Tuesday, July 7, 2020

Cherry Turnovers with Lemon Glaze

An easy recipe for cherry turnovers with a flaky, buttery puff pastry crust and a simple homemade cherry pie filling. To make it extra special, drizzle the tops with a quick lemon glaze for a slightly sweet & citrusy finish.

Cherry Turnovers with Lemon Glaze
Often when I'm craving dessert, it's something slightly sweet and with some fat and/or carbs mixed in to make it more decadent & satiating (instead of a straight sugar bomb). Cheesecake, double chocolate banana muffins, flourless chocolate cake, peanut butter cookies, ice cream cookie sandwiches, and shortbread cookies are good examples.

Baked goods like almond croissants, cream cheese danishes & fruit turnovers fall into this category because the filling is (hopefully) mildly sweet, but encased in a big, flaky, buttery pastry. Mmmmm.

They're one of my favorite treats (along with scones) to pick up at bakeries, coffee shops, or bookstore cafes when I'm ordering a coffee, hot chocolate, or tea & sitting down to read a book or work on my laptop.

But my trips to said establishments are few & far between these days (I'm sure you can relate). And I'm trying to cut down on eating out (although I love trying new foods & supporting local restaurants) because it's $$$ compared to meal planning at home.

So what's the next best thing? Homemade, of course!

And honestly...nine times out of 10 (unless you're lucky and have a stellar made-from-scratch bakery near you), homemade is going to taste MUCH better anyway.



Fresh Sweet Dark Cherries For Making Cherry Turnovers
Since we're smack dab in the middle of peak cherry season (June-July), today's recipe highlights fresh cherries - sweet & dark ones to be specific. (If you're not into cherries, check out my easy chocolate covered strawberries instead.) Sour cherries are awesome for pie, but they're harder to come by (in my experience).

Thanks to Twin Peaks (the original TV series), I've been obsessed with all things cherry pie for the past three years. So, instead of fixing a full-on cherry pie, I'm making a simpler hand-held version in the form of cherry turnovers. 

To keep things easy, but also make this a bit more special, my cherry turnovers use frozen puff pastry sheets (incredibly convenient, especially in the hot months), but feature a simple homemade cherry pie filling

It's 1,000% worth making the pie filling from scratch. Especially since it only takes 30 minutes from start to finish. And it tastes a million times better than the canned stuff sweetened with high fructose corn syrup.

How to Make Cherry Turnovers with Puff Pastry

Beyond the amazing filling (tooting my own horn here), what takes these turnovers over the top is the lemon glaze.

Since the puff pastry isn't sweet and there's much more of it than the fruit filling, adding a drizzle of slightly sweet & citrusy glaze on top gives them a punch of flavor in each bite that compliments the cherry pie filling beautifully without overwhelming it. 

(Side note: If you have any leftover puff pastry dough or want to make a second batch of pastries with a different fruit filling, give this peach mango pie a try!)

I don't have a big sweet tooth and rarely keep powdered sugar on hand, so I made my own using one of my favorite granulated sweeteners: maple sugar. Any granulated sweetener works! All you need is a clean coffee grinder. Measure in what you need and blitz it a few times until it's a fine powder.

Because I used maple sugar, it created a maple lemon glaze, and...oh my gosh, the combo is heavenly in my book. 

Maple sugar hasn't really caught on yet (I hope it does), so you may not be able to find it at regular grocery stores (health food stores likely sell it). Look for it in the baking aisle or wherever they keep sugars. No luck? Order it here via Amazon.

If you want to serve these turnovers as dessert and have a bigger sweet tooth than me, pair each one with a big scoop of homemade vanilla ice cream. Bonus points if it's still warm from the oven! 

Easy Cherry Turnovers with Puff Pastry & Lemon Glaze

This recipe makes 8 turnovers and they taste best when eaten the same day you bake them. So if you can't finish them up in a few days, I highly suggest giving some to friends, family, or neighbors to brighten their day. You can always ring their doorbell (or text them), drop it on the porch, and wait for them to pick it up. :)

I gave three turnovers from my last batch to my neighbor on a Friday evening. A few days later, I found a handwritten card in my mailbox thanking me for the pastries & telling me how much he enjoyed them. How sweet & kind!

I might include these next time I make DIY self-care gift baskets for folks!

Easy Cherry Turnovers with Lemon Glaze


cherry turnovers, puff pastry, how to make, fresh
baked goods
American
Yield: 8
Author:
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Cherry Turnovers with Lemon Glaze

Cherry Turnovers with Lemon Glaze

Prep time: 10 MCook time: 25 MTotal time: 35 M
An easy recipe for cherry turnovers with a flaky, buttery puff pastry crust and a simple homemade cherry pie filling. To make it extra special, drizzle the tops with a quick lemon glaze for a slightly sweet & citrusy finish.

Ingredients:

For The Turnovers:
  • 1 (17-18 oz) package of frozen puff pastry sheets, thawed*
  • 1 cup of homemade cherry pie filling (approximately 12 oz)
  • 1 whole egg
  • 1 tablespoon of water
  • flour, for dusting cutting board (optional)
For The Lemon Glaze:
  • 5 1/2 tablespoons of powdered sweetener* (I used maple sugar)
  • 1 tablespoon of lemon juice

Instructions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. 
  2. Meanwhile, lightly dust a large cutting board, unfold one sheet of puff pastry, and lay it out on the board. (Keep the other sheet in the fridge to stay cool until you're done with the first.) If your sheet is not already in a square shape, using a rolling pin to gently extend the dough until both sides are equal.
  3. Cut the sheet into 4 squares and separate the pieces so they don't get warm & stick together as you work. Spoon about 1 1/2 tablespoons of cherry pie filling into the middle of each square (resist the urge to overfill them).
  4. Whisk the egg & water together in a small bowl to form an egg wash. Brush the left & top edges of each square with a small amount of egg wash. 
  5. Fold the puff pastry over the pie filling by connecting the bottom right corner of each square to the top left corner to form a triangle shape (see pics above for reference). Press down on the two open edges with a fork to seal them & prevent any filling from leaking out.
  6. Place the turnovers on a parchment-lined baking sheet and quickly repeat steps 2-5 with the second sheet of puff pastry.
  7. Lightly brush the tops of the turnovers with egg wash (a silicone pastry brush works great) and bake for 25 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown and the innermost layer of the dough is cooked through. 

Notes:

THAWING: Make sure to follow the recommendations on the package for thawing your puff pastry sheets as each brand is different (size, weight, all-butter versus oil & butter, etc.). I prefer to take mine directly out of the freezer and thaw it briefly on the countertop (about 25 minutes - or until you can unfold it and press it out without it cracking) then work with it immediately. I found that thawing overnight in the fridge let the puff pastry get too soft & sticky when I worked with it, so if you try that route, stick it in the freezer first to firm up. OVERFILLING: It's tempting to put a generous amount of filling on the dough but this can often work against you. If you add too much, the filling can spill out the sides earlier on in the baking process and prevent the dough from rising along the edges. I speak from experience here - this is not what you want. POWDERED SWEETENER: You can turn any granulated sugar into a powdered version by pulsing it a few times in a clean coffee grinder. I used maple sugar here, which is SO yummy with the lemon! Coconut sugar would be another good option if you enjoy a slight molasses flavor.
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Created using The Recipes Generator
Adapted from the Joy of Cooking's Fresh Cherry Pie & Apple or Pear Turnovers


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An easy recipe for cherry turnovers with a flaky, buttery puff pastry crust and a simple homemade cherry pie filling. To make it extra special, drizzle the tops with a quick lemon glaze for a slightly sweet & citrusy finish.


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