Christmas Tree Puff Pastry: Recipes To Serve As An Aperitif Or As A Dessert Time

Family reunions on the occasion of the end-of-year celebrations can take place differently. Sometimes it is an elegant dinner where the whole family has a chat while tasting gourmet dishes. In other cases, it's a less formal evening with friends, but just as festive where good wine and dinner aperitifs are in order! At best, the festivities take place over a few consecutive days and you get the “best of both worlds”. So, whether you are looking for a small festive starter or an original dessert to give a festive air to the Christmas table, you are in the right place, because the puffy tree is garnished according to everyone's desires and taste!

Nutella chocolate puff pastry Christmas tree - the easy recipe

Once the Christmas fast is over, there's nothing like treating yourself to a good cake to share! This year, we are going off the beaten track and switching from the traditional Yule log with a twisted Nutella chocolate tree sprinkled with whole cranberries! To do this, we swap the cake dough for a puff pastry. Easy to prepare and absolutely delicious, this tree will delight young and old! Here are the ingredients to get:

• 2 puff pastry
• small candies / fresh cranberries
• 1 egg
• 4 tbsp. Nutella
• icing sugar

Start by preheating the oven to 180 ° C. Unroll the first puff pastry, keeping the baking sheet. Spread the chocolate there and cover with the second puff pastry. Using a knife, cut the dough into the shape of a tree. On both sides, form 1.5 cm strips, trying to keep the center intact, then carefully roll up each strip obtained to twist it. Finally, brush the tree with the egg and bake for 25 minutes or until the pastry is golden brown and crunchy. Take out of the oven and decorate your tree with candies or fresh cranberries. Sprinkle with icing sugar, if desired.

Puff pastry with chestnut cream

Ingredients:

• 2 rolls of puff pastry
• Chestnut cream
• 1 egg yolk
• icing sugar
• chocolate candies

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 180 ° C. Unroll the first puff pastry and spread a good layer of chestnut cream on it, then cover with the second disk of puff pastry. With the knife, cut the dough to form a Christmas tree, then make the strips of dough on both sides, keeping the center intact. With the leftover dough, form small stars. Then cut strips of dough on both sides and twist them to create the branches. Before baking your puff pastry at 180 ° C for 20 to 25 minutes, brown it with a beaten egg yolk diluted with a little water. Right out of the oven, place the flaky Christmas tree on a presentation plate, sprinkle with icing sugar and sprinkle with chocolate candies, if desired. These will act as Christmas balls! Good tasting !

Puff pastry stuffed with spinach and ricotta

Ingredients for 4-6 people:

• 2 puff pastry
• 200 g cooked spinach
• 60 g pistachios
• 80 g cheese
• 3 tbsp. tablespoons olive oil
• 1 egg yolk
• Salt and pepper
• Basil
• Cherry tomatoes for decoration

Preparation:

Wash the spinach well. Blanch them by pouring them into boiling water for 5 minutes, then drain and immediately transfer them to a bowl filled with very cold water. This will allow you to keep their color. In a frying pan, melt a little butter, then brown the spinach for 5 minutes. Salt and pepper. Take out the heat and let them cool down.

Mix the cooked spinach with the pistachios, oil and cheese. Place a puff pastry on a baking sheet, covered with baking paper beforehand. Cut out the shape of the Christmas tree. Put the second puff pastry on top and cut the same shape before refrigerating. On the first puff pastry, spread a layer of pesto and cover with the second sheet of pastry. Reserve again in the fridge for a few minutes and proceed to cutting the branches of your small laminated tree by making horizontal strips 1 cm wide. Brush with egg yolk. Sprinkle the trunk with chopped basil. Put in the fridge to cool the pasta again.

Then, twist each branch of the fir tree on itself and brush the uncovered parts with egg yolk. Bake for 20 minutes at 180 °. Finally, let cool before decorating with cherry tomatoes cut in half. As for the puff pastry scraps, use them to make other treats for the Christmas aperitif. Savory or sweet puff pastry flutes, goat cheese and bacon puff pastry, mini puff pastry croissants with mozzarella or puff pastry rolls with bacon… in short, there is no shortage of appetizing ideas.

