If you've ever wanted to make an impressive homemade dessert without the fuss of a traditional pie, this Rustic Cherry Galette is exactly what you need. Sweet, juicy Rainier cherries are wrapped in a flaky, buttery pie crust and baked until golden brown for an easy dessert that looks straight from a bakery.
The best part? Galettes are wonderfully forgiving. There's no need for a pie plate, lattice work, or perfectly crimped edges. Simply fold the dough around the fresh cherry filling, bake, and enjoy!
Whether you're using freshly picked cherries during the summer or serving this at a family gathering, this simple dessert is sure to become a favorite.
Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Easy enough for beginner bakers.
- Uses just a handful of simple ingredients.
- Beautiful rustic presentation.
- Perfect balance of sweet and tart flavors.
- Delicious served warm with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.
What is a Galette?
A galette is a free-form French pastry that's much easier than making a traditional pie. Instead of placing the dough into a pie dish, the filling is piled into the center of a round of pie dough, and the edges are folded over to create a rustic crust.
The result is a beautiful dessert with plenty of flaky crust surrounding juicy fruit.
Ingredients You'll Need
- 12-inch round chilled pie dough
- Rainier cherries, stemmed, pitted, and halved
- Granulated sugar
- All-purpose flour
- Fresh lemon juice
- Salt
- Egg and water (for the egg wash)
- Cinnamon sugar (for sprinkling on top)
How to Make a Rustic Cherry Galette
Gather all your ingredients together. I promise if you get into the habit of gathering all your supplies, you will take fewer steps in the kitchen.
I hardly ever buy store-bought pie dough because it is SO easy to make and store in the freezer. You can find my recipe for that by clicking here. It will make 2 pies, so just divide your dough and place it in freezer bags. Then, when you need one, take it out and lay it on the counter and let it thaw for about an hour.
When you are ready to use it, grab a Silpat like the one I have here from Dixie Crystals. Silpats are the best thing to use if you don't have parchment paper. You can cook anything on these and nothing sticks. They are amazing.
Roll your pie dough out to the size that you need. Don't worry if the sides are not perfect. Remember -- this is a rustic dessert.
Place the Silpat and rolled-out dough onto your cookie sheet and set aside.
Now, heat the oven to 375 degrees.
Check Out Those Rainier Cherries!
Grab your tub of cherries and remove stems. Once you get the stems removed, take a cherry pitter (the ones from OXO are awesome!) and remove all the pits.
Using a cherry pitter is the easiest way to remove the pits, but you can also slice them and remove them by hand -- it just takes a little longer.
Once you remove the pits, slice all your cherries and place them in a bowl.
Now, you are going to add in ⅓ cup of sugar, 2 tablespoons of flour, juice of 1 lemon, and salt.
You are going to mix it all together in a pot. Using a masher, mash some of the cherries so that they can release their juices.
Place in the middle of the pie crust and then fold the edges up and around it. If there are any openings around the edges at the bottom, seal those so that no liquid leaks out.
Once you make sure that all the edges are closed in, take your egg and beat with 1 tablespoon of water and brush it over the edges of the pie crust.
This will make your crust brown and look golden delicious!
Once you put on the egg wash, the final step before baking is to sprinkle on a little cinnamon-sugar mixture. I love this one from Adams spices.
Bake at 375-F degrees for about 40-50 minutes until crust is golden brown and done on the bottom. Transfer to a plate and cool slightly before slicing.
Tips for the Best Cherry Galette
- Keep the pie dough cold until you're ready to assemble the galette.
- Don't overfill the crust or juices may leak excessively while baking.
- Mashing only part of the cherries helps create a naturally thick filling without making it too runny.
- Bake until the bottom crust is fully browned for the best texture.
- Let the galette cool slightly before slicing so the filling has time to set.
Variations
Try changing up the filling with one of these delicious combinations:
- Add a teaspoon of almond extract.
- Mix in fresh blueberries.
- Add sliced peaches for a summer fruit galette.
- Sprinkle sliced almonds over the filling before baking.
- Swap Rainier cherries for Bing cherries if that's what you have on hand.
Storage
Store leftover galette loosely covered at room temperature for up to one day.
For longer storage, refrigerate in an airtight container for up to four days.
Reheat slices in a 300°F oven for about 10 minutes to crisp the crust again.
Can I Freeze It?
Yes! Bake the galette completely, allow it to cool, then wrap tightly in plastic wrap followed by foil. Freeze for up to three months.
Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and warm in the oven before serving.
Serving Suggestions
This cherry galette is wonderful served:
- Warm with vanilla ice cream
- With fresh whipped cream
- Drizzled with heavy cream
- Alongside hot coffee
- With a scoop of almond ice cream
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use frozen cherries?
Yes. Thaw and drain them well before making the filling to prevent excess liquid.
Do I have to make homemade pie dough?
Not at all. A refrigerated pie crust works beautifully and keeps this recipe quick and easy.
Why do I mash some of the cherries?
Lightly mashing the cherries releases their juices, helping create a naturally jammy filling while still keeping chunks of fruit throughout the galette.
How do I know when it's finished baking?
The crust should be a rich golden brown, and the filling should be bubbling around the edges. The bottom crust should also be fully cooked and crisp.
Check out these other delicious summer desserts
Rustic Cherry Galette
This is the perfect quick summer dessert.
Ingredients
- 12- inch round chilled pie dough
- 4 cups Rainier Organic cherries, stemmed, pitted and halved
- ⅓ cup + 1 tablespoons Dixie Crystals white sugar, divided
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- egg + 1 tablespoon water, beaten together for egg wash
Instructions
- Heat oven to 375-degrees F. Line baking sheet with a silpat or parchment paper.
- In a bowl, combine cherries, ⅓ cup sugar, flour, lemon juice and salt.
- Using a potato masher, mash mixture a few times. Set aside.
- Place chilled dough round on silpat or parchment lined baking sheet. Place cherry filling onto center of dough, leaving a 2-inch border around the edge.
- Fold edge up and over filling, overlapping and creating pleats all the way around. Brush dough with egg wash.
- Sprinkle top of galette (especially the crust) with 1 tablespoon of cinnamon sugar mixture.
- Bake at 375-F degrees about 40-50 minutes until crust is golden brown and done on bottom. Transfer to plate and cool slightly before slicing.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
8Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 205Total Fat: 9gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 47mgSodium: 202mgCarbohydrates: 30gFiber: 2gSugar: 11gProtein: 3g
That sounds delicious. I can't wait to make this for my next cookout. I know it will be a huge hit.
Making rustic treats is something I enjoy doing. We have cherries from our tree so this will be a perfect treat for my family.
There is nothing better than a rustic galette, especially one that is bursting full of Rainier cherries!!
I bet my kids would love this! They're huge cherry fans! Our favorite family dessert is S'mores Ice Cream Pie. I just add a jar of marshmallow creme to vanilla ice cream, add some chopped up Hershey's bars, and put it in a graham cracker crust and then freeze it! It's perfect on a hot day!
This sounds like the perfect pudding to make from cherries, I have to admit I am really enjoying them this year, this season seems to have brought a delicious round of cherries and I must give this pudding a try!
That is one mouthwatering recipe! I love rustic desserts like this and I can't wait to try this one.
My hubby's favorite food is cherry! With his birthday coming up I think this would be a great treat for him for his birthday!
We don't get fresh cherries for very long here, so we tend to eat them non stop during those short weeks.
This is just another great recipe to have cherries in!!
Jen! This looks amazing!! This is totally my kinda dessert! Also, aren't those Silpats from Dixie Crystals the BEST! I love them and use them all the time.
Nothing says summer like cherries. This looks delicious.
I find it odd that as much as I used to eat deserts, I've never heard of a galette! I love pie as much as the next person! Are there healthier options for the crust?
Totally asking my daughter to use your recipe to make me some Rustic Cherry Galette! I have a serious weakness for pastries and cheery is my second favorite fruit! Thank you for this!
This is the kind of dessert my mom would love. She likes anything that has fresh cherries. I imagine she'd enjoy it with a scoop of ice cream on the side.
I am always looking for new dessert recipes to try. This Cherry Galette recipe looks so delicious and easy to make. I will have to give it a try this weekend.
I am looking forward to trying this Rustic Cherry Galette recipe. I have a bunch of cherries I need to use up this weekend.
