“Even if I knew that tomorrow the world would go to pieces, I would still plant my apple tree.”
Martin Luther
Day before yesterday did not begin in a good way. I woke up to find the fridge wasn’t as cold as it was supposed to be. Big S I G H … what an arduous task when I had my hands full with so much already. Transfer, spring clean, clear … and stuff the other fridge to the gills. The upside of course was the urgency to use up my frozen puff pastry which was saved up for a rainy day! Another positive was that the fridge repair man showed up within 6 hours, was a gem, fixed the fault in 10 minutes … Woot!!
More ‘Fruit in Baking‘, a passion for me as you might know, so this is also headed for this months Monthly Mingle that I am guest hosting for my spicy-sweet friend Meeta. If you are BAKING WITH FRUIT this month, do send it in to Monthly Mingle posted HERE.
Apple Cinnamon Walnut Parcels
1/2 quantity puff pastry {recipe follows}
Apple Filling {recipe follows}
Milk/Cream for glazing
Rough Puff Pastry
from Ottolenghi: The Cookbook, pg 281
{I used half portion of pastry for this recipe. I’ve used it previously in peach galettes this past summer}
300gm plain flour
1 tsp salt
180g unsalted butter, frozen
140ml ice cold water
Method for pastry:
Sift the flour and salt. Grate 80g of the frozen butter into this and mix lightly.Add the cold water, using a knife, stir the flour and water together until a dough begins to form. Now use your hands to bring it into a ball {You might need a little more water}. Press into a neat square, wrap it in cling film, and chill for 30 minutes.
Roll out on a lightly floured surface into a rectangle with a long edge 3 times its width. Grate the remaining butter and spread it evenly over 2/3rds of the rectangle.Take the third which is not sprinkled, and fold it over the middle of the buttered part, then fold the two layers over the remaining single layer. You will be left with 3 layers of pastry and 2 layers of butter separating them.
Turn the pastry by 90 degrees. Dust with flour and roll out into same proportions as first rectangle.Take one of the short sides and fold it over to reach the middle of the remaining part of the pastry. Fold the remaining third on top of the first one to get 3 layers on top of each other. Wrap pastry in cling film and chill for 30 minutes.
Repeat again 2 more times, and chill for at least an hour. The pastry will keep in the fridge for 4 days, and in the freezer for a month.
Filling:
Adapted from Baking:From My Home to Yours, Dorie Greenspan.
2 apples, chopped apples
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped
1/2 cup dried cranberries/raisins
1 tsp cinnamon powder
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tbsp flour
Method:
Toss all the ingredients together and make sure the apples pieces are well coated with the flour.
Making the parcels:
Preheat the oven to 180C.
Roll out the puff pastry thin, trim the edges, and cut into 6 equal squares.
Place about 1-2 tbsp of the apple filling in the centre of each. Draw the four edges up to the centre, using a drop of cream to seal the corners when they meet. Place the trimmings on top of each other, gently press together, and cut out small hearts if you like. Stick the heart to the top with a drop of cream. {Don’t over stuff the parcels or they might pop open while baking}
Brush the tops of th pastry with milk/light cream, sprinkle with vanilla sugar, and bake at 180C for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown and puffy. Transfer onto a cooling rack.
Serve warm maybe with a drizzle of unsweetened light cream.
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Also find me on The Rabid Baker, The Times of India
Gorgeous Apple Parcels, Deeba!!! I LOVE your photography, its so mesmerizing! I recently met Dorie in NYC, she is a fabulous lady! love her!
Those parcels look fantastic! I love that choice of filling.
Cheers,
Rosa
Deeba I vove baking too, your parcels are awesome and yummy! love them! huggs, xoxox
gloria
(thanks for visit my lemon curd)
These are soo DAMN CUTE !!
Love the effort n idea of doing the pastry sheet from scatch 🙂
Deeba,
You’ve done a great job creating those apple cinnamon walnut parcels. I just love all the falvour combinations! the parcels looks heanvely and to be honest. I think this belong to the art gallery! great photography.
What a great idea, “marrying” the two recipes to come up with this wonderful treat!
Magda
Love the quote Deeba, wish every one thinks of planting a tree, to save our world. Oh morning refrigerator disaster, had my share of experience, but got new refrigerator replace it was bumper for the day, glad yours got fixed too 🙂 as always beautiful pic’s and this is perfect winter parcel for me!
I love the quote too..but every pretty picture.. even more..That lone yellow daisy atop the creamer:) Not to mention the parcels~
Wow!! Making puff pastry at home is really something!! And the marriage of puff pastry and an apple cinnamon filling sounds way too good to my perennial sweet tooth:-)) Am now craving for this at 6.30 a.m!! Sigh!!
A gorgeous little fall treat, Deeba! Perfect for Thanksgiving.
Parcel the parcels here…looks too gud 🙂
Absolutely stunning!
Deeba, I wish I lived closer to you, I’d love nothing more than to hang over your shoulder while your composing and taking your fabulous photos, I don’t think I’ve ever visited your site without oooohing & aaaahing. Beautiful recipe and do I make my own puff pastry you ask?!! Not so much anymore at home mostly because I think you can put anything onto or into puff pastry or with puff pastry & its awesome…., its a marvellous ‘go to’ ingredient (yes, the fact I call it an ingredient should give me away huh) I love the stuff; although as you say, its not that hard at all to make is it…, but yes, at work we do for sure.
