Puff Pastry dough completely amazes me- you know, how while rolling it’s just a single sheet, and while baking, voila! all the distinct layers puff up into a really flaky, buttery crust. Savory or sweet- the same dough can be used for both, and the results, in both cases, bake out perfect. Each round of rolling and folding results in a thin layer of butter sticking to the dough- thus, creating hundreds of thin layers of dough separated by a film of butter.
With no leavener in the dough, the rise happens when the butter melts in the oven and boils, creating steam which lifts the successive layers higher and higher. At the same time, the heat is cooking the flour, hardening it around those minute air pockets, creating the puff.
A few days back, I had promised the recipe for Apple Turnovers I made for Office Thursdays. If the puff pastry and the filling is ready, these are a snap to make and perfect to serve with tea in the morning. I had sent these for V’s office colleagues and they were all devoured (V did not get any but I had saved one for him at home). I loved them and would definitely make them again.
Today morning, with the leftover puff pastry dough I made a savory vegetarian version. Will post that tomorrow!
APPLE TURNOVERS
Adapted from Sarabeth’s Bakery From My Hand to Yours
You need:
- 1/2 dough puff pastry
- 1/2 recipe apple preserves
- Granulated sugar, for sprinkling
- Water to seal the dough, as needed
About 8-12 hours before you decide to make the turnovers, remove the puff pastry dough from the freezer and pop in the fridge. Try not to leave the dough in the refrigerator for more than 12 hours.
When ready to make the turnovers remove the dough from the fridge. I had to let it sit out for a while, because the dough was still rock hard!
Roll the dough into a 13 by 13-inch dough. Fold into thirds and refrigerate for 15 minutes.
Take the dough out and unfold. Using a pizza cutter and a scale, cut the sides to make a 12 by 12 inch square. Using the ruler and the pizza cutter, cut the dough into three equal parts, vertically.
Then cut the dough horizontally into three equal parts, resulting in 9 squares. each measuring 3 by 3-inch.
Spoon 1 tablespoon each of the preserve in the center of each square.
Dip your finger in water, and wet two of the adjacent sides of the square. Take the opposite sides of the square and fold on top of the wet sides. Seal the ends tight with your fingers. Put on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Refrigerate for 15 minutes. Preheat the oven to 400 F.
Take the unbaked turnovers out and baste the tops with water. Sprinkle with granulated sugar. You could also sprinkle with brown sugar, if you like. Bake for 15 minutes in the oven. Lower temperature to 375 F and bake the turnovers for another 15 minutes, till the turnovers are a lovely golden brown.
