Skillet Berry Galette, Camp Version
Dried berries, a hand-mixed crust, and a cast iron pan on coals. Dessert that takes an hour and is worth it.
- calories
- 430
- weight
- 3.5 oz
- cal / oz
- 123
- protein
- 5 g
- serves
- 6, scales
- prep
- 25 min
- cook
- 40 min
- total time
- 65 min
- water
- 120 ml cold
- cost
- $$
Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.
- Dessert
- Campfire coals
- Dutch oven
- Car camping
- Basecamp
- Canoe / raft
- Vegetarian
- Real dishes
- Pre-mix at home
- Shelf stable
- Actual cooking
Ingredients
| All-purpose flour | 1 1/4 cups | |
|---|---|---|
| Sugar | 1 tbsp | for the dough |
| Salt | 1/2 tsp | |
| Vegetable shortening | 7 tbsp | replaces the butter, no cooler needed |
| Cold water | 3 to 4 tbsp | the colder the better |
| Dried mixed berries | 2 cups | blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, cranberries |
| Brown sugar | 1/3 cup | |
| Cornstarch | 1 tbsp | |
| Dried lemon peel | 1 tsp | |
| Dried orange peel | 1 1/2 tsp | |
| Vanilla extract | 1 tsp | |
| Powdered whole milk | 2 tbsp | stands in for the heavy cream |
| Sliced almonds | 1/4 cup |
Method
- Put the dried berries in a cup with 1/2 cup of water and let them sit 20 minutes. They will not fully plump. That is fine.
- Burn a fire down to coals while the berries soak. You want a bed of embers, not flames.
- Cut the shortening into the flour, sugar, and salt with two spoons or your fingers until it looks like coarse gravel. Add water a spoonful at a time until the dough holds together when squeezed.
- Press the dough into a disc and roll or pat it out to about 12 inches on a clean bag or a floured pan lid.
- Stir the brown sugar, cornstarch, citrus peel, vanilla, and milk powder into the soaked berries and their liquid.
- Lay the dough in a greased 10 to 12 inch cast iron skillet. Pile the fruit in the center, leaving three inches bare, and fold the edge over in loose pleats.
- Scatter the almonds over the exposed fruit. Cover the skillet with foil or a lid.
- Set the skillet on a thin layer of coals and shovel more coals onto the lid. Bake 35 to 45 minutes, rotating the pan a quarter turn every ten minutes.
- Check at 35 minutes. The crust should be firm and browned underneath. Let it sit 15 minutes before cutting or the filling runs.
The original wants a food processor, fresh berries by the pint, and a refrigerator. None of that travels. Dried berries plus a soak get you the same volume of fruit at a fraction of the weight, and the soaking liquid becomes the syrup once the cornstarch goes in. Shortening replaces the cold butter because it holds its shape at 80 degrees in a pack; you lose some flavor and gain the ability to make this in August.
Coals on the lid are the whole technique. Heat only from below burns the bottom crust before the top sets, so you split it: a thin bed under the pan, a heavier scatter on top. Rotating the skillet evens out the hot spots every fire has. The rest is patience — cut it hot and you get fruit soup with pastry floating in it.
Packing
Flour, sugar, and salt premixed in one bag. Shortening in a screw-top jar. Berries, brown sugar, cornstarch, and peel in a second bag. Almonds separate so they stay crisp.
Variations
- Swap the shortening for butter if you have a cooler and want the flavor.
- Skip the almonds for a nut-free version.
- A pouch of freeze-dried berries works too, but soak them less.
https://www.lodgecastiron.com/blogs/recipe/rustic-berry-skillet-galette-with-almonds