Savory Palmiers

Still looking for an appetizer to take to a Super Bowl party this weekend? Here's a great recipe that is fast, easy, and could be made up to 2 days before your event. Another bonus of this appetizer is that it is extremely versatile. For example, I have some family members who cannot eat cheese so I made half of these palmiers with cheese and half without. I'll be making another batch for this weekend and since I know some of my vegetarian friends will be at the party, I will make half with meat and half without. For the batch shown below, I chose to use Dijon mustard, rosemary, deli ham, and Parmesan cheese. This version is very tasty but feel free to explore other combinations of ingredients. I have offered some other examples below but I would love to hear from you about your favorite combination.

Ingredients:

1 sheet puff pastry, thawed

Sauce/condiment such as: Dijon or honey mustard, pesto, marinara sauce, cream cheese, etc.

2 teaspoons fresh minced herb(s) such as: thyme, basil, chives, dill, rosemary, etc.

4 ounces thinly sliced meat such as: ham, turkey, chicken, roast beef, salami, prosciutto, smoked salmon, etc. (optional)

1 cup grated Parmesan, cheddar, mozzarella, Swiss, feta, Gruyere, goat cheese, etc. (optional)

Other filling ideas: sundried tomatoes, olives, pine nuts, walnuts, capers, green onions, roasted red peppers, etc. Get creative!

Roll the puff pastry into a 12 inch square. Spread on your sauce or condiment of choice. Evenly sprinkle on the herb(s) and then add your other fillings such as meat and/or cheese, etc.

For a palmier shape, roll both sides up until they meet in the middle, or just roll from one side to the other for a spiral shape. As you can see below, I made some of both shapes. To make it easier to slice, wrap the log in plastic wrap and chill for 45 minutes or up to 2 days. You can skip this step (I did by accident the first time) but it will make slicing difficult. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Unwrap the log and using a sharp knife, cut 1/3 inch thick slices. Place them 1 inch apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Don't worry too much about the shape at this point because they will puff up and fill in a bit during baking.

Bake the slices for 10 minutes, then rotate the baking sheet halfway and bake for another 10 to 15 minutes. Your finished product should be golden brown and crispy. Serve warm or at room temperature.