A pie is baked in a dish or pan, giving structure to the sides and top of the dessert. A galette by comparison is a free-form pie that is baked flat on a pan. Galette also has an open-top design compared to the typically closed look of an apple pie. In many respects, a galette is even easier to make than a pie because you only need one type of dough, compared to sometimes needing 2 for the bottom and top of a pie.