Easy Fruit Pies (Free-Form Fruit Galettes!) | Buddy Valastro

Put the flour, 1 tablespoon sugar and ½ teaspoon salt in the bowl of a food processor and pulse to combine. Add the butter and pulse just until the mixture resembles a coarse meal. Stream in the ice water and pulse again to incorporate. Pinch the dough with your fingers to test; it should hold together without being sticky. Turn it out onto a piece of plastic wrap and form into a disk. Refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.

A few minutes before the dough is ready, slice the plums into ½-inch thick pieces. Put 2 tablespoons sugar, the tapioca starch, a pinch of salt and the lemon zest in a large bowl.  Gently toss the plums in the sugar mixture to coat. Transfer the plums to a strainer and set the strainer over the bowl to catch any juices that run out. Reserve the juices. 

Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 375°F.  Roll out the dough into a ¼-inch thick disk and transfer to a parchment- or silicone mat-lined baking sheet. Very lightly dust the bottom of the crust with more tapioca starch. Start laying the plum slices on their sides in a circular pattern with their edges touching or slightly overlapping; leave about a 1 ½-inch border around the edge of the dough. Continue lining the inside of the circle with more plums until the surface is covered. Fold the edges of the dough around the plums, folding and pinching the dough as needed.

Brush the outer edges of the dough with cream. Sprinkle the top of the plums and the edge of the dough with ½ teaspoon more sugar.

Bake until the crust is lightly browned and the juice of the plums are sizzling, about 45 minutes. If the plums look dry when you remove the tart, brush the fruit with a very small amount of the reserved juices. Let cool. Serve sliced into wedges with the ice cream, if desired.