Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Palmiers

Puff Pastry + Sugar ...DONE! Now, who would not enjoy this dazzling instant cookie.

'Palmiers' or 'Elephant ears' are classic French cookies. These look quite similar to the Little Hearts that we get in India. But dont let the word "French" threaten you! These cookies are almost effortless!

Palmiers can be best described as light as air, flaky, buttery, caramelly....Do you need any more convincing to get on to making these?? 

Due to its simplicity, Palmiers go great with any desserts. They are a great tea time snack when you are entertaining guests or even a great quick after dinner snack!

Here's how they are made!

Level: Easy
Serves: 15-16 medium cookies 



Ingredients:
1 puff pastry sheet, thawed as per package instructions
0.5 cup sugar
1.5 tblsp butter, melted (optional)

Method:
Step 1 - On a large surface (I used my large cookie sheet), sprinkle slightly less than half of the sugar. Try and spread it as even as possible. Place the thawed puff pastry sheet on this and lightly roll it. This makes sure the sugar sticks to bottom of the pastry sheet. The rolling will also expand the puff pastry sheet a little more. 

Step 2 - Now, sprinkle the remaining sugar over the puff pastry, leaving behind about 2 tblsp of sugar and spread it evenly. Lightly try and press the sugar in the sheet. Roll your rolling pin over this if you want. 

Step 3 - Now the folding begins. Firstly, turn the pan in such a way, that you see a vertical rectangle in front of you. This will ensure maximum cookies. Remembering that both the sides need to meet in the center, start folding the sheet and pressing it in place as you fold. Fold both the sides 1/4 inch at a time and let them meet in the center, where they touch each other. Then fold one side over the other and gently press them together. Wrap this roll in a foil or plastic wrap tightly and place in the refrigerator for 45 mins.

Step 4 - Preheat the oven to 400 deg. F. Take the roll of puff pastry sheet out of the refrigerator and cut into 1/2 inch thick pieces. Place them on a parchment lined baking sheet 2 inches apart from each other. Lightly  pinch the bottom of every cookie with your fingers. This will ensure that they do not unfold while baking. Lightly brush them with melted butter (if you plan to use any) and sprinkle these with the remaining sugar. Place it in the center rack of the oven for 15 mins until they turn light brown. Then flip them over and let them cook for 5 more mins.

Serve at room temparature. Dont get over-excited and pop one right out of the oven, even if you are immensely tempted. Bubling melted sugar in your mouth is never going to be a pleasant experience!




Tips:
1/2 cup sugar is almost a minimum quantity for this recipe. Don't try and reduce it. It looks a whole lot when you are spreading it around, but once these puff pastries increase in size while baking, it does not end up overly sweet.

Keep an eye on the cookies every 5 mins in the oven as every oven is different. You dont want them to burn.

The recipe above is the basic palmier recipe. 
You can use vanilla sugar to get a different flavor. 
You can use cinnamon or nutmeg sprinkling along with the sugar for a different kick! 
You can also make these savory. Replace sugar with some parmesan cheese, sun dried tomatoes, pesto...anything. Go creative!

Happy Cooking Everyone!

Submitting this recipe to the Bake Fest held by Sumee's Culinary Bites who is hosting the Fest on Vardhini's behalf.

1 comment:

  1. Can u please post step by step photo please

    ReplyDelete