Light as air, Palmiers, French pastries, are best eaten on the day they’re made. Sometimes called elephant ears or pigs’ ears, they’re sweet and crunchy on the outside and soft and moist on the inside – a delicious and pretty addition to your tea table. Palmiers can also be filled with tapenade, sun-dried tomatoes and pesto for a savoury snack.
Palmiers
Ingredients
SYRUP
- 100g sugar
- 250ml water
PALMIERS
- 400g ready-made puff pastry
- 200g muscovado sugar, plus extra for sprinkling
Instructions
For the syrup, heat the ingredients over a medium heat and stir gently until the sugar has dissolved. Simmer until it has reduced by half. Remove from the heat and set aside.
Roll the puff pastry out on a lightly floured surface and sprinkle the sugar evenly over the pastry.
Fold the two opposite sides of the pastry inwards to meet in the middle and flatten slightly. Fold each side in half again to meet in the middle, and press gently to flatten. Roll each side of the pastry into the centre and flatten slightly.
Place on a baking tray, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour. Preheat the oven to 180°C and lightly grease a baking tray.
Cut the pastry rolls into 1cm-thick slices and place flat on the baking tray, leaving a space in between to allow for expansion. Bake until golden, about 20 minutes.
Remove the pastries from the oven, brush with the syrup and sprinkle with extra sugar. Serve warm or cold.
