I decided to do a blog on puff pastry or pâte feuilletée, especially as the holidays draw near. I usually keep a package of this frozen pastry in the freezer for those times when you need to whip up something quickly. The nice thing about puff pastry is that it is so versatile. You can use it for elegant appetizers, a main meal and even desserts. Bring something to a pot-luck dinner or make something with puff pastry and it will be a hit, guaranteed!
I used to make my own puff pastry which took several hours to prepare as it involved rolling and refrigeration time and that was not including the baking time. I realized that GOOD store-bought pâte feuilletée was just as good without having to spend hours to get the same result! On the other hand, short crusty pastry is still better when home made!
Puff pastry vs Short Crust pastry
Puff pastry is different from short crust pastry. Puff pastry has a leavening agent so it rises or puffs up! There is no physical leavening agent like baking powder, soda or eggs in the puff pastry. It is merely the technique of making this pastry which allows the dough to aerate and form layers, giving it its rise! Danishes with all those flaky layers are made with puff pastry and traditional fruit pies are made with a short crust pastry. I mention this because I don't want you to purchase frozen pie dough and think you'll get the same results.
Not all puff pastry is the same
I made the mistake of rushing into the grocery store, picking up some puff pastry that was on sale and didn't realize how bad it was until I had made and baked my pies. There are pastry doughs made of shortening, margarine and butter. It is worth every penny to purchase puff pastry made with butter. It is easier to work with and the taste is so much superior. So, my advice is if you're not familiar with the puff pastry brand, read the ingredient list and make sure it is made with butter or something you don't mind ingesting.
Working with puff pastry
When working with pâte feuilletée, you will need to defrost it. However, if the dough is too warm, it will be difficult to work with. Defrost the pastry in the refrigerator and don't let it get to room temperature if your room temperature is warm. It also helps to work with puff pastry on a cold surface like a marble or granite slab.
I have also noticed that store bought frozen pastry comes in different thicknesses. Depending on what you are making, you may have to roll your pastry out to get the desired thickness.
Getting uniform dough thickness
I used to just eye-ball the dough thickness until my sister showed me her dough measuring sticks. You can also use rolling pin bands that you put around your rolling pin. These aids are great for making a pastry dough of uniform thickness. However, I have found that you can get FREE measuring sticks that work well. PAINTSTICKS!
Any paint store or home improvement store like Home Depot or Lowes will give you paint sticks. The 1 gallon paint stick is 1/8" in height which works well for pie crusts, the 5 gallon paint stick is 1/4" in height. These are great when you need to work with a thicker dough like rolled cookies.
With these free paint sticks, you will need to make sure that the surfaces are smooth without any wood splinters. Use a fine sandpaper and run it along all the edges to ensure there are no wood splinter. You can even measure out your measurements and mark it with a permanent marker.
To use the measuring sticks, place them on either side of your dough, you can even use them as a guide for the width of your dough and roll until the dough reaches the width and height of the sticks. For this gourmet cheese twists recipe, I needed the height of the dough to be 3/8" so I just placed the 1 gallon paint stick on top of the 5 gallon paint stick.
Getting the flaky layers
If you want your end product to have all the flaky layers, you can cut the edges so it's not sealed and avoid sealing those edges with egg-wash. This will allow the layers to separate.
Best place to buy Puff pastry
Most grocery stores sell this pastry in the frozen section together with the frozen pie shells. However, I will let you in on a secret. Trader Joes sells all butter puff pastry for a reasonable price seasonally. They sell it for the Fall and Holidays and that's it! So, if you're a Trader Joes shopper, pick up a few packs, freeze it and make something decadent for the holidays.
Here are some recipes you can try:
Nibbles:
Goat cheese with caramelized onion
Ham and cheese pinwheels
Mains:
Sweets:
Pear frangipane
Apple Streudel