An express puff pastry with pesto and cheese

Ingredients:

• 2 puff pastry
• 80 g pesto
• 130 g of goat cheese

Preparation:

In a bowl, mix the pesto and goat cheese, then brush the first puff pastry. Put the second dough on top and cut a tree shape. Form the branches of the fir tree and roll them on themselves. Finally, brush everything with an egg yolk and put in the oven for 30 to 35 minutes at 180 ° C. Garnish with sliced red peppers or with cherry tomatoes.

Puff pastry with salmon and cottage cheese to share

Ingredients:

• 2 rolls of puff pastry
• 5-6 slices of smoked salmon
• 80-90 g of cottage cheese
• 200 ml whipping cream
• 1 clove of garlic
• salmon roe
• 1 lemon
• 1 egg yolk
• Red onion
• dill

Preparation:

Start by preheating the oven to 200 ° C. Then brush the first puff pastry with cottage cheese and season with salt and pepper. Add the chopped dill and lay out the slices of smoked salmon. Put the second puff pastry on top and cut out a large tree. Roll up the branches of the tree and brush them with an egg yolk. Send to the oven and cook for 20-30 minutes. Meanwhile, peel and finely chop the red onion and garlic. Whip the whipping cream, pour in the lemon zest juice, the red onion, the garlic clove and the salmon eggs. Take your puff pastry tree out of the oven and enjoy its branches by dipping them in the crunchy sauce. Enjoy your meal !

Christmas tree puff pastry with raspberry jam

Ingredients:

• 2 rolls of puff pastry
• raspberry jam
• 1 egg
• dried fruit of your choice

Preparation:

Preheat your oven to 180 ° C and roll out the first dough. Spread the jam generously. Cover with the second puff pastry and shape the tree, always following the same principle: cut the dough, incise the strips on both sides without going to the center, twist each strip and brush with the beaten egg. Before putting in the oven for about 20-30 minutes, sprinkle with cranberries. Let cool and enjoy.

A Christmas puff pastry garnished to everyone's taste

Another idea that will surely delight pesto lovers! Prepared in 25 minutes flat and garnished with chorizo and spinach pesto, this tree will brighten up all gourmets with its crispy and tender side!

Ingredients:

• 2 puff pastry
• 1 egg
• 100 gr of cream cheese (for the chorizo garnish)
• 750 g of chorizo
• 1 teaspoon of dill
• a little milk (optional)
• 2 bowls of fresh spinach
• 3 tablespoons of almond powder (for the pesto garnish)
• 1 clove of garlic
• 6 tablespoons olive oil (for the pesto garnish)

Preparation:

Peel the chorizo, removing the skin and cut it into pieces. In your food processor, put the chorizo pieces, the cream cheese and mix everything until a homogeneous preparation is obtained. If necessary, add a little milk. Finally, put the dill. Keep cool and proceed to the preparation of the spinach pesto. For this purpose, in the bowl of the food processor, place the spinach, almond powder, garlic and pour in the olive oil. Mix well and keep the preparation cool. Spread your puff pastry on a sheet of baking paper, overlapping them.

Cut out a large tree with a fairly wide trunk and then remove the dough from the top. Reserve it. Spread the chorizo rillettes on the left side, and the spinach pesto on the right side. Cover with the second puff pastry. Then cut the strips and twist them successively. With the pasta scraps, form stars that you can then use as a decoration. If you wish, garnish them with the remaining chorizo rillettes and pesto. Brush the tree with an egg yolk and bake for 20-25 minutes at 180 ° C or until the pastry is golden enough. Take out of the oven and let cool on a rack. Separate the branches from the trunk and enjoy!

Tip:

If you don't have spinach, swap it for parsley or basil. This tree can be prepared in advance without any problem. However, avoid going to the refrigerator, as the latter will lose the crunchiness of the puff pastry.

Christmas tree puff pastry with apples in the shape of a fir tree

While sweet puff pastry is generally welcome as an aperitif, it will also make great Christmas desserts to share!

