Apple Blossom Pastry Food

2BLEU'S APPLE BLOSSOMS (CHUDLEIGH'S COPYCAT)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400° and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silpat.
• FILLING: mix all filling ingredients together in a small bowl. Set aside.
• CARAMEL: Heat caramel ingredients over medium heat; Bring to boil, stirring constantly; Let boil for about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature, stirring occasionally.
• DOUGH: Mix the flour and oil together in a bowl, and mix in just sufficient cold water to make a firm (but not sticky) dough. Divide dough into 8 equal pieces. Then roll out each into a 5-6" disc.
• ASSEMBLY: Place 1/8th of apple filling onto center of each dough round. Fold up edges of dough up towards the center, making a cup around the filling (you could use a jumbo muffin tin for this too). Brush with eggwash.
• To each blossom, sprinkle 1 tsp of rolled oats followed by a drizzle of caramel topping into tops of apple filling. Follow with a light sprinkle all over with sugar in the raw.
• Bake at 400F for 25-30 minutes or until heated through. Cool on wire rack.

BAKED APPLES IN PASTRY

Steps:

• Preaheat oven to 350F (160C fan forced, 175C conventional).
• Sift the flour, salt and spices into a large bowl.
• Cut the butter into dice and rub into the flour until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs (I would use a food processor on pulse to do this).
• Mix in enought water to produce a smooth pliable dough.
• Divide the dough into six pieces and roll out into a square approximately 8 inches.
• Peel the apples with a sharp knife and carefully remove the centre cores with a apple corer.
• Chop the prunes and the apricots and mix these with the raisins.
• Place oe prepared apple into the centre of each pastry square, and fill the cavities with equal amounts of the dried fruit mixture.
• Brush the edges of each square with a little water and draw them up and around the sides of the apples, sealing them well with a little water and trimming off the excess pastry to give a neat finish.
• Roll out the pastry trimmings =, cut into decorative leaves and stick the leaves onto each apples for decoration.
• Glaze each pastry apple with the beaten egg and place on a lightly greased cookie sheet.
• Bake the apples in the preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown.
• Serve hot with the fresh cream and sprigs of fresh mint.

APPLE TURNOVERS

Steps:

• Put the Bramley apple, sugar and cinnamon in a small pan with 1 tbsp water. Cover with a lid and simmer over a low heat for 10-15 mins until the apple breaks down and turns into a compote.
• Stir in the butter and the Gala apple and cook for a further 5 mins, uncovered, until the Gala apple is just soft but retaining its shape, and any excess water has evaporated to make a thick compote around the Gala chunks. Remove from the heat and leave to cool.
• Heat the oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7. Unravel the puff pastry sheet out on a work surface, and cut into 4 even rectangles. Divide the apple filling to one side of each of the puff pastry rectangles, leaving a 1cm border. Brush the border with milk and fold over the empty side of pastry over the filling and crimp together. Brush with more milk and sprinkle over the sugar. Make a small steam hole in the middle of the turnovers.
• Transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake for 20-25 mins until golden and puffed up. Leave to cool for 10 mins on a wire rack (the filling will be molten when it first comes out the oven) before serving warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, or serve at room temperature. Keep for 2 days in an airtight container.

BAKED APPLE ROSES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Butter 2 small ramekins (6 to 8 ounce) and dust with white sugar.
• Place apple slices on a plate, overlapping slightly if necessary. Microwave on High about 45 seconds just until slices have softened a bit. Cover plate with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel.
• Mix together sugar and cinnamon in a bowl.
• Roll puff pastry sheet to less than 1/8-inch thickness. Using a pizza cutter, cut two 3-inch by 12-inch rectangles. Reserve remaining pieces for another use.
• Spread melted butter over dough; top with a generous amount of cinnamon-sugar. Place apple slices along 1 long edge of dough, about 1/4 inch beyond edge of dough, overlapping slices slightly. Fold bottom half of dough over the apple slices to form a long "folder" of dough with rounded edges of apple slices exposed.
• Beat egg and water together in a bowl. Paint surface of dough with egg wash. Sprinkle with more cinnamon-sugar, to taste.
• Starting from one end, roll dough not too tightly to form a rose-shaped pastry. Seal roll with end of dough strip.
• Transfer roses to prepared ramekins. Sprinkle with a little more cinnamon-sugar. Place ramekins directly on middle rack of preheated oven.
• Bake until well browned, about 45 minutes. Remove ramekins with tongs and place on baking sheet to cool 5 to 10 minutes. Remove apple roses from ramekins and finish cooling on rack. Dust with confectioners' sugar before serving.