I'm all about illusions of grandeur. Candles that smell like you have a working fireplace. Makeup that causes you to glow as if from some internal light. Forged Fs turned to Bs on report cards. Faux fur. I could do this all day. And yes this also applies to food! Specifically: the sneaky miracle that is frozen puff pastry.
So you're throwing a party, and quickly looks into mirror nope, you're not Jay Gatsby. Cocktail party, dinner party, gender reveal party, I don't care, but there needs to be snacks. These swirly palmiers, which you can fill with YOUR CHOICE of garlic/rosemary, cream cheese/everything spice, or Parmesan/black pepper, are what you're making. The puff pastry's coming from the frozen aisle, all you have to do is follow these folding directions and your little puffy butterflies will impress your guests more than that groovy Spotify playlist of the "worst of the 80s" you discovered.
(Just want the recipe? Click here!)
Do ahead:
-Take the puff pastry out of the freezer at least 30 minutes before! Frozen dough = oh no no.
-Break an egg into a little bowl, mix it all up.
-Remember to actually invite people over.
When I made these, I went with the garlic/rosemary combo, so that's what we're going to show you how to do today. Smash the 8 (!!!!!!!!) cloves of garlic with the side of your knife. Put in saucepan with olive oil, not too high of a heat. Seriously, watch 'em. The first time I made these I burned the garlic (didn't stop me from eating the entire batch). But still: The goal is to cook them low and slow until they're soft, like 15-20 minutes! That's a long time.
Meanwhile, chop your rosemary.
Once the garlic starts getting golden, add the rosemary, salt, and red pepper flakes. Then increase the heat a smidge and give it 2 minutes.
Inhale deeply because it smells amazing, cough a little because those flakes are powerful.
Garlic level: mush. Transfer the oil to a cereal-sized bowl and mash it all together with a fork.
This is just a photo of puff pastry, ready for action. Roll it out a little, keeping the shape a rectangle. Not a time to get creative in the shape department.
Spread the garlic-rosemary mash, leaving some room around the edges so it doesn't leak out later. Some might leak. It'll be okay.
Take a deep breath—we're getting crafty! Fold the top to the center, "hot dog" style, but only halfway. Ya get me? Do the same with the bottom. Press them down to get air bubbles out.
Egg wash now means crunchy, flaky, wonderfulness later. I'm not sure why they call it "egg wash"—sounds very spa-like. It's more like an egg top coat. Then ROLL the edges of the dough towards the center to form a "double-spiral log," which is not a figure skating term where you and a partner roll around the ice, contrary to popular belief. Squeeze it together gently.
All rolled up. At this point, I wrapped the dough in Cling Wrap and stuck it in the fridge so the butter gets cold again. Confession: the first time I made these, I skipped the "chill the dough" part and they turned out too crunchy, too flat, very disappointing. TBH they embarrassed me in front of my family ("I think they're fine, Alex" -worst thing you could ever say), so I'll probably never skip that step again.
Roll the log away from you at a 90 degree angle. A lot of math terms today. The roll crack (excuse me) should face away from you, basically. Cut off the jagged, simply hideous edges, and then slice into future snacks. A little under an inch wide! Do you own a ruler? Cool!!
Hello, little friends.
Crucial step! Smother these babies in their final egg top coat. All over.
Throw in the 400° oven for 10 minutes. Then decrease the heat to 350° for 20-30 minutes. They'll be all golden and shiny when ready.
Light the fireplace candle and start the terrible playlist—it's party time.
