Palmiers

Palmier is a small pastry made of a sugared and double-rolled sheet of puff pastry cut into slices, the distinctive shape of which resemble the foliage of a palm tree or elephant ear.

First made at the beginning of the 20th century in France, palmiers are served with tea or as an accompaniment to ices and desserts.

Palmiers are best the day they are made, and should be stored in airtight containers at room temperature for up to 3 days. They can also be frozen.


INGREDIENTS

250g puff pastry
100g caster sugar
25g ground cinnamon
water


METHOD

1. Mix the sugar and cinnamon in a bowl.
2. Line a baking tray with greaseproof paper.
3. Sprinkle 1/4 of a cup of sugar on the working surface and roll out the puff pastry 2mm thick into a square.
4. Sprinkle the top side of the pastry with water and 1/2 of the sugar; gently press the sugar into the pastry.
5. Place the dough so one of the long sides is closest to you.
6. Using your finger roll the dough length-wise into a long cylinder as tight as possible, until reaching the middle  of the rectangle.
7. Repeat the same on the other long side of the pastry.
8. Wrap tightly in cling film and refrigerate for 1 hour.
9. Once chilled, remove the cling film, and with a sharp knife cut the dough cross wise into 2cm thick.
10. Sprinkle the tops with 1 tbsp of sugar and place on the baking tray.
11. Bake it at 220'c for about 5 minutes; then reduce the temperature to 200'c and bake for another 10 minutes until the pastry is golden brown and well caramelised.
12. Remove it from the oven and immediately transfer the palmiers to a wire rack to cool completely.