There’s no need to make a trip to the bakery and pay a small fortune for some sweet pastries. Now you can make your own and treat yourself whenever you want. Customise these pastries according to the seasons and your taste by adding the fruit of your choice. And if you’re entertaining, a platter of these easily made pastries will be a welcome addition.
6tablespooncream cheeseat room temperature. See Note 2
1teaspoonvanilla extractSee Note 3
4tablespoonicing/confectioners' sugarSee Note 2
8canned apricot halvesSee Note 4
1egglightly beaten
2tablespoondemerara sugarSee Note 5
2tablespoonapricot jam
Instructions
Line a baking tray with baking paper – See Note 6 Remove the pastry from the freezer and defrost – See Note 7 Preheat oven to 200 degrees C (400 F).
Drain the canned apricots through a sieve. Then place on some kitchen towel, cut side down, to remove as much moisture as possible and avoid making your pastries soggy.
Combine cream cheese, vanilla and icing/confectioners’ sugar and mix well.
Cut the puff pastry into eight 10 cm/4” squares.
To make the shape that I have used, fold the square loosely in half diagonally to form a triangle. – See Note 8.
To shape the pastry, use a very sharp knife and make two cuts along the outside edge of the triangle, about ½ “ wide, but not cutting right through 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 square of pastry.Place pastry on baking tray to shape and top. (It is difficult to move once assembled).
Repeat with the left-hand strip, taking it to the right-hand side. The pastry creates a frame around the filling.
Divide the cream cheese mixture between the pastry shapes.
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 15-20 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
Remove the required amount of pastry from the freezer. For me, it was two squares which were 22 ½ cm/9”.
In Australia, the tablespoon is 20 ml or 4 teaspoons. The tablespoon in many other countries is 15 ml or 3 teaspoons. You may need to adjust your measurements accordingly.
For the best flavour, I recommend that you use vanilla which is made from vanilla beans and not synthetically produced.
Any leftover apricot halves are delicious served with breakfast cereal or Greek yoghurt. If you wish, you could use the juice to make smoothies.
Demerara is a type of raw cane sugar which has been minimally refined. It is a pale brown colour, has a gentle caramel flavour and a crunchy texture. When baking, a sprinkle of demerara sugar provides a crunchy finish to cookies, muffins and cakes.
Depending on the size of your baking trays, you may need to use two trays.
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.
Gently flatten the pastry, do not push it completely flat as it will be difficult to unravel, especially if the pastry is not chilled.