Camembert and Cherry Pastry Puffs
Ingredients
- 1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed
- 1/4 cup dried cherries, finely chopped
- 3 tbsp. cherry preserves
- 4-ounces Camembert cheese, do not remove rind, cut into 1/4 x 1/4-inch pieces
- 2 tbsp. pecans or hazelnuts, finely chopped
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 400°F.
- Spray 36 mini muffin cups with cooking spray.
- On a lightly floured surface, unfold pastry sheet.
- Cut sheet into 6 rows by 6 rows to get 36 1-1/2 inch squares.
- Lightly press 1 square into center of each muffin cup, pressing center to bottom of cup with finger.
- Place in pre-heated oven and bake 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in small bowl, mix cherries and cherry preserves until well blended; set aside.
- Remove from oven, press centers of pastry cups, with handle of wooden spoon; place back in oven and bake 6 to 8 minutes longer or until golden brown.
- Remove from oven and immediately press pastry cups in center again.
- Fill each cup with about 1 heaping teaspoon cheese; top with 1/4 teaspoon cherry mixture.
- Sprinkle evenly with pecans.
- Return to oven and bake 2 to 4 minutes or just until cheese is melted.
- Carefully remove from muffin cups; place on serving platter; serve warm.
Notes
Avoid rolling the pastry sheet; doing so will cause bubbling and unevenness during baking.
To make ahead, assemble the cups and bake up to 4 hours in advance, omitting the final bake time for melting the cheese. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to bake. Right before serving, heat in 375°F oven just until warm and cheese is melted.
