A beautiful pull-apart puff pastry filled with berry preserves and shaped into an eight-pointed snowflake. Baked until crisp and golden and finished with sparkling turbinado sugar, it's an impressive pastry that's surprisingly simple to assemble.
Servings: 4–8
Prep Time: About 25 minutes, plus 15 minutes freezing
Cook Time: About 40 minutes
Ingredients:
- 2 sheets frozen puff pastry, thawed but still slightly chilled
- All-purpose flour, for dusting if needed
- ⅓ cup (3½ ounces/105 g) mixed berry or other preserves
- 1 egg, lightly beaten with 1 teaspoon water
- 1 tablespoon turbinado sugar
- Nonstick baking spray
Instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Lightly spray a 9-inch square baking dish with nonstick baking spray.
- Place one sheet of puff pastry on a piece of parchment paper. If the pastry is sticky, dust it very lightly with flour.
- Using a sharp knife, trim the pastry into a 9-by-9-inch square. Reserve the scraps for another use.
- Transfer the pastry to a sheet pan and refrigerate while preparing the second sheet.
- On another piece of parchment, trim the second puff pastry sheet into a 9-by-9-inch square.
- Remove the chilled pastry from the refrigerator. Spread the preserves evenly over its surface, leaving a ¼-inch border uncovered around the edges.
- Brush the uncovered edges with the egg wash.
- Carefully place the second pastry square over the preserves. Gently press around the edges to seal.
- Place a glass with approximately a 3-inch opening upside down in the center of the pastry. This will serve as a guide for shaping the snowflake.
- Using a sharp knife or pastry cutter, cut the pastry into quarters, stopping at the edge of the glass.
- Cut each quarter in half, then cut each of those sections in half again, creating 16 equal wedge-shaped sections.
- Working with two adjacent sections at a time, twist them away from each other three times.
- Bring the ends of the two twisted sections together and pinch firmly to seal, creating one point of the snowflake.
- Repeat with the remaining sections to create 8 snowflake points. Remove the glass.
- Freeze the shaped pastry on the sheet pan for 15 minutes.
- Transfer the chilled snowflake to the prepared baking dish, positioning the long points toward the corners.
- Brush the pastry, including the sealed edges, with the remaining egg wash. Sprinkle evenly with turbinado sugar.
- Bake until the pastry is puffed and deeply golden, about 40 minutes.
- Transfer the baking dish to a wire rack and cool for 10 minutes.
- Serve warm.
Tip: Keep the puff pastry cool while working with it. If it becomes very soft or sticky during shaping, refrigerate it briefly before continuing. Chilling the finished snowflake before baking also helps preserve the definition of the twists and points.
Source: Williams Sonoma