25 Savory Puff Pastry Recipes You Haven’t Tried Before (2024)

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25 Savory Puff Pastry Recipes You Haven’t Tried Before (1)

By Heath Goldman

•

Published Apr 7, 2020

Additional reporting by

Melissa Kravitz Hoeffner

Every savvy home cook has a few tricks up her sleeve; puff pastry is ours. It bakes into a beautiful golden crust every single time, no fussing necessary. And did we mention it tastes like buttery, flaky heaven? Pre-made puff pastry is only a few dollars at most supermarkets (no need to whip this stuff up from scratch) and no, it’s not just for sweets. Pre-made puff pastry creates impressive, elegant looking meals on any budget, whether you’re hosting, staying at home or looking for a show-offy potluck dish. Ready to start living your best puff pastry life? Just top the refrigerated or frozen (defrosted first, of course) dough with some fresh veggies and dinner’s basically done. Here are some delicious and easy ideas to get you started.

RELATED

20 Seriously Impressive Desserts You Can Make with Puff Pastry

Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell

1. Savory Tomato Tart

Not tonight, pizza. With half an hour of prep time and half an hour of bake time, this beauty is an easy at-home weeknight recipe.

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Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell

2. Asparagus, Pea And Ricotta Tarts

Personal dinner pastries? Don’t mind if we do. Serve them with a side salad, or just fill up on these cuties.

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Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell

3. The Ultimate Chicken Potpie

Potpie might seem pedestrian, but when it’s homemade, it’s truly something special. (Warning: You won’t be able to stop eating the leftovers.)

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Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell

4. Vegetable Wellington With Mushrooms And Spinach

You’d never even know the beef is missing from this healthier (but still super hearty) baked Wellington, stuffed with savory veggies.

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5. Asparagus, Egg And Prosciutto Tart With Everything Spice

Breakfast for dinner? Definitely worth it for this recipe, which is basically edible artwork, no filter necessary.

6. Smoked Salmon Quick Quiche

Our motto: There’s never a bad time for quiche. This guy is a breeze to make and a great way to use up any leftover smoked salmon from brunch (or, in a pinch, last night’s salmon dinner).

Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell

7. Italian Pinwheels

Are they an app? A side? An entree? No one knows. But what we do know is that it’s really, really hard to stop eating these adorable little pinwheels.

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Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell

8. Spinach Artichoke Squares

If spinach artichoke dip and spinach artichoke pizza had a very delicious baby, these puff pastry squares would be it.

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Photo: Mark Weinberg/Styling: Erin McDowell

9. Spicy Pineapple Prosciutto Tarts

Pretty much all the food groups are in this spicy, savory and sweet tart. It’s also super photogenic...if you don’t scarf them down before you can pull out your phone.

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10. Flaky Broccoli Cheddar Soup Mini Pies

This hybrid recipe takes all the best parts of creamy soup and turns it into a flaky pastry. Eat them on their own, or dipped into soup, of course.

11. Mini Ham And Cheese Croque Monsieur Puff Pastry Tarts

It seemed impossible to improve upon the decadent French version of grilled cheese, but this puff pastry gave the creamy sandwich an instant upgrade. (Add a fried egg on top to make it a croque mademoiselle.)

12. Thyme And White Bean Pot Pies

These vegetarian pot pies are super easy to make and hugely satisfying once they’re ready. Serve in a dinner party spread or cuddle up on the couch with your own for an ultra cozy night in.

13. Salmon Wellington

Sick of making the same old baked salmon recipes? This seafood-focused take on a Wellington only takes a few minutes to prepare, looks super impressive, and the combo of melted butter, lemon zest, and Dijon cooked into the salmon are extremely tasty.

14. Cheesy Mushroom Puff Pastry Bites

Well, we have good news and bad news. The bad news is that these guys are pretty small. The good news? You can eat, like, ten.

See Also
A veggie chili recipe even diehard meat-eaters will love - The Boston Globe

15. Lamb Pie

Shepherd's pie is usually topped with a layer of mashed potatoes or puff pastry, but this recipe uses both, because the more carbs, the better. Bookmark this dinner for a rainy day, or for whenever you need a little extra comfort.

16. Pigs In A Puff Pastry Blanket

If you want to get extra fancy, sprinkle some everything bagel seasoning on top before you pop them in the oven. We’re not drooling, you’re drooling.

17. Avocado, Cream Cheese And Salsa Stuffed Pastries

Sick of tacos? Give this easy-to-make take on an empanada a try. (And if you want to really go nuts, sprinkle them with cheese before popping them in the oven.)

18. Cheesy Sweet Potato Kale Galette

When we’re talking about puff pastry, “sweet potato” and “kale” probably don’t come to mind. But oh, they should. You’ll see why when you take your first bite.

19. Pumpkin Pecan Baked Brie

Bookmark this for every party from October through December. (Or just make it on a random weeknight and make the whole thing yourself. We won’t tell.)

20. Smoked Salmon And Cream Cheese Pastries

No bagel? No problem. These breakfast sandwich-inspired pastries are perfect any time of day and pair fabulously with a mimosa.

21. Spinach Puffs

These little cuties remind us of wedding hors d’oeuvres, but they’re secretly pretty easy to make at home. Who knew?

