I like having small bite-sized treats for fall and winter dinners. The leftovers store better in smaller sizes and bite-sized treats are oftentimes a more welcome dessert rather than giant pieces of cake or pie.
Apple rosettes fit the bill and are super easy. They are also all over Pinterest. I recommend having some fun with what you fill the puff pastry strips with. You can use nut butters, pumpkin and apple butters, different jams, or even sweetened vanilla cream cheese.
For these, I used caramel sundae topping. It’s key to slice these apples very thin and to not skip the poaching in hot water in the microwave. The apples get softened and pre-cooked, able to be rolled up easily in the puff pastry.
Caramel Apple Rosettes in Puff Pastry
Ingredients:
water
juice of half a lemon
three baking apples cored, peeled and sliced very thinly
puff pastry, defrosted and rolled out slightly to 1/4″ thick
half a cup of caramel sauce sundae topping, slightly warmed
cinnamon (about 1/8 cup for sprinkling)
sugar (about 1/8 cup for sprinkling)
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375°. Spray large muffin tins with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.
In a large microwave-safe bowl filled with water to cover the apple slices, add the lemon juice and microwave in the oven 3 minutes at a time until the apples are soft and pliable. This will depend on how thick the apple slices are. I had to continue microwaving for a good eight minutes. The thinner the slices the quicker they soften and the easier you can roll them into the rosettes.
Meanwhile, roll out the puff pastry with a little bit of flour so it doesn’t stick to the work surface or the rolling pin. Using a pastry cutter, cut six rectangular strips lengthwise. Brush the strips evenly with a thin layer of slightly heated caramel sauce. Arrange the apple slices along the length of the puff pastry, right along the top half of the strip. You’re going to overlap the slices slightly on top of one another so that you have a scalloped top edge of apples peeking out above the length of the puff pastry. You’re laying those apples right on top of the puff pastry that has a thin layer of caramel sauce.
Next, sprinkle the apples generously with cinnamon and sugar. Fold the lower half of the puff pastry on top of the apples, folding the puff pastry in half lengthwise so that the bottom of the apples are nestled into the puff pastry. Starting at one end gently roll the whole puff pastry with the apples loosely until it’s all rolled up in your hand looking like a flower.
Gently place the rosettes, puff pastry side down, into the muffin tins. Continue with all the rest of the strips. You should have about six rosettes. Bake the rosettes for about 40 minutes, until puff pastry is golden brown, apples are cooked and the sauce is bubbly. Let cool for five minutes and then invert the rosettes onto a cooling rack to cool completely. Served warm with vanilla ice cream.
Flora is an award-winning creative director in Chicago turned food and lifestyle blogger extraordinaire. She is also author to the popular BEE NATIVE! gardening book series and various children's books that celebrate the wonder and hard work of bees and butterflies. Her blog and social spaces inspire thousands to create, learn, cook, grow, and craft, making their world lovelier one pixel/petal/seed/bite/stitch/brushstroke at a time. Follow her on all the social spaces, YouTube, and Amazon, and get creative!
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