This week’s Tuesdays with Dorie recipe from Baking Chez Moi was the classic French snack, Palmiers. Made with just a handful of ingredients (puff pastry, sugar and butter), it’s an excellent after-school snack but it works for a little hit of sweetness with an espresso in the afternoon or after dinner.
This version is small, there is a version that’s much, much larger called Elephant Ears (all the names are a nod to the shape). I had to laugh when Dorie writes in the headnote for this recipe that it’s a “freeform” activity and that it’s hard to give exact measurements and quantities for the sugar because when I was writing my own version of this recipe, I told my editor the exact same thing (though I ended up having to list an exact quantity of sugar but it’s really a guideline more than a firm amount – I never measure the sugar when I make these and teach people to use their common sense when I teach these in classes).
The trick in these is getting the folding of the pastry just right and I add an extra step of rolling the pastry tight in parchment paper and popping the roll in the fridge so it’s easier to cut. Dorie calls for this as well but in my experience, the tighter you roll it and the longer it’s in the fridge, the better… otherwise your palmiers might unravel…
(still delicious, just not quite right!)
Get the recipe for Dorie Greenspan’s Palmiers 249 of Baking Chez Moi.
Tuesdays with Dorie participants don’t publish the recipes on our blogs, so you’re encouraged to purchase Baking Chez Moi for yourself which you can do on Amazon (this link should bring you to the Amazon store in your country) or for free worldwide shipping, buy from The Book Depository. Then join us, baking our way through the book!
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Your palmiers look delish – so golden. Thanks for the tips on the rolling of the pastry.
LOL: the unraveled ones could be called “Human Ears”. But I guess they wouldn’t sell from the pastry case at quite the same rate… 😉
I love your first photo that shows the pastry layers and caramelization. Beautiful!
Thanks for tips! Looking forward to making these.
good tips, and i like the evidence of caramelized sugar left on your baking sheet!
So I made Ina Garten’s version of these some time ago. I think I had beginners luck. I am hoping that this version will come out good too. Looking forward to these.
Your first picture was what I was hoping mine would look like!! Yours turned out beautiful!! I love how the picture has the caramelization on the parchment 🙂