Ingredients:

• 2 puff pastry
• applesauce
• egg yolk / milk

Preparation:

As always, start by rolling out the first puff pastry. Then spread the apples there, forming a tree. Cover with another puff pastry and cut out following the shape of the tree. Cut out the branches and twist them. Finally, brown everything with egg jeans or milk and bake for 20-25 minutes at 180 °.

Puff pastry sun with apples, cinnamon and fresh cranberries

To achieve unanimity among the guests for an aperitif or for dessert, swap the apple tree for a flaky sun with cranberries and cinnamon, just as delicious and easy to make as our other ideas!

Ingredients:

• 2 puff pastry
• 4 apples / applesauce
• juice of ½ lemon
• 20 g butter
• 3-4 tsp. powdered sugar
• 3 tbsp. almond powder
• 1 egg
• cinnamon
• nutmeg
• vanilla pod

Preparation:

First, peel the apples, remove the seeds and dice them. Place them in a bowl, pour in the lemon juice and mix everything well. In a heated pan, melt the butter and add the diced apples, sugar, a little cinnamon and a vanilla pod. Mix and heat over low heat for 15 minutes or until a compote forms. If, on the other hand, you have a store-bought applesauce at home, nothing prevents you from using it to make the sun tart.

Then place the first roll of puff pastry on the work surface and cover its entire surface with the applesauce, leaving about 2 cm around the edges. Sprinkle with almond powder and cover with the second puff pastry. Solder the edges well. Place a glass in the center of the dough and cut it into 4 equal parts, then each of them into 4 before rolling them to form nice twists. Whisk the egg in a small bowl and dilute with a little water, if necessary. Brush the tart and bake it for 25 minutes at 180 ° C. Take out of the oven, sprinkle with fresh cranberries and cinnamon and enjoy!

Turkey puff pastry Christmas wreath with cranberry jam

Ingredients:

• 1 vegetable stock cube
• 800 g turkey fillet
• 5 shallots
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 4 tbsp. tablespoon olive oil
• 500 g spinach
• pistachio nuts
• 4 eggs
• 250 g of brie / feta
• 4 tbsp. breadcrumbs
• 4 rolls of puff pastry
• 200 ml cranberry jam
• Salt and pepper from the mill

Preparation:

Bring 1.5 liters of water with the vegetable stock to the boil. Cut the turkey into small pieces and poach them in the broth. Drain them. Peel and slice the shallot and garlic. Brown them in a pan with a little olive oil. Rinse and drain the spinach. Add them to the pan and cook for a few minutes. Sprinkle with pistachio nuts, salt and pepper. Add the turkey pieces to it. Beat 2 eggs and add them to the spinach with the cheese and breadcrumbs. In the meantime, preheat the oven to 200 ° C. Cut out rectangles of approximately 8 cm x 18 in each rolled out puff pastry and arrange them in a circle, overlapping them. Wet lightly and press, so that they can stick well.

Pour the stuffing over the dough and close the dough inward, pressing firmly to get a pretty crown. Use the leftover pasta to decorate the wreath. Brush the dough with egg and bake for 25 minutes or until it becomes fairly crisp and golden. After taking it out of the oven, cut the Christmas wreath into pieces and serve them with a cranberry jam.

Chocolate puff stars mounted on a Christmas tree

Ingredients:

• 1-2 roll (s) of puff pastry
• 1 jar of Nutella chocolate
• icing sugar

Preparation:

Preheat your oven to 200 ° C. Make a baking sheet and spread the first puff pastry on it. Cover with Nutella chocolate and cover with the second disc of dough, then weld the edges. Place a glass in the center of your puff pastry and cut 8 branches from the glass to the edge of the puff pastry. If the dough is too soft, refrigerate for 20 minutes. Fold the 2 sides of each branch towards the center and weld them two by two. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes. In the meantime, make two small circles. Garnish the first with chocolate before covering it with the second. Repeat with smaller and smaller circles. Superimpose the stars on a presentation dish to form a gourmet tree bursting with chocolate and sprinkle with icing sugar!