18 Ingenious Uses For Puff Pastry
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This recipe all started with a bacon calendar.
If you just re-read those words, you are correct. I just said bacon calendar. It was a gift from my mom – hi mom! – and I don’t remember where she got it, but it showed up at my house in the mail one day. She knows me very well.
This bacon calendar features, obviously, pictures of bacon BUT also bacon trivia and bacon recipes! I realize this is sounding more and more absurd. What can I say, Americans are obsessed with bacon. We want to stare at it on a monthly – nay – daily basis. This bacon calendar is basically a bacon-eating-reminder. Not that I need one.
I’m starting to feel like Jim Gaffigan.
Anyhoo, one of these recipes was for “bacon twists,” which involved seasoning strips of bacon, twisting them, and baking them until crispy. On a relatively lazy day, this sounded like the perfect recipe to tackle. Plus, it’s socially acceptable to eat bacon as a snack when it’s seasoned and twisted, right? It’s the seasoning and twisting that’s key, right?
However, I wondered to myself how this recipe would actually turn out. Would the bacon stay twisted? Would it cook through? I turned to the internet to see if anyone who had done this before. The answer, if you’re curious, is lots of people. BUT what’s most important is that I also stumbled across this recipe for cheesy bacon-wrapped puff pastry twists from Half Baked Harvest
I mean. Yes. Why stop at bacon when you can add cheese and carbs?
Now in a flurry of ambition, inspired and motivated by the aforementioned bacon-cheese-carb combination, I made not one, but TWO kinds of cheesy bacon twists with puff pastry. The first, my creation: apricot preserves, rosemary, and parmesan, rolled in brown sugar. And the second, Ross’s brainchild: cheddar, jalapeno, and scallion. The process to make both, or really any flavor combination, is basically the same, so the recipe that follows is wide-open for your own dreams and wishes.
Weirdly enough, we both ended up liking each other’s version slightly better than our own. (I married Ross for his Rocky Mountain chocolate chip cookies, but this cheddar-jalapeno-scallion delight is a good reason to keep him around.) I guess that’s to say both versions turned out really really well. Yep, cheese, bacon, and carbs is exactly as delicious as you expect. If not better. To be honest, I was snacking and snitching these for hours. I don’t know why I left them out on the table, but I did, and I couldn’t walk past without just one more bite. Okay one more.
Ingredients
- One sheet of puff pastry dough, defrosted
- Three tablespoons any flavor jam or preserves, or one beaten egg white
- ½ cup finely grated cheese of your choice
- Toppings of your choice, such as: 1 tablespoon finely chopped herbs, like rosemary, basil, thyme, or sage....1 tablespoon finely chopped jalapeno...2 tablespoons finely chopped green onion...2 tablespoons minced garlic...freshly ground pepper...anything else you like!
- 12 slices of bacon
- ½ cup brown sugar (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350.
- Cut puff pastry into 12 long strips.
- Brush strips with jam or egg. Sprinkle with cheese and other toppings.
- Gently press the cheese and toppings into the dough. You can use a rolling pin or your hands.
- Fold each strip in half over the cheese and pinch ends together. Twist gently and set aside.
- Wrap bacon around each pastry twist.
- Optional step: Place the brown sugar in a small bowl. Dip the bacon-wrapped pastry in the sugar and roll back and forth to coat.
- Place bacon-wrapped twists on a wire rack. Place the rack inside a rimmed baking sheet lined with foil. Liquid will collect in the bottom of the baking sheet, so DO NOT substitute a cookie sheet for this step! Also, turn your fan on. These tend to smoke.
- Bake for 20-30 minutes, checking often. They are done when the bacon is cooked through. Let cool briefly then enjoy.
Recipe 2-18 Visit: 18 Ingenious Uses For Puff Pastry By: www.buzzfeed.com