Baklava Palmiers

When the earthquake shook my house last week I was in my second floor office sitting at my desk.  As the house swayed for several long seconds, my first thought was that it was me doing the swaying and not the ground and the house.  So, from a certain perspective, finding out it was actually an earthquake was kind of a relief.

Still, I was kind of shaken (no pun intended) by the experience, and a nice soothing cup of tea, served with something sweet (but quick and easy to make), seemed in order.

I’d been wanting to make sweet palmiers after making some savory palmiers as an appetizer a few weeks ago.  Since I developed a recipe for Shortcut Baklava in my soon-to-be-released new book, Quick-Fix Vegan, I though the idea of baklava palmiers might just work.  And they sure did!

Here’s the recipe:

Baklava Palmiers

The flavor of baklava in an easy and elegant cookie that required only 5 ingredients.  Recipe by Robin Robertson © 2011.

1 cup ground pistachios or walnuts

2 tablespoons sugar

Ground cinnamon, to taste

1 sheet frozen vegan puff pastry, thawed

2 tablespoons agave nectar, or more

In a bowl, combing the ground nuts, sugar, and as much cinnamon as you like in your baklava (from a pinch to 1/2 teaspoon). Mix to combine and set aside.

Roll out the puff pastry on a lightly floured work surface (you can roll it out between sheets of parchment paper if you like) into a 10 x 14-inch rectangle, trimming the edges if needed so you have straight sides.

Spread the nut mixture evenly on top of the pastry surface to cover, spreading it out to the edges, then drizzle with a thin drizzle of agave, 1 to 2 tablespoons. (Do not allow the agave to “pool” anywhere — it should be drizzled in a super-fine stream.)

Cut the pastry rectangle in half width-wise to create two long narrow rectangles (10 x 7-inches).  Use your fingers to carefully roll one short end of a pastry rectangle towards the center and then roll the opposite end towards the center so that they meet in the center and look like two scrolls.  Press gently to make sure the rolls stick together. Repeat with the second strip of pastry, then wrap the pastry rolls separately in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, 1 to 2 hours. 

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat. Use a sharp knife to slice one of the pastry rolls crosswise into 12 pieces and arrange them on the prepared baking sheet. (I only bake one roll at a time so they’re baked fresh each time — but you can bake them both, if you prefer.)

Bake until the pastry is nicely browned, about 12 minutes.  If they start to brown too much on the bottom after about 10 minutes, flip them for the last 2 minutes or longer, if needed.  When the palmiers come out of the oven, you can drizzle them with more agave, if desired.  Transfer the palmiers to a plate and serve warm.

Other News:

THANK YOU!! Many thanks to all who “Liked” for my Walnut Crusted Artichokes on One Green Planet.  Your votes have catapulted this recipe to the top 10 most popular vegan recipes on One Green Planet.  As such, the artichoke recipe is now posted on the Huffington Post — and you all made it happen.  I really appreciate your support! You can see my recipe here on Huffington Post.

BOGO SALE:  Over at Vegan Heritage Press, there is a great sale going on.  You can now buy two copies of Vegan Unplugged for the price of one, at an already great price of $11.95 plus s/h.  That’s like paying only $6.50 per book!  If you or anyone you know lost power during hurricane Irene, then you need Vegan Unplugged.  And with this great sale, you can buy one for yourself and give the other copy to someone you care about.