Beautiful parcels! And oh my word, the photos are delicious. 🙂
I’ve had the Ottolenghi cookbook, but I totally missed the puff pastry. I’m blaming the sweet pastry crust, which is engraved on the kitchen counter now. Haha.
I love both apple and walnuts so this is right up my alley!
These look super! They are so pretty! I must re-watch that film again, I enjoyed Meryl in it so much.
Hehe if there’s on pastry that I think tastes better when its home made it’s puff pastry! I always use my best butter for it too-it makes such a difference! 🙂
Oh, Deeba, I wish I could say I make my own puff pastry often, but it’s really only once in a while. Here, in the New York area, it’s pretty easy to find good-quality, already-made puff pastry, so you see how my laziness might kick in. But it really is pretty easy to do, so if I was in your shoes, where there wasn’t any available, I’d be rolling up my own batches, too.
Your photos really take me away to a fantasy, to a bright, sunny european room where the sheer curtains whip in the breeze and I am so, so relaxed, munching on these apple filled pastries and daydreaming, while looking out the window. So pretty. There something about your photos that really make me feel like I’m on vacation.
I am very impressed by this post for a number of reasons, but mainly because I can’t even manage puff pastry when it comes readymade! Making it is totally beyond me.
You are amazing!!
Beautiful fruit parcels , they look yummy. My 1st visit here you have great space.Do drop by simply.food some time.
A good meeting indeed! I have a bushel of apples on my hands, 60 pounds of walnuts to crack, and an itching to make puff pastry. You’re posting of this promising recipe must be a sign! Thanks for the nudge.
These are just perfect for a lovely Fall dessert on a cool evening. The flavors sound wonderful.
Your passion for baking comes through in each and every post! This is gorgeous1
lovely parcels…home made puff pastry is quite a task and they look really good.
The bundles of sheer indulgence are irresistible. Lovely clicks, Deeba.
I love rough puff pastry too but definately reserve it for the winter here in Dubai and even then put everything in the fridge beforehand….with the a/c on max!
Love your title Deeba, * Imagining the smell in the air when you’re baking these beauties.* 😉
this is fabulous! My fridge went out a while ago and I was so exhausted from transferring all the provisions to the outdoor fridge that I needed a nap. Good for you for taking your misfortune and turning it into a creative, delicious project. I always love your montage of photos. I need to more of that. Thanks for inspiring!!!!!!
I am so into baking with apples these days and I’ve made not a thing yet this autumn season with cranberries, dried or fresh. This is a fab treat and I so want to make them. Love the puff pastry and will try this recipe. Gorgeous, darling, just gorgeous and a beautiful sweet for dessert, breakfast or snack. Or to help you zen out after another long trying day! xoxo
Dear Deeba, if you have time come and see my brioches, is a lovely recipe by Doris! is wonderful I think! je,je, huggs, gloria
My friend, your photography is just amazing! You succeed in making me hungry. 🙂
Your pictures Deeba makes me want to come work for u! The parcels makes me want to work for u for life 😉 Such gorgeous flavors all in one parcel. ummm….
What a fantastic way to save your precious puff pastry Deeba! The last time I made my own was for that Daring Baker’s challenge. I’ve been promising myself I’ll make more again but haven’t so far. Home made beats the taste of bought hands down, which is why I don’t buy Puff pastre any more, I just skip recipes requiring puff pastry 🙂
By the way, I heard a little tweetie bird say it was your birthday yesterday? Happy belated birthday!
What a great combo. And your folds are so lovely… I could bite into this for breakfast every day of the week. But that would mean a serious treadmill workout! 🙂
These are impressively good looking, and the pictures are so very beautiful. I love how neatly folded each parcels are!
The great thing about puff pastry is that no matter how tedious it is to make it, the baked outcome never fails to make us forget about the tediousness altogether.
These parcels have the greatest combination everyone should really try, yummy!
Sawadee from Bangkok,
Kris
Deeba, your presentations are always amazing! I love these little packages filled with fall flavors!
Pleased your refrigerator was repaired so easily and quickly!
Dear Deeba, a lttle question, may I participate in Baking fruits with a lemon recipe?? (I think is fruit you know) if you like answer here or my blog. Thanks a lot dear, gloria xoxoxo
Yes of course my friend. Can’t wait to see it! Mmmmm …
I do believe I have some puff pastry in the freezer though not homemade.
Btw, your photos are absolutely lovely!
~ingrid
I just found your website and I am IN LOVE! You have some of the nicest photography I have ever seen. Will be back again and again.
I wish you could parcel the parcels. They are delightful Deeba!
Oh i so agree about Indian Summers , i think i will try this with the aircon full blast:-)
Only u could combine 2 genius recipes and come with a winner like this!!!
very special
Oh Deeba – a tour de force, darlin’!! What a treasure trove of recipes… you truly are the hostess with the mostest!
Yumm I love anything baked with apples! That puff pastry looks perfect. Did you use homemade unsalted butter? I’ve yet to try making puff pastry, I hope to attack it soon, while the weather is cooler!
It’s great site, I was looking for something like this
Great and knowledgeable blog really great thing and helpful for everyone.
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