Galette complet for a novice!

[sallyyw]

I wonder if anyone can help. I spent some time in Brittany in my youth and lived on galettes. I have recently developed a real craving for them. However a) All the recipes I have found stress that they cannot be made sucessfully outside Brittany?? b) the recipes specify BuckWheat flour - which I cannot buy?!.
Could anyone tell me - does it NEED to be buckwheat flour or would any brown flour be the same (sorry if that sounds ignorant!) and is it really that different from making normal pancakes (about the only thing I CAN cook!!!). Hope you can help.

[Suzanne]

As far as I can tell from looking up recipes, what makes a Breton galette a Breton galette is the buckwheat flour, and that it's usually savory. See this entry in the excellent blog Chocolate & Zucchini for a discussion of galette complète.

So: if you make a crêpe with some other flour, it won't be a galette of the sort you want. It might be delicious, but it won't be what you remember.

Making crêpes is different from making pancakes, but it is not all that difficult if you have a good, clear recipe to follow. (The batter is basically flour, egg, melted butter, and milk, thoroughly mixed and then left to rest a while before cooking.) It does take practice to get the batter the right consistency, and to get it to cover the pan properly. But once you master the skills, it's not difficult. And if you make a big batch of crêpes/galettes, you can freeze the extras to use another time. Very useful item to have on hand.

BTW: if you have access to any form of plain kasha, you could grind your own buckwheat flour.

[JonK]

We've made dozens and dozens of galettes without buckwheat flour--in fact until reading this post I didn't know that buckwheat was called for. Our master recipe comes from "Baking with Julia" (1996, William Morrow) and uses four parts all-purpose flour to one part cornmeal. We've also used a mixture of AP flour with a bit of whole wheat flour for variation (along with the cornmeal).

That said, if you want to order buckwheat flour, it's available by mail from www.kingarthurflour.com.

[Suzanne]

Jon, are you talking about the pastry galette, like a free-form tart? That's different from the galettes sallyyw is asking about. Hers are a version of crêpes.

Just goes to show that within the same language -- even French! -- one food name can have several meanings. (How many times have we had this problem between British and American "English"? ) "Galette" can also refer to a kind of cookie. Oops, I mean biscuit.

[JonK]

Ah, Suzanne, you are right! I was thinking of a desert--the free-form tart. One of the reasons I love this forum as that I can continue to learn while not feeling too stupid. Thanks!

[phatch]

The only gallette I've cooked is a potato one, a bastardized pommes anna kind of thing. Good, but a fair amount of work with critical timing.

Phil

[Jock]

Originally Posted by sallyyw

Could anyone tell me - does it NEED to be buckwheat flour or would any brown flour be the same (sorry if that sounds ignorant!) and is it really that different from making normal pancakes (about the only thing I CAN cook!!!). Hope you can help.

Sally, have you tried a health food store for buckwheat flour? That's where I buy mine.

Jock

[MikeLM]

I'd be willling to bet that Whole Foods or Wild Oats will have it.

Mike

[Free Rider]

Bob's Red Mill makes a buckwheat flour. Can order online if necessary, but lots of stores carry the Bob's Red Mill brand. Link to product info: http://www.bobsredmill.com/catalog/i...&product_ID=89

[Mannlicher]

I have been making savory crepes, or galettes for years. I have made them with whole wheat flour (3/4 cup along with a 1/4 cup AP flour) as well as buckwheat flour. Frankly, I can't tell much difference between whole wheat and buckwheat in taste or performance.
Most of the time, I use a seafood filling, but any other savory filling works as well.