We LOVE cherries from Washington State. In fact, I have a huge bag of ripe cherries in the fridge that I'm going to use to mix up your delish recipe tonite!
Wow this looks great. I love how you used fresh cherries instead canned. I bet this would go great with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top!
That looks really good. I've never had anything like that before. I can't wait to give this a try.
I can't say I've ever made a galette before (although I have heard of it). The cherries sound delicious and I'm sure my whole family would enjoy this. I'd love to make it with my girls as a fresh summer dessert.
This looks yummy and what an easy summer dessert to make. I am excited to see all the recipes.
This looks so delicious, this has to be one of my faves! 🙂
I think this dessert looks really delicious! I really enjoy cherries but I've never cooked with fresh ones before, just canned. I'm kind of excited to try it out!
Galettes are one of my favorite dessets. I'm not sure it's because they're so cute, or that my neighbor makes the best I've ever had. I'm definitely going to pass your recipe along to her. We were just talking about how much she loves cherries and I know she's going to love it. x
I am a home baker and I am excited to see some useful tools that can make baking easier. I am also not a fan of cherry but I want to give this recipe a try 🙂
Galettes are so easy to make since they don't require that perfect edge. This sure does look delicious.
I haven't made a galette in ages. I can't wait to try this one. We love cherries.
This looks so yummy! I am so going to try this recipe!
Wow, this looks like something from a cooking magazine. I love french desserts and this one sounds so delicious. I'm totally trying this recipe.
NOw this makes me excited, it looks delicious. I love that cherry pitter that you have, I should get one of those.
These look really good. I have never heard of a galette but it looks like the kolaches I have been seeing pop up here lately. Sounds good!
I'm loving everything about this dessert!!
I love Rainer cherries! I bring them home and they're gone by the next evening. If I planned to make this I'd have to start the second I walked in the door ... otherwise there wouldn't be anything to fill them with.
Yum, this looks so good. I have cherries in the fridge and I am tempted to go make this pie.
Ooo yes please! This looks so fantastic. I am a huge fan of cherries. I do love my desserts 😉
My son loves Cherries. I will have to make this for him soon. I hope he likes it. The pictures look amazing!
The only thing missing is a fat scoop of vanilla bean ice cream. This looks delicious, I like my pastries slightly warm.
Oh my goodness this looks crazy yummy!!
Cherry season makes me so happy. I love cherries. We are from WA and got them fresh all the time.
My husband is a cherry fanatic and he would absolutely love this! I'm going to have to make this recipe for him and then your Blueberry Cream Cheese Pinwheels for me, because I am such a sweet wife to think of others first 😉
I don't think I've ever had a galette before. That looks delicious though and love the fact that it is so easy to make. Thanks for the recipe!
This looks ridiculously good. I can't wait to try it out. This is the perfect summer dessert! I am going to share with my Mother in law too because she loves stuff like this.
You're right it is a fancy word for something that's actually easier. Whatever it's called it's delicious!
This looks like such an elegant dessert. It's beautiful and mouthwatering. And I totally need a cherry pitter too!
This totally has it all - rustic cherry goodness, YUM!
Came for this recipe, stayed for the homemade dough. That is the one thing I can't master.
If you have a food processor, you can make homemade dough. It does all the work for you!
I don't know what a galette is but man does it look good. I wish I could try a bite!
A galette is basically a fancy term for making a pie without the pie pan. Everything is done on a cookie sheet instead
I love Cherry Pie! Oddly I'm not a big fan of pies made with anything but cherry, so this sounds perfect for me! I really need to get a silpat one of these days!
A cherry pie without all the fuss? I'm in! Looks yummy!
Such a beautiful vibrant colour! The cherries just pop on the screen. I am not very good at baking but i would love to try this recipe out. Thank you for sharing.
This recipe is perfect for even a beginning baker or someone who cannot bake that well. Not a lot of measuring going on!
This recipe sounds simple enough that even I can make it. I love cherries so will give this a go.
If you use the dark cherries they will make an amazing sweet dish!
Galettes are my favorite to make! Your version looks amazing!
They are so easy to make. If you make a mistake no one will ever know.
I love desserts with a rustic look to them. I can't help thinking they seem a little more welcoming than the slick, fancy desserts. This looks very welcoming, very comforting!