Puff ‘n’ stuff
From ready pastry to something special
Pears in puff
This is the smart cousin to stuffed baked apples. I haven’t tried it, but I suspect a little bit of dark chocolate might go rather well in these, too.
Quantities are flexible, but you’ll probably need the best part of one sheet of pastry per pear.
Small to medium-sized pears Lemon juice
Maple syrup Ready-rolled puff pastry Dates
1 egg, beaten
White sugar for sprinkling
Heat oven to 180C. Peel pears and carefully cut out the cores, working from the base.
Slice a little off the base so the pears will sit level. Gently toss pears with a mixture of lemon juice and maple syrup (roughly equal parts is about right) then fill each cavity with pitted dates.
Cut circles of puff pastry large enough to encase the pears. Place a pear upright in the centre of each circle and brush pastry edges with beaten egg.
Wrap pastry firmly around pear. Decorate with pastry leaves cut from the leftover pieces of pastry, attaching them beaten egg.
Brush pastry all over with beaten egg and sprinkle with white sugar. Place in a lined baking tray and bake for 30 minutes or until golden and pears are tender.
Serve hot with cream or icecream.
Jam jar fruit pies
These individual pies are so easy but dead cute. It’s amazing how the simple act of serving a pie in a jam jar can make it so special – and these really are delicious, especially with a scoop of icecream on top.
Sweet short pastry sheets Stewed fruit, any favourite or combination
1 egg, beaten Demerara sugar for sprinkling
Heat oven to 180C. Line small jam jars with sweet short pastry by cutting a round for the bases and then lining the sides with a rectangular piece.
Fill almost to the top with stewed fruit.
Cut pastry lids to fit the jars, making a hole in the centre to release steam.
Crimp the edges to seal, brush tops with beaten egg and sprinkle with demerara sugar.
Bake for around 35 minutes – the pies are ready when you can see the sides becoming golden.
Seeded filo crisps
Enjoy these delightfully crispy little mouthfuls as a nibble or quick snack. Once again, quantities are flexible.
Filo pastry
Butter, melted
Egg white, beaten
Mixed seeds, for example sesame, pumpkin, sunflower
Heat oven to 180C. Place a sheet of filo pastry on a lined oven tray and brush with melted butter. Lay another sheet on top and brush with melted butter.
Add a third sheet and this time brush the top with beaten egg white.
Sprinkle over a selection of seeds, cut pastry into pieces and spread on a lined oven tray.
Bake for about 8 minutes or until the crackers are crisp and golden.