Miso-Caramel Apple Turnovers Recipe

These particular person pastry pockets are bursting with the buttery, spiced flavors of heat apple pie. However not like an apple pie, these turnovers may be able to eat inside an hour — no ready half a day for a deep-dish pie to chill. The truth is, the turnovers are greatest served heat from the oven with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. 

For a salty-sweet shock, chopped apples are simmered in a miso-spiked caramel sauce. Whereas miso has lengthy been a staple in Japanese cooking, pastry cooks and bakers world wide have embraced the fermented soybean paste, utilizing it so as to add complexity and savory, nutty flavors to desserts and pastries. Persist with white miso for this recipe; it’s extra mellow and barely sweeter than longer-aged purple or yellow miso. 

The important thing to ultra-flaky turnovers with a superbly tender apple filling comes down to 2 easy but vital steps: Hold the puff pastry dough chilled, and precook the apples. As puff pastry bakes, the steam pockets created by the butter within the dough trigger the pastry to rise and kind flaky layers. If the pastry is heat, the butter will soften out of the dough, and it received’t puff. The opposite key’s to simmer the apples, or precook them, earlier than they’re enveloped within the pastry. This not solely ensures the apples are tender, nevertheless it additionally cooks off the surplus moisture within the fruit. An excessive amount of moisture within the turnover filling causes steam, making the pastries burst open after they bake. With a bit method, these golden, sugar-crusted apple turnovers shall be your new go-to fall dessert. 

What different sorts of apples can be utilized?

Honeycrisp and Pink Woman apples fall into the class of crisp, sweet-tart apples. Different widespread apple varieties with comparable traits that may work nicely in these turnovers are Braeburn, Envy, or Jonagold. 

In case you want a barely extra tart taste, substitute with Granny Smith apples. Keep away from utilizing apples that break down and grow to be mushy when cooked, like McIntosh, Golden Scrumptious, and Gala. These softer apples are greatest suited to making dishes like apple sauce and apple butter. 

Easy methods to preserve the turnovers from bursting open

Evenly brush the pastry edges with crushed egg, after which press collectively to seal. Use a fork to crimp the perimeters, additional sealing the pastry edges collectively. It’s additionally vital to fill the turnovers with simply the sautéed apples — keep away from including caramel sauce to the filling, as it would boil and pop the pastries open. 

Freeze the turnovers for about 10 minutes earlier than baking. This step additionally helps to make sure that the perimeters of the pastries keep sealed collectively. Don’t overlook to chop three small slits within the tops of the turnovers to offer the steam an avenue to flee. 

Notes from the Meals & Wine Take a look at Kitchen

• Hold the remaining puff pastry squares chilled when you assemble the turnovers. It’s simpler to fill and fold chilled dough — if the dough warms up, it would soften and begin to persist with the work floor. 
• Unfold the sautéed apples in a single layer on a big rimmed plate or small baking sheet in order that they cool rapidly. 
• Go for Dufour Pastry Kitchens’ puff pastry (accessible at Complete Meals and different specialty grocery shops) for a wealthy and buttery taste. 

The textual content and recipe have been written by Paige Grandjean.