Pesto + Puff Pastry = Delicious

October 10, 2009

Not long ago, I found myself with a half sheet of thawed puff pastry. I wasn’t sure if I could re-freeze it, so I wanted to make something quickly with ingredients I had on hand. I headed over to Pepperidge Farm’s puff pastry web site; they had lots of tasty recipes but Pesto Elephant Ears caught my attention. Even though I think of elephant ears as a dessert, I ignored the name and proceeded with the recipe. I served them with a simple dinner of soup and wow, were they good!

pesto puff 3

I made 1/4 of the recipe, but I didn’t really measure. For specific details, see the recipe.

Here’s the deal: Thaw the puff pastry for 30 minutes at room temperature. Unfold the puff pastry onto a lightly floured surface. Spread the pesto on the pastry. Note that I used a lot more than the recipe called for and it ended up oozing out in the oven. It looks good with all that green though, doesn’t it?

pesto puff 1

Fold each short side toward the center, leaving a 1/4″ or so gap in the middle. It’s easier to understand if you look at the picture.

pesto puff 2

Next, fold the whole thing in half along the 1/4″ gap. Slice into 3/4″ slices. I knew that my half sheet should make 6 pieces, so rather than measuring, I just cut it in half and then each half into thirds. Sorry, no more how-to pictures, but I think I got you through the tricky part.

Place flat on a baking sheet, leaving 2″ between pieces. Brush with an egg wash (1 egg plus 1 Tb water) and bake at 400° F for 12 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm. Reheat leftovers for 2 minutes at 400° F.

Where did the other 1 1/2 sheets of puff pastry go? I used one sheet to make Parisian Apple Tartlets and half a sheet to make Puff Pastry Apple Turnovers.

9 comments

I love pesto – and I can only imagine how delicious it is wrapped up in puff pastry. mmmmmmm
by Megan October 10, 2009 at 5:40 pm
Oh! I can imagine how those can be soooooo delicious! And you’Ve manage to make them beautiful too!
by Vibi October 10, 2009 at 8:27 pm
These look SO delicious!!!!!!!
by Jennifer October 10, 2009 at 11:33 pm
These look so good Jill – perfect little bites for using up puff pastry.
by Cakelaw October 11, 2009 at 5:03 pm
What a great idea! Sounds delicious.
by Wendy October 12, 2009 at 12:04 pm
They look delicious! Great job 🙂
by Karine October 12, 2009 at 5:27 pm
This is one of my favorite quick recipes. I can eat about a million of them!
by Spike October 14, 2009 at 4:12 pm
Yum! I love pesto and puff pastry. Great recipe!
by Michele October 15, 2009 at 4:03 am
[…] reading through some of my favorite foodie blogs I ran across a Pesto Palmier (Elephant Ears) on Jill’s blog where she used basil pesto for the filling. So half of the dough went for Malgieri’s Savory […]
by {Modern Baker Challenge} Savory Elephant Ears « Tea and Scones September 5, 2011 at 12:22 am