Buttery, flaky puff pastry envelopes hazelnut pesto, taleggio cheese and prosciutto ham. It's a winning combination.
Frozen or homemade puff pastry can be used in place of my rough-puff pastry. You'll need to make a batch of my hazelnut pesto for this recipe.
120g/ 5oz/ 1 ¼ cup Taleggio Cheese - coursely grated
3slicesWafer thin Prosciutto ham
1Beaten egg
Instructions
Make the Pastry
Put the flour and salt into a large bowl
Cut the butter into 1cm cubes and add to the bowl. Toss with the flour
Add the lemon juice and ¾ of the water. Stir with a blunt metal knife, incorporating all of the flour as you mix. If it is too dry add more water as necessary. The dough should come together to form a soft ball, but it should not be 'wet' or sticky.
Dust the worktop & your rolling pin with flour, then roll out the pastry dough to form a long, thin oblong. Lift one short edge of the pastry and fold it over the middle, then do the same with the other edge of the pastry to make three layers. Turn the pastry 90 degrees, then re-roll
Repeat this process three more times then wrap the dough in clingfilm and chill in the fridge for 20 minutes
Remove from the fridge and repeat the rolling process 3 more times. Wrap again and chill for a further 20 minutes
Repeat the rolling process again and chill for a final 20 minutes
Making the Palmiers
Remove the pastry from the fridge and roll out into a neat rectangle approximately 30cm x 40cm. Trim any edges if very wonky
Stir the hazelnut pesto and spread out over the pastry
Top with the grated cheese
Finally, rip the prosciutto ham into thin strips and lay on top of the cheese
Starting from one of the long edges, roll the pastry up tightly to the middle of the pastry, tucking in the filling as necessary. Repeat from the other side of the pastry, so that the pastry rolls meet in the middle. Chop the ends to neaten
Wrap and chill for 30 minutes, pre-heat the oven 180C/ 350F/ GM4 and line several baking sheets with baking parchment
Remove the filled pastry from the fridge and slice into rounds approximately ½ cm thick - aim for 24-26 palmiers
Lay the palmiers onto the baking sheets, leaving a 3 cm gap between each one to allow them to expand as they cook
Brush the top of the palmiers with a little beaten egg and bake for 20-25 minutes until crisp and golden
Allow to cool on a wire rack
Notes
These palmiers can be frozen prior to cooking. Once sliced, open freeze on baking sheets and transfer to a freezer bag until required (up to 3 months). Cook from frozen, allowing a few extract minutes in the oven