The Buttery Magic of Puff Pastry
Anything made with puff pastry is pure magic. Have you ever had it? I’m sure you have. Ever had a “Toaster Strudel”? An apple turnover? A palmier? A Danish pastry? A chicken pot pie? All of these sweet desserts and savoury indulgences are made using what I like to call the 8th world wonder, puff pastry. Puff pastry is made out of hundreds of layers of fat and flour dough. When it gets baked the fat/butter melts, and the liquid evaporates creating pockets of air (which makes it oh so flaky!) and it rises to its full and beautiful vertical potential.
Making puff pastry is QUITE the process (don’t worry, making puff pastry from scratch is NOT a part of this recipe–you can sigh that sigh of relief now). It consists of rolling and folding (referred to as “turning”) chilling for 30 minutes, and then repeating that whole process at least 6 times. And then chilling the dough overnight.
I made puff pastry once, it was in my “fundamentals of baking” course at culinary school a few years ago. I distinctly remember our chef saying “this will probably be the only and last time you’ll ever make puff pastry”. And he was right. It requires so much time and labour that you’re much better off just buying pre-made puff pastry from the grocery store. Do you agree?
The Delicious Fruit Filling
So now that we’ve established that we WON’T be making our own puff pastry dough, we can press on, knowing that this recipe for heart shaped fruit puff pastries is nothing but simple. Ok, the dough can be purchased at the grocery store–but what’s the scoop on the fruit filling? Well, I’ve got good news for you! The fruit-filling is simply a jar of your favourite jam or preserves! Doesn’t that make you wanna just jump for joy?! What kind of jam do you most fancy? Peach? Strawberry? Apricot?
When I baked these heart shaped fruit puff pastries for the first time I filled half with raspberry preserves and the other half with blueberry preserves. I managed to get an extra two heart cut-outs out of the puff pastry so I made one with BOTH raspberry and blueberry preserves. Hehe. Is that what they like to call “wild berry”?
I like to use preserves over jam because preserves are more chunky–and I like the texture of a nice chunky fruit-filling. But honestly, a jam or spread should work just fine. I also prefer preserves that are natural and sweetened without high-fructose corn syrup. Truthfully, the only thing I like high-fructose corn syrup in is my Coca Cola. 😉
I used my FAVOURITE jar of Raspberry Preserves from Bonne Maman.
And if you make your OWN jam…that’s even better and I have so much admiration for you! That’s something I’d like to learn eventually…
Assembling The Puffy Hearts
Work quickly here–you want to keep your dough as cool as possible to ensure a nice baking!
To create these beautiful heart shaped fruit puff pastries, the first thing you do is unroll your puff pastry onto a lightly-floured surface. The particular brand that I bought was Wewalka, which was a refrigerated roll of puff pastry that unrolled into a 9″ x 14″ rectangle. Make sure you follow the instructions on the box/package of your puff pastry–as some of them come frozen and may need a few minutes to thaw before working with.
Next, grab your heart shaped cookie cutter! Being super meticulous, start cutting out your hearts, getting the most out of your dough and leaving as little space as possible between cut-outs. (Seeing as it’s heart shaped it’s inevitable to have leftover dough scraps, but do your best!) I’m not 100% sure but I think I got 11 hearts off the bat, and then actually gathering all of my scraps together, rolled it out, and got 3 more hearts out of it. I know, I know, puff-pastry shouldn’t be tampered with like that, but I didn’t want to waste anything.
Brush the edges of half the with a simple egg wash–I just use my finger for this. Then, spoon one Tablespoon and a half of jam/preserves into the centre of each heart. Place the other hearts on top of the jam-topped hearts. Using a fork, seal the edges of each heart together. If you’re generous with your fruit-filling like I am, you’re gonna have a bit of jam oozing out the sides; it’s all good.
Place the filled-hearts onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and stick it in the freezer for 10-15 minutes. Getting the puff pastry extra chilled will make sure that the dough holds its shape better as it bakes.
After removing from the freezer, brush the tops of the hearts with the egg wash and sprinkle with some coarse sugar. (The sugar is optional, but personally I LOVE how it looks after it’s baked!)
I used the White Sparkling Sugar from Wilton for that.
Bake at 400 degrees F for 15-20 minutes.
Vanilla Glaze
While your heart shaped fruit puff pastries are cooling on a rack, whisk up the delicious vanilla glaze and drizzle as much of it as you want onto the pastries. These are best served when warm but still taste AMAZING at room-temp.
I’m tellin’ you, these heart shaped fruit puff pastries get all the heart-eyes! I have a certain passion for all of my recipes, but this one I’m SUPER passionate about and I really want you to make these. A box of puff pastry, a jar of preserves, a vanilla glaze and BAM you’ve got the perfect sweet to feed your Valentines Day sweetheart.
Happy baking friends! I seriously hope you make these–and if you do, let me know how it all turned out for you! 🙂 Have a wonderful Valentines Day!
The Products I Used To Make This Recipe Happen:
Recipe For Heart Shaped Fruit Puff Pastries:
Heart-Shaped Fruit Puff Pastries with Vanilla Glaze
These heart-shaped fruit puff pastries are perfect for your Valentines Day breakfast, brunch, or dessert! This buttery, flaky puff pastry filled with your favourite preserves is best served warm and drizzled with vanilla glaze. Store in a sealed container at room-temperature.
Ingredients
Puff Pastry Hearts
- 1 pkg Puff Pastry
- 1 jar Jam/preserves (or a variety of your favourite jams!)
Egg Wash + Garnish
- 1 Egg
- 1 tsp Heavy Cream or Half-and-Half
- 1 TB Coarse Sugar sprinkle on after egg wash
Vanilla Glaze
- 1 cup Confectioners Sugar
- 2 TB Heavy Cream add more to thin the glaze
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
Instructions
-
Roll out puff-pastry onto a lightly floured surface.
-
Using a heart-shaped cookie cutter, begin cutting out hearts being meticulous to get the most out of your dough. (I rolled my scraps together to get more hearts out of it)
-
In a small bowl, whisk together egg and heavy cream to create your egg wash. Using your finger, brushes the outer edges of half the hearts with egg wash.
-
Spoon one and a half Tablespoons of jam/preserves onto the center of the egg-wash lined hearts. Place remaining hearts on top of jam-topped hearts. Using a fork, press around the edges of the hearts, sealing them together.
-
Place hearts on a parchment-paper lined baking sheet, and place into the freezer for at least 10-15 minutes.
-
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
-
Once the hearts are chilled, using a pastry brush, brush them with the remaining egg wash. Sprinkle with coarse sugar.
-
Bake hearts for 15-20 minutes, or until they're golden brown and puffy.
-
While hearts are baking, in a small mixing bowl, whisk together confectioners sugar, heavy cream, and vanilla extract. Add more cream if it's too thick for your liking, or add more confectioners sugar if it's too runny.
-
Once done baking, remove puff pastry hearts from the oven and place them on a cooling rack. Once they're somewhat cooled, drizzle them with the vanilla glaze and enjoy!