22. Smoked Gouda Puff Pastry Pinwheels

You had us at gouda. And again at “bakes in 20 minutes.” Is it legal to marry an appetizer?

23. Cranberry Pecan Brie Bites

File this one under “make this to impress Grandma during the holidays.” (Oh, and there are only four ingredients—a major win.)

24. Best Ever Beef Wellington Recipe

Beef wellington is one of those dazzling showstopper recipes that will have your guests ooo-ing and ahh-ing all night. And when you make it with puff pastry, it’s actually pretty easy to pull off.

25. Asparagus, Goat Cheese And Cherry Tomato Breakfast Tart

And just like that, we officially became morning people. With a breakfast like this, who even needs an alarm clock?

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25 Savory Puff Pastry Recipes You Haven’t Tried Before (29)

Heath Goldman

Food Editor

From 2017 to 2019 Heath Goldman held the role of Food Editor covering food, booze and some recipe development, too. Tough job, eh?

read full bio

25 Savory Puff Pastry Recipes You Haven’t Tried Before (30)

Melissa Kravitz Hoeffner

Freelance PureWow Editor

read full bio

25 Savory Puff Pastry Recipes You Haven’t Tried Before (2024)

FAQs

What is the secret to puff pastry? ›

The trick is to work large pieces of cold butter into dry ingredients and hydrate it all with ice cold water (as if you were making pie crust). Sometimes bakers grate butter into the mix or use a food processor. There's lots of ways to make rough puff pastry.

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What is a puff pastry or better yet what makes a pastry a puff pastry? ›

Puff pastry is made cold, flour, salt and water are combined to make the pastry, it's then rolled out and folded, sandwiched multiple times with butter. It's the layers of butter that make it “puff". After each fold the pastry is chilled. Once the layering is complete and after the final chill the pastry is rolled out.

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Why is puff pastry so difficult? ›

Puff pastry does need some gluten development but, because of the amount of rolling out that will happen during lamination, it is very easy to overwork a dough which makes it incredibly hard to use and can cause a lot of shrinkage.

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Why is it important not to give puff pastry too many turns? ›

Too many layers (over-rolling) will break down this insulation to render a product more like short paste. Too few layers (under-rolling) will result in coarse layers with perhaps uneven lift and the fat running out during baking. Each method has its advocates.

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What does vinegar do in puff pastry? ›

Adding vinegar tenderizes the pastry. It inhibits gluten from forming there by making the pastry tender and flaky.

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Is butter or egg better on puff pastry? ›

We are Team Egg Wash (or Cream Wash). While melted butter adds more flavor than the washes, it is less effective in look; it gives a speckled appearance to pastry.

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What is the fancy name for puff pastry? ›

The French call this dough "pâte feuilletée," which means "pastry made leaf-like." Each "leaf" in this pastry consists of a layer of flour separated by a layer of butter. The expansion (puff) occurs because the butter layers create steam when exposed to the heat of an oven.

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Is it cheaper to buy or make puff pastry? ›

The verdict: It's certainly cheaper to make your own pastry and I like the fact that most times, I'll have the ingredients to hand, no need for a special trip to the shops.

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What is the best flour for puff pastry? ›

While all-purpose flour is fine and can be used successfully for homemade puff pastry, we recommend using strong bread flour like this for best results. Bread flour has a higher protein content than all-purpose flour, and therefore, contains more gluten.

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What can go wrong with puff pastry? ›

Oven too hot, causing excessive lift. Over-baking causing the surface layers to dry out too much. Fat levels too high in pastry. Unevenly flaked as fat not evenly dispersed.

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Can you ruin puff pastry? ›

The only way for puff pastry to maintain its lamination, though, is if it remains chilled. Leaving your dough at room temperature could ruin it completely.

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Why does my puff pastry not cooked underneath? ›

Pastry being soggy in the middle is a result of the pastry being undercooked. Don't place the pastry on too high a shelf in the oven. One way to prevent soggy bottom pastry is to blind bake the pastry – This means partially or completely bake the pastry before adding the filling.

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Why should the dough be cold for puff pastry? ›

The need for solid butter is why most of these recipes require you to not only start with cold butter, but also to chill the dough in between rolling and folding. This way, you can roll out the solid butter into long, thin sheets in the dough, which will turn into beautiful layers in the heat of the oven.

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Is egg or milk better for puff pastry? ›

Milk is too runny and will burn but you can add a little to your egg wash to make it a little thinner for coating. Melted butter also burns quite quickly. Egg wash is the most reliable because it coats the pastry evenly and doesn't run off.

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What makes puff pastry so flaky? ›

The secret is steam and hundreds of paper-thin layers of dough. Puff pastry starts out as a lean dough of just water and flour. This dough gets rolled, stretched, and folded with a healthy amount of butter again and again until all of those layers are formed.

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How do you keep puff pastry from getting soggy on the bottom? ›

One way to prevent soggy bottom pastry is to blind bake the pastry – This means partially or completely bake the pastry before adding the filling. Also, avoid over-filling your pastry.

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What is the secret to making good pastry? ›

How to master pastry
  • Memorise the rule 'half fat to flour' and you'll always have a pastry recipe in your head – so for 200g flour, use 100g butter.
  • Whether you're using butter, lard or dairy-free spread, it should be chilled.
  • Don't add too much water – try 1 tbsp at a time.

Read On ›
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