This week, to celebrate the start of apple season, I made some scrumptious little desserts called “Apple Blossoms.” The flower petals are thinly-sliced apples, arranged on strips of store-bought puff pastry dough. Looking for an elegant tea-time treat or after-school snack? This recipe is for you.
Note: You’ll find a printable recipe at the end of this post. But first, take a look at the individual steps:
To start, tip some lemon juice and water into a microwave-safe bowl.
Next, grab a pair of good-looking apples. Varieties that are all-red or mostly-red will show best. I used ‘Paula Red’ apples, obtained from my local orchard. You might like to use ‘Red Delicious.’
Did I ever tell you that I tried to grow my own apples? I planted 5 heirloom varieties back in 2003.
To my horror, the trees attracted every pest and disease known to the botanical kingdom. And as a result, today only one tree remains. It’s called ‘Sops of Wine,’ and it produces — I’m not kidding — exactly 1 apple per year.
Core the apples…
And cut them in half through the stem end.
While a careless motorist looks on, cut the apples into very thin slices — about 1/16th-inch thick. If your knife skills aren’t up to snuff, use a mandoline.
Drop the apple slices into the bowl of lemon-water. Then cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and heat in the microwave oven until the apples soften and become flexible — about 3 minutes. Set aside.
Meanwhile, in a small, microwavable bowl, mix 1/4 cup apricot preserves with 1 teaspoon sugar and 1 teaspoon water. Heat, uncovered, in the microwave until the mixture bubbles — about 45 seconds. Stir.
Now unfold a sheet of thawed but cold puff pastry dough, and place it on a lightly-floured surface. Press the dough with a rolling pin to remove creases.
Cut the pastry into 6 equal strips, and place them a parchment-lined baking sheet. Chill in the fridge for 5 minutes just to firm up the dough.
Then brush the cold strips with the apricot mixture…
Drain the apples…
And arrange the apples on the top portion of the pastry strips, in a slightly-overlapping row. Position the apples so they are half-on, half-off, the dough.
I hope these directions make sense to you. I’m trying my best here.
Oh. For added flavor, you can toss some cinnamon over the pastry strips. True, the flowers will look prettier without the added spice. But they won’t taste as good.
Fold over the bottom half of the pastry so that it joins the top half.
Then roll the strip into a loose pinwheel…
And admire your beautiful creation.
Note: If your apples are too thick or too firm, they will slip out of the pastry when you roll up the pinwheel. Just do your best to push them into the dough.
Place the pinwheels in the openings of a well-greased muffin tin. I sprayed my tin with baking spray. Baking spray contains flour. If you use a silicone muffin “tin,” you won’t have to grease it.
Pop the desserts into the fridge. Meanwhile, adjust the oven rack to the lower-third position, and preheat the oven to 375°.
Bake the blossoms until the pastry puffs and turns golden — 35-40 minutes. And to avoid burnt apple slices, check the oven after 20 minutes. If the apple tops are blackening, quickly cover the muffin tin with a sheet of aluminum foil. Then continue baking as usual. Immediately unmold the blossoms, and set them on a wire rack to cool.
When the desserts are cool to the touch, give them a dusting of confectioners’ sugar, and serve.
Oh, baby. Come to papa.
Think you’ll give these puff pastry Apple Blossoms a whirl? You can let me know by leaving a comment.
Meanwhile, here’s the printable recipe:
