROM MY TABLE TO YOURS.
This paleo rustic herbed cherry galette is on page 110 of my cookbook — tucked into the DESSERT? DUH! chapter — and I am so excited to share it here on the blog. Dark tart cherries infused with subtle notes of fresh thyme, folded into a free-form OG Cassava Flour Pie Crust and baked until bubbly and golden. A flavor combination you never knew you were missing — and once you try it, you will not forget it.
About This Cookbook Recipe
This herbed cherry galette is one of 13 desserts in the book — and the DESSERT? DUH! chapter is arguably the most “sweet tooth forward” of all six chapters. A few other recipes in there I know you will love: Devona’s Chocolate Pudding Cake, Mint-Lanos, Haupia Fruit Tart, and Grant’s Graham Cracker Cookies. Every recipe in that chapter was designed to bring back treats you thought you might never enjoy again — just made real-food friendly from start to finish.
“Developing a paleo pie crust recipe was a labor of love several years ago after cassava flour rolled onto the scene. Pies have always been enjoyed year round by our family and we were thrilled when this crust recipe was perfected. So, if you’re looking to enjoy the flavors of a classic cherry pie without the extra effort often required for an actual pie, this galette is an awesome option. Galettes are a rustic, free form pie which makes for an awesome ‘artistic’ bake. What’s not to love about a free form edge shaped with your hands? We paired tart cherries with fresh thyme for a subtle savory element. It’s superb and a flavor combo that will surprise your taste buds. The best thing here is we used frozen cherries, so if you have a bag hanging out in the freezer this baked treat is ready in no time.”
excerpt from Back Porch Paleo — Homestyle Comfort Food, from our table to yours
What Is a Galette?
A galette is a rustic, free-form pie — no pie plate required. You roll the dough out on parchment, mound the filling in the center, and fold the edges up and over by hand. The imperfect, pleated edges are the whole point — they give it that beautiful artisan bakery look without any of the fussiness of a traditional pie. It is genuinely one of the easiest things you can make with the cassava flour crust, and it looks absolutely stunning every single time.
About the Thyme
The fresh thyme is the secret ingredient here — just half a teaspoon folded into the cherry filling adds a subtle herbal note that makes this galette taste completely unexpected and absolutely sophisticated. It is the kind of flavor combination that surprises people in the best possible way. If you have fresh thyme in your herb garden or on your windowsill, this is a perfect way to use it.
Tips for the Best Paleo Cherry Galette
- Frozen cherries work perfectly. No need to source fresh — a bag of frozen tart cherries from the freezer makes this baked treat ready in no time.
- Slightly thaw before using. You want the cherries just barely thawed — still cold and firm, but no longer rock solid. This makes tossing and mashing easier.
- Leave the crust on the parchment. Roll it out, slide the parchment right onto the baking sheet, and fold the edges up from there. No transferring required.
- Mash a few cherries. Just a few — pressed with the back of a rubber spatula — releases some juice and helps the filling come together as it bakes.
- Don’t skip the egg wash and sugar. The egg wash gives the crust a beautiful golden sheen and the maple sugar sprinkle adds a lovely sparkle and crunch.
- Cool before slicing. Let the filling set for at least 15-20 minutes out of the oven — it will be much easier to slice and serve cleanly.
Favorite Ingredients for This Recipe
- Otto’s Naturals Cassava Flour — the base of the crust and used in the filling
- Coombs Maple Sugar — for the filling and the finishing sprinkle
- Redmond Real Salt
Paleo Rustic Herbed Cherry Galette | Gluten-Free
Course: Desserts, Paleo Pie Crust RecipesCuisine: AmericanDifficulty: Easy8
servings30
minutes45
minutesTart cherries infused with fresh thyme, folded into a free-form gluten-free cassava flour crust and baked until bubbly and golden. A recipe from the Back Porch Paleo cookbook.
Ingredients
1 OG Cassava Flour Pie Crust
4 cups (616g) frozen tart cherries, slightly thawed
1/4 cup (47g) maple sugar, plus more for finishing (optional)
3 tbsp (23g) cassava flour
1/2 tsp fresh thyme leaves
1/4 tsp fine sea salt
zest and juice of 1 lime
1 large egg, for egg wash
whipped coconut cream or vanilla ice cream, for serving (optional)
Directions
- Preheat oven to 415°F (212°C).
- Prepare the OG Cassava Flour Pie Crust as directed. Leave it rolled out on the parchment paper and slide the parchment onto a baking sheet.
- In a large bowl, combine cherries, maple sugar, cassava flour, thyme, salt, lime zest, and lime juice. Toss to coat with a rubber spatula, mashing a few cherries slightly with the back of the spatula to release some juice.
- Mound the filling into the center of the pie crust, leaving about a 2.5″ (6cm) border of dough around the fruit.
- Using the parchment to help, lift and carefully fold the dough edge up and over the filling about 2″ (5cm), working around the circle and pleating the dough as needed until all the edges are folded up.
- Whisk the egg in a small bowl. Using a pastry brush, coat the folded dough edges with the egg wash. Dust with additional maple sugar if using.
- Bake for 40-45 minutes until the filling is bubbly in the center and the crust is golden brown.
- Remove from the oven and cool for at least 15-20 minutes until the filling is set. Slice and serve as-is or with whipped coconut cream or vanilla ice cream.
More Pies and Tarts You Will Love
All made with the same OG Cassava Flour Pie Crust:
- Paleo Cherry Vanilla Pie — a jammy cherry filling with real vanilla bean and a decorated crust
- Peach Galette — another rustic free-form favorite, perfect for summer
- Paleo Pear Tart — stunning chocolate frangipane with thinly sliced pears
- Paleo Lemon Tart — silky lemon filling topped with fresh fruit
- Mom’s Pecan Pie — rich, gooey, and naturally sweetened with no corn syrup