Warm Applecheddar Galette

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The Gravenstein is quite possibly the perfect baking apple, with a delicately balanced sweet-tart flavor. Lucky for us, Town Hall is just down the coast from Sonoma County, where Gravensteins thrive. Unfortunately, they have a short season, from late July to early September, and they are not good keepers. Once they are gone, pippins, Sierra Beauties, and Jonathans make fine substitutes in this galette, which is topped with an artisanal white Cheddar cheese, in an American tradition that few cooks still seem to practice. If you are among them, try this to see what you have been missing. Frangipane, an incredibly versatile filling traditionally made from almond paste, eggs, sugar, butter, and flour, is used by French cooks in everything from petits fours to almond croissants. By substituting our homemade caramel applesauce for the almond paste in frangipane, we not only celebrate more apple flavor in the apple galette, but also provide a nut-free version of this classic preparation that is neutral enough to use in as many ways as the original. The caramel applesauce has a wonderfully deep flavor. You can substitute store-bought applesauce, but it is mild and watery by comparison, so you'll need to cook it down to a dry paste in a frying pan and then measure out what you need. If you decide to make the caramel applesauce, you will have more than you need for this recipe. You can freeze the surplus and use it later in easy turnovers made with store-bought puff pastry, or you can serve it warm over vanilla ice cream with a splash of Calvados. You need to freeze the assembled galette for at least 4 hours before baking, so you'll need to plan ahead.