Cooking for the last time in this little kitchen is bittersweet. This weekend I’ll be trading it in for a larger model (though the apartment as a whole it is much smaller than my current one): one equipped with the first dishwasher I’ve ever had–not counting the two-legged adoring ones–and real, usable counter space. I’m excited, but I’m sad, too: my Red Hook kitchen of some eleven and a half months is where I first came into my own as a cook.

Here, I prepared four-course meals for six on a two-foot-square metal cart. I spelled them out fancifully on a rescued menu board. I served them on a white table pushed to the center of the massive, open-plan living space, praying that the lack of furniture suggested “defiantly minimalist” and not “destitute”.

Here, before I knew that we would eventually share a kitchen, I cooked faltering first meals for a man whose tastes I could only guess at: most memorably, a salad of goat cheese and cucumbers (he dislikes both).

When a borrowed cat and poison pellets didn’t do their job, I wielded the axe of the New York City Department of Sanitation and drove back the mice. When spring came, bringing ants with it, I laid traps and vanquished the enemy. It was my kitchen and I would resist invaders to the death.

Forgetting the final ramen packet, which hardly counts, and the leftover green beans I may heat up for my lunch tomorrow, this cardamom-spiced mango and blueberry galette is probably the last thing I’m ever going to cook in this kitchen.

Brooklyn has cooled down enough for me to turn on my oven, but it hasn’t cooled down so much that I’m prepared to exert myself over a dessert. Besides, I have packing to do, movers to book and IKEA to visit.

I made this dish for tonight’s mini-reunion of Hong Kong friends who have known me since I was 10 years old. (Which, if you’re wondering, was 16 years ago.) It couldn’t be simpler. I set out to the store planning an almond paste and stone fruit galette, but when I saw these mangoes (and the price of almond paste) I changed my mind pretty quickly.

The method will work for any reasonably firm fruit. I will resist giving specific quantities or ingredients because the easy adaptability of the fruit galette is precisely what makes it great.

Flexible Fruit Galette

Preheat oven to 350F.

Chop fruit (plums, peaches, mangoes, pears, or any other semi-firm fruit) into bite-sized chunks and place into a large bowl. Sprinkle with brown and/or white sugar to taste, and mix gently but well. You may choose to spice the fruit with cardamom, cinnamon or nutmeg. A small quantity of berries may be added after mixing, to avoid crushing. (Beware: too many berries and your galette will ooze all over the place.)

Using store-bought dough or your favorite shortcrust recipe (here’s a good one), roll a circle about 1/8th of an inch thick.

Pile the fruit mixture into the center of the dough, leaving a wide rim. Dot fruit with butter. Fold the outer edges of the dough in and over the fruit, leaving a well in the center of uncovered fruit.

Bake until the crust is well-browned, about 40-45 minutes for a standard tart-sized galette (adjust baking times accordingly.)

I hope they like it. People I haven’t seen for a while always have such high expectations when they find out I’ve been to cooking school. They really seem to think I go around making croquembouches all day long.

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