Cherry Pastries

Well, here we are with the very first recipe (aside from beverages) that has ever been posted on this blog. I have been wanting to get to this for a long time, and now, I've finally done it!

This is a recipe that I made up recently. It is very simple, very tasty, and very appealing. As a general rule, I tend to shy away from boxed or pre-made anything, but these are just homemade enough to make me happy (and frankly, the time saved in preparing them when you buy the stuff makes me even happier).

Now, before you begin, I have to remind you: Every recipe needs a smile and little bit of laughter to come out just right. So you might want to get on that. ;)

That being said, here we go with the particulars...


NAOMI'S CHERRY PASTRIES
(Makes 18)

Ingredients:
1 box (2 pre-rolled sheets, 450 grams) Butter Puff Pastry, thawed and chilled
1 can Cherry Pie Filling
Icing Sugar





Once you've got all of your ingredients together, open up the box. I know, I know... you're probably panicking at this point, thinking thoughts like, "What is she CRAZY??" ...But be brave. You can do it. I believe in you.

Next, unroll the roll of pastry.



Now get a knife. Preferably one that has at least 1/2 of a sharp blade. ;)



Cut the sheet of pastry into 9 segments.


Inside of 1 segment, cut a small square, leaving a border about 1/4 inch around the outside.



Using a little bit of water and your finger, moisten the edges around the small square of pastry. Now carefully fold one corner of the outside rim over to the opposite end of the inside square-- lightly press to fasten the pieces together. Repeat with the opposite corner.





At this point, your pastry square should look like this (see photo below). Set the completed piece aside, and repeat with the remaining 8 squares of pastry. Now preheat your oven to 400 degrees F.

Repeat the whole process with the unopened package of pastry, unrolling, cutting, cutting again, folding, and sealing as before.




As you make the little pastry diamonds, lay them onto ungreased cookie sheets to prepare them for baking.



Bake 15-20 minutes or until golden brown and puffy. Cool on wire racks.




While your pastry is cooling, gather up all all of your trimmings. In this case, you will have noticed by now (multiple times) that I am using cherry pie filling. You can use any type of fruit pie filling or jam, however; whatever you happen to have on hand or you feel like having at the moment will do just fine.







Using a regular teaspoon, spoon 3-4 cherries into the center of each cooled diamond. Lay out on wax paper sheets to prepare for sugar dusting.




Dust with icing sugar using a sieve or sifter.



The fruit filling will absorb the sugar dusted onto the top and not be visible on the finished product.



And there you have it! Enjoy! These are great the day after they're made, but as is true of all pastries, making them on the day you want to serve them is the best way to go.



Thanks for reading-- feel free to comment with any questions or remarks you may have. I'm quite certain that I will be delighted to hear from you!