How to Make Perfect Berry Breakfast Pastries {recipe + video}

These lovely little pastries are always a hit with my Year Two students during our puff pastry unit.  They're easy to put together and are definitely one of my favorite sweet treats to make for breakfast and brunch events.

This recipe is perfect for beginners because it uses store-bought puff pastry.  It takes very little time to pull together the ingredients, and in less than an hour, you have delicious, flaky breakfast pastries bursting with fruit flavor.

The sweetened cream cheese strikes the perfect balance between the sweetness of the fruit and the buttery puff pastry.  Here's my video on how to make them:

How to Make Berry Breakfast Pastrieshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bGqHfWWgHJU

Berry Breakfast Pastries

Yield: 18 pastries

Author: Jenn Erickson

Prep time: 10 MCook time: 30 MTotal time: 40 M

A few simple ingredients give way to an exceptional little breakfast treat -- a great way to use seasonal fruits!

Ingredients:

• 6 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
• 2 Tablespoons organic sugar (plain granulated will work too)
• Zest of 1 medium lemon
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 pinch of salt
• 1 (17.3-oz.) package frozen puff pastry (2 sheets), thawed (keep refrigerated until ready to use)
• 3 cups pie filling*
• 1 large egg, beaten for egg wash
• Organic or sanding sugar for finishing

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F with one rack in the middle.
2. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
3. Unfold one sheet of puff pastry on a lightly floured work surface. Gently roll the pastry with a rolling pin to smooth out the folds and very slightly expand the size of the rectangle to accommodate a 3 ½” circle cutter six times.
4. Using a 3 ½” circle cutter cut out six circles. Gently fold scraps and set aside. Repeat with second sheet.
5. Gently lay all the scraps on top of one another and lightly press. Roll out to the original thickness of the pastry sheets. You should be able to cut six more circles. Do not try to roll out the scraps again. The dough will be too tough at this point.
6. Transfer the rounds to the parchment lined sheets. Use a 3 ¼” circle cutter to indent a ¼” border into each pastry. Do not cut all the way through. This mark will allow the border to rise and form an elevated crust during baking.
7. Use a fork to dock each crust in the center circle. This will prevent the dough from rising unevenly. Place both pans of prepared crusts in the refrigerator while you prepare the sweetened cream cheese.
8. In a medium bowl, with an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese sugar, lemon juice, lemon zest vanilla extract and salt until smooth.
9. Remove one pan of pastry dough from refrigerator. Put about ½ Tablespoon of sweetened cream cheese in the center of each round, then spread to the edge of the inner border with the back of a spoon.
10. Add about 1 Tablespoon fruit filing to the top of the sweetened cream cheese. Do not overload, or the filling will spill out over the border during baking.
11. Using a pastry brush, brush the border of each pastry with the egg wash. Sprinkle the borders and the fruit centers with organic sugar or sanding sugar.
12. Bake in center rack of oven at 400 F for 15 minutes or until pastry edges are golden brown.
13. Repeat steps with second pan of pastries.
14. Allow the pastries to cool on the pan for 5 minutes, then remove with a spatula to a cooling rack.
15. To finish, I like to add another small sprinkle of organic sugar on top of the fruit. I usually use a fairly tart fruit filling, so this provides some sweetness, sparkle and a very nice little crunch.

Notes:

Filling: I like to make a stovetop pie filling, let it cool, then mix 50/50 with fresh sliced fruit. I’ve also used canned cherry pie filling, which has turned out wonderfully. Use whatever you like. You can skip the filling” and just use fresh fruit tossed in sugar instead. You can also opt for fresh fruit stirred into homemade jam or jelly.

Puff Pastry: Always keep your puff pastry cold. If you’re working in a warm room, the pastry may start to get warm and go limp quickly. As soon as it starts to become too soft to work with it, refrigerate immediately until it firms back up.

Organic & Sanding Sugar: Organic sugar is sold in most grocery stores, but has a slightly larger crystal than table sugar, which makes it perfect for sanding. Sanding sugar can be found online and in specialty stores. Another option is raw sugar, which also has large crystals that hold up to the heat of the oven.

Products I used in this recipe:

12-pc Circle Cutter Set

OXO Silicone Pastry Brush

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