It is the The Battle of the Basic Autumn Foods: Pumpkin vs. Apple!

Pumpkin and pumpkin spice are both omnipresent in so many food items and non-food items, for better or for worst! (A friend of mine posted a photo of Pumpkin Spice-scented car detail spray on her Snapchat a few weeks ago, and it made me irrationally angry…) Of course, there is the most basic of pumpkin-associated culinary delights: The Pumpkin Spice Latte. As I don’t drink coffee (which, apparently, is a sin the eyes of some), I’ll let someone else gush about how much they love them.

Me? I’m an apple lover, through and through. I pick apples every fall in Connecticut or Massachusetts. I make apple pies, apple tarts, apple crisps, apple turnovers, apple sauce, you name it. Hell, even my dad has gotten into the habit of just making me an apple crisp for my birthday each October. I’ll take that over a cake any day! In my high school days, circa 1998 – 2002, I occasionally reeked of Country Apple body spray from Bath & Body Works, and I am TOTALLY okay with that.

Well, I’m a lover, not a fighter. I don’t like competition. Can’t we all just get along?!

I’m marrying apples and pumpkin together. Naysayers be damned! This is one delicious galette that you’ll want to eat from now through Thanksgiving. I guarantee it.

And if you still hold a pumpkin vs. apple mentality, I’d like to think we can all agree on one thing: A buttery, flaky crust rocks.

Pumpkin Apple Galette
(Adapted from Food52’s recipe for Autumn Apple & Pumpkin Galette)
(Serves 6)

Ingredients:

– 1 pre-made pie crust, rolled out
– 1 cup pumpkin, puréed
– 2 large tart baking apples, thinly sliced
– 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and divided into two 1 tablespoon servings
– 1/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
– 1 teaspoon cinnamon
– 1/2 teaspoon salt
– 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
– 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
– 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
– 1 teaspoon vanilla

Before We Get Started…

– It is optional to peel the apples; since they are finely sliced, I find that leaving the peel on does not affect the recipe much. It’s up to you!

– I am a huge lover of pre-made pie crusts! It’s my Sandra Lee-esque semi-homemade hack. (Haaa.) However, if a pre-made pie crust is simply not your jam, substitute with your favorite pie crust recipe. Roll the crust to roughly 1/8″ thickness, uniformly, and to about 11″ – 12″ inches in diameter.

Directions:

1.) Preheat oven to 400°F. Lightly grease or place parchment on a baking sheet. Set aside.

2.) In a medium bowl, whisk together brown sugar, cinnamon, salt, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, and vanilla. In a separate bowl, mix pumpkin with 1 tablespoon of the melted butter and 1/4 cup of the brown sugar mixture. Set aside.

4.) Toss apple slices and additional 1 tablespoon of melted butter with the remaining brown sugar mixture. Set aside. (…I’ve said “set aside” for these past three directions, haven’t I? Ha!)

5.) Lay pie crust in the center of the baking sheet. In the center of the dough, evenly spread the pumpkin mixture, forming a 10″ circle. Arrange the apple slices in an overlapping single layer pattern. Fold in the outer edges of the dough, over the filling, forming a 2″ crust all the way around.

6.) Place in oven and bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until crust is golden brown and the apples are tender.