Apricot and Cream Cheese Puff Pastries

Baked Apricot and Cream Cheese Pastries on some baking paper.

I am certain that you will love this very easy recipe for our Apricot and Cream Cheese Puff Pastries. It is the perfect combination of flaky puff pastry, with a cheesecake-style topping and sweet, fresh apricot. It is an easily made, delicious pastry that is ideal for breakfast, brunch, or dessert. You will have the deep satisfaction of making pastries that look as if they may have come from a good bakery.

Course Afternoon Tea, Brunch, Dessert, Morning Tea

Cuisine International

Prep Time 25

Cook Time 15

Total Time 40

Servings pastries

Calories 447kcal

Author Alexandra Cook - It's Not Complicated Recipes

Ingredients

2 sheets butter puff pastry See Note 1
120 g (4.2 oz) cream cheese - at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 tablespoon icing/powdered sugar See Note 2
4 large apricots - cut in half. Follow the natural indentation of the apricot for ease. See Note 3
1 egg - lightly beaten
2 tablespoon demerara sugar See Note 4
2 tablespoon apricot jam

Instructions

Line two baking trays with baking paper.
Remove the pastry from the freezer and defrost – ensure that you keep it cool.
Preheat oven to 200 degrees C (390 F).
In a small bowl, combine the cream cheese, vanilla and icing/powdered sugar and mix well.
Cut each sheet of puff pastry into four, so you have eight 12 cm (4 ¾ inch) squares.
Place the pastry squares onto your baking trays at this stage as it is difficult to move once assembled.
To make the shape that I have used, fold the square loosely in half diagonally to form a triangle. Do not push it completely flat as it will be difficult to unravel, especially if the pastry is not well chilled.
To shape the pastry, use a very sharp knife and make two cuts along the outside edge of the triangle, about 1 ¼ cm (½ inch) wide, but not cutting all the way to the tip of the triangle.
Open the triangle and gently lift the right-hand strip of pastry over to the left, placing it on the edge of the square of pastry and repeat with the other strip of pastry, crossing to the other side. The pastry creates a frame around the filling.
Divide the cream cheese mixture between the pastry squares and use an offset spatula or knife to evenly spread it within the frame of the pastry.
Place an apricot half on top of the cream cheese.
Brush the edges of the pastry with the beaten egg and sprinkle with a teaspoon of demerara sugar.
Bake in the preheated oven for about 15 minutes until the pastry becomes golden-brown.
Meanwhile, add the jam to a small saucepan and heat over medium heat, adding a teaspoon of water if necessary to thin it a little.
If there are large pieces of jam it will be best to push the jam through a sieve. If not, brush each apricot with some of the jam to give them a nice shine.
Allow the pastries to cool for a few minutes before serving. However, if not serving immediately, store the cold pastries in an airtight container in the fridge for a day or two or freezer if keeping longer. Re-heat for a few minutes before serving.

Notes

Puff pastry: I use two sheets of puff pastry that each measure 24 cm (9 ½ inches) square. The pastry must remain chilled. If the puff pastry defrosts before you have prepared the filling, place the puff pastry in the refrigerator until you are ready to use it. If it softens at any stage that you are making the pastries, it will be difficult to handle so will need to be placed in the fridge to chill and firm.
Tablespoon: we use a standard Australian tablespoon which is 20 ml (4 teaspoons).
Apricots: you can also use tinned apricots if fresh are not in season. Be sure to drain the excess liquid well on paper towel.
Demerara sugar: is a type of raw cane sugar which has a crunchy texture.
Jam: I use my homemade Apricot Jam.
Storage: the cooled pastries can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days.
Re-heating: you can warm up the pastries in a 180 degrees C (355 F) oven for about 7 minutes or until they have crisped up.
Freezing: cool the pastries completely, and store in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 2 months. Thaw at room temperature and reheat as above.

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