New England Apple Cheddar Galette

"“An apple pie without the cheese is like a kiss without the squeeze.” There is a tradition in New England, and some parts of the midwest, to serve a slice of cheese, usually sharp cheddar, alongside a piece of apple pie, or even melted on top. For those of us who didn’t grow up with this tradition, even though we may love eating apple slices with cheese, the whole idea of cheddar cheese with a pie is well, just wrong. As in, “are you kidding?” wrong. If this is you, I understand. But just let the idea percolate a little while. Apples and cheese are good together, right? A slice of apple with a slice of cheeseâ??bare, naked perfection. Why? Because apples are both sweet and a little tart, and cheese is salty with plenty of umami. So your taste buds are firing on all cylinders when you eat them in combination. Still, the idea of cheddar with or in a sweet apple dessert is weird, to those of us unaccustomed to the idea. So, you’ll have to just trust me on this one. It’s good. Like “where has this been all my life?” good. I’m speaking from experience here. I have shunned the idea since the first time I heard of it. But this week I decided to take the plunge and make a simple galette, a rustic tart with apples, some maple syrup for sweetener, cheddar, in a buttery, cheddar speckled crust. All I can say is WOW. Thank you New England...."