Pesto and sun-dried tomato palmiers
The folding method is a little tricky on these palmiers, but the fillings are oh so simple.
For this recipe you will need a food processor and a stick blender.
Ingredients
For the pastry
- 125²µ/4½´Ç³ú plain flour, plus extra for dusting
- 125²µ/4½´Ç³ú strong white flour
- ½ tsp salt
- 225g/8oz salted butter, chilled
- 50²µ/1¾´Ç³ú Parmesan, grated
For the pesto
- 50²µ/1¾´Ç³ú basil
- 1 garlic clove, crushed
- 50²µ/1¾´Ç³ú pine nuts
- 1 tsp caster sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- 50²µ/1¾´Ç³ú Parmesan, grated
- 2 tbsp olive oil, plus extra to taste
For the sun-dried tomatoes
- 150²µ/5½´Ç³ú sun-dried tomatoes in oil
- 2 tbsp sun-dried tomato paste
- ½ tsp chipotle paste
- ½ tsp anchovy paste
- 25g/1oz Parmesan, grated
To finish
- 50²µ/1¾´Ç³ú Parmesan, grated
Method
For the pastry, put the flours and salt in a mixing bowl. Make a well in the middle and pour in 150ml/5fl oz water. Stir to combine, then knead for a minute. Wrap in cling film and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Cut the butter in half horizontally. Place a piece between two sheets of baking paper and roll out so it is 14cm/5½in wide and 13cm/5in deep. Return to the fridge while you roll out the pastry.
Put the dough on a lightly floured work surface and roll into a rectangle approximately 15x45cm/6x18in. With a short edge nearest you, place one piece of butter on the bottom third of the pastry and fold over, then put second on top of the folded over section and bring the top piece of pastry over to cover the butter. Pinch the edges together to seal the butter in the pastry. Turn so that a short edge is nearest you and roll out to a 15x40cm/6x16in rectangle. Fold into three (like a letter), wrap in cling film and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
On a lightly floured work surface, place the pastry with a short edge nearest to you. Roll out to 15x40cm/6x16in then fold the bottom third up and top third down. Give the dough a quarter turn and roll out and fold as before. Wrap in cling film and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
With a short edge facing you, roll out and fold as before. Turn the pastry by 90 degrees and roll out as before. Cover the dough with the grated Parmesan before folding. Wrap in cling film and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Repeat the rolling and folding once more, but without the Parmesan.
For the pesto, place all the ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth, scraping down the sides at intervals and adding more olive oil if necessary. Transfer to a bowl and cover.
For the sun-dried tomatoes, put all the ingredients in a bowl and blend using a stick blender until fairly smooth and with no large lumps.
To finish, roll out the pastry into a rectangle until it’s the thickness of a £1 coin (the rectangle should be approximately 35x25cm/14x10in). Trim to a neat rectangle and place a short end nearest you. Spread pesto on the top half of the rectangle, leaving a 1cm/½in border around the edge and a vertical strip down the middle clear. Sprinkle with the Parmesan and spread the sun-dried tomato mixture on the bottom half of the pastry, again leaving a 1cm/½in border and a middle strip clear.
Run a wetted finger along edges and centre lines to help the pastry stick. Fold each long edge into the middle and press down the join to stop it springing open when cooking. You should now have a long, thin rectangle.
Wet along the join and fold in half to bring the short edges together. Press down to help seal the wetted join. Next bring the two long edges together, wetting the fold line as before. You should now have pesto on the two outside loops and tomato on the two inside ones. Cut into 1cm/½in thick slices and place on greased baking trays giving them plenty of room to expand as they bake. Chill for 20 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 200C/180C Fan/Gas 6.
Bake for 15–20 minutes or until the pastry is crisp and golden-brown. If the centres are uncooked, carefully turn them over and bake for another 2–3 minutes. Leave to cool on the tray.
