Apple and Almond Pastries

Because some mornings just need pastry.  And coffee.

Years ago I was smitten with ‘What Katie Ate on the Weekend’  It is a beautiful book, not just to look at, but the recipes are a joy to use. a great variety of dishes, from breakfast to desserts, with everything in between.  In it I found a lovely little pastry to try.  And it has morphed into one of my favourite pastries to make all through the year.  Because that is the great thing about apples, they are with us almost all year round.  Of course, apples really shine in Autumn. The flavours of the spices and maple syrup definitely make these more of an autumnal treat, but I just don’t care!  And when the kitchen is filled with the fragrances of all these warm and spicy ingredients baking up, I didn’t mind at all if I make these in May 🙂

Katie includes a recipe for her puff pastry in the book.  I think you may already know my feelings about taking the time to prepare puff pastry.  I only have so many hours in the day, and do have other things to attend to, besides cooking and baking.  So I have absolutely no qualms about using good quality purchased puff pastry.  It works just fine, and leaves me time to actually clean the kitchen after all the baking!

Once you have your pastry rolled out, the recipe comes together pretty quickly. It’s not unlike making cinnamon rolls, but thinner.  The nuts and apples combined with maple syrup, vanilla paste and spices just makes the perfect filling for these little goodies.  And then a bit of an egg wash and sliced almonds sprinkled over them all, and into the oven they go.

They are amazing right out of the oven.  Okay, cooled down a little!!  And even the next morning, at room temperature they they make a great breakfast.  If you do need to store them in an airtight container, then rewarm them in a toaster oven to bring back the crunch to the puff pastry.  Add a good cup of coffee, and a couple of girl friends, and you’ve got a great little coffee break 🙂

I have to say, I’ve made quit a few changes to the original recipe.  Katie calls for her homemade puff pastry to be rolled out to a 20″ square.  Maybe the amount of pastry in her recipe allows for this.  Using store bought pastry, and using a typical one block (397 grams, approx 14 ounces) or 2 sheets layered on top of each other, only gave me a 12″ x 16″ rectangle.  I could have stretched it further, but I didn’t want to run the risk of it tearing open as I rolled the nuts and apple chunks over it.  These days I actually like rolling out the pastry just to a 13×15 inch rectangle.  It means that there is enough dough to fill out the final baked pastry, and I’m not forcing the dough to stretch further than it should.  Plus you get more of the layers of pastry this way!

I also add a few more spices to the mix.  Cloves, cardamom, pepper, and salt.  I found the initial result rather one-noted, mostly sweet, from the honey and maple syrup.  I like that bit of savoury from the pepper and salt.  Also, I’ve added a tbsp of raw cocoa powder.  It also adds depth to the final sweetness.  But definitely doesn’t take over.   You could also switch out the nuts for hazelnuts or chopped walnuts. On top though, the almonds will look the best.  If you wanted to use a different nut altogether, then maybe sprinkle sesame seeds or sunflower seeds on top after the egg wash.

Now these are definitely one of my favourite pastries to make during apple harvest season!  Or any season for that matter!

Love Jen.

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APPLE AND ALMOND PASTRIES

An easy French pastry, with the warm of spices and the flavours of apples and almonds. Just add a cup of coffee!

Course Dessert

Keyword apples, puff pastry

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 45 minutes

Servings 12

Ingredients

• 1 block of puff pastry (397 grams/14 oz) thawed, or two sheets of store bought puff pastry
• 4 oz (1/2 cup) runny honey , plus extra for drizzling
• 2 tbsp maple syrup
• 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tbsp raw cocoa powder
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp cardamom
• 1 tsp vanilla paste or extract
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp cracked black pepper
• 3/4 cup almonds , toasted and chopped (smaller rather than larger chunks)
• 1 largish Granny Smith apple (or two small, peeled, cored, chopped into 1/4" cube (or slightly smaller) mixed with juice from 1/2 lemon
• 1 egg yolk , mixed with a little milk
• toasted sliced almonds for garnishing (approx 1/3-1/2 cup)

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

2. Roll out the thawed but chilled dough into a 13"x15" rectangle. If using sheets, place one sheet on top of the other, press firmly with your rolling pin to get them to adhere, and then roll out. The rectangle should be with the short ends on the top and bottom when looking down at it.

3. Combine the honey, maple syrup, cinnamon, cocoa, ginger, cardamom, vanilla, salt and pepper in a small bowl.

4. Using an offset spatula, spread this mixture evenly across the sheet of pastry, leaving a 1/4 border.
5. Scatter the chopped almonds and apple bits over the spread.

6. Carefully roll up, (like a cinnamon roll) as tightly as you can without breaking the pastry. Brush all over with the egg wash.

7. Using a very sharp knife, trim the edges 1/2 inch, and then cut it in half down the middle, crosswise. Take each half and cut it into 2 equal portions. Cut each portion into 3 equal slices. This will give you 12 slices or rolls.

8. Carefully transfer each roll (I use a bench scraper to loosen from the counter) to the parchment lined baking sheet. Leave about 3/4" space between each slice. Drizzle some more honey over each one and scatter the toasted almond slices over the honey.

9. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown.

10. Once cool, you can sprinkle with powdered sugar if desired.

Recipe Notes

Serve warm or at room temperature.

You can store in an airtight container. But not for too long. Reheat in a toaster oven (or conventional oven) at 325 till warmed through, and the puff pastry has dried out slightly. You want that slight crunch to the pastry.

Adapted from What Katie Ate on the Weekend