Palmiers with orange zest (and a little dark chocolate)

It must be the thought of upcoming Valentine's Day that had me thinking about and making a batch of palmiers recently.  I haven't made them in years but there was already puff pastry in the freezer so I went with it.  I always called these "butterfly cookies" when I was younger but whether you more likely know them as palmiers or elephant ears, I love these cookies for their signature heart-shape.  I'm a sucker for all the frilly pink and red heart-shaped things we're seeing right now.

Supposing, like me, you don't feel the compulsion to make puff pastry from scratch and simply head to the freezer section of the supermarket, palmiers are truly easy to make.  At its barest, it only takes two ingredients: puff pastry and sugar.  That got me thinking about adding a little twist, layering on a different flavor for a change...

My mind naturally went to chocolate and I considered using a combination of cocoa powder with sugar to roll the puff pastry in but I wasn't sure how the cookies would look after baking.  I switched gears and got to thinking about fresh flavors and something to maybe offset or brighten up all the sweetness and richness of these cookies.  I went with orange zest (it seems to be the answer to lots of things).  I simply zested an orange right into the sugar and rubbed the two together to release the flavors and essential oils from the zest before using the mixture to roll the puff pastry and shape them into these palmiers.

I ended up with palmiers infused with a gentle but clear presence of orange flavor.  Of course, I couldn't completely shake my need for chocolate.  You know orange goes so well with chocolate.  So I did the natural thing and drizzled a few of my orange palmiers with bittersweet chocolate.  The light drizzle of chocolate seems to bring out the orange flavor even more.

Somehow, palmiers seem to simultaneously call for a cup of hot tea or a cold bowl of ice cream to go along with it.  I'm game with whichever option you choose to go with.

I've made palmiers a few times before though I've never posted them on the blog.  I've always used Ina Garten's technique for folding palmiers, which I picked up from Barefoot in Paris.  I think typically, you see many recipes where the puff pastry is rolled up at each end, meeting in the center.  Ina's method involves a few simple folds and I think it creates more of an even heart-shape rather than an ear shape.  I really like that.

So I start with Ina's recipe but make a few changes.  Mainly, I use half the amount of sugar she does.  Admittedly, a lot of that sugar stays on the counter-top but a cup of sugar to one sheet of puff pastry is a bit much in my mind and I use half a cup of sugar and the zest of 1 large orange  for this recipe (I always assume it goes without saying but obviously use an unsprayed/organic orange for zesting).  If you use more sugar, you'll want to consider using more zest to make sure you have a good ratio and the flavor of the orange comes through.

I lay half, or 1/4 cup, of the sugar-orange zest mixture down onto a work surface.  Then, I place the puff pastry sheet over it and scatter the rest of the mixture over the top.  

Use a rolling pin to roll the sheet into a 13-inch square, pressing the sugar into the pastry.

To fold, start by folding each side into the center so they meet in the middle.

Then, do it again.

One more time and you end up with this:

You'll essentially have 6 layers.  Slice the log into about 3/8-inch thick slices (I just think of it as slightly thinner than 1/2 inch; the main thing is to try to be consistent in terms of each cookie's thickness so they bake evenly together) and place, cut side up, onto a parchment lined baking sheet.

I bake these in a 425 degree oven.  Ina's recipe calls for a 450 degree oven but I wanted to play it safe and have a bit more wiggle room to keep an eye on them because I've over-caramelized some of my palmiers in the past.  

In a 425 degree oven, first bake them for about 10 minutes, or until the cookies are caramelized and brown on the bottom.  Be careful - the caramelized sugar is very hot!  Carefully flip the cookies with a spatula at that point and bake for another 5-7 minutes, or until the other side is caramelized. 

Given my issue of over-caramelizing these in the past, I played it safe and probably took the cookies out of the oven a minute or so earlier than I could have.  It depends on how far you want to push it and how dark you want them.  More caramelization equals more flavor but burnt cookies equal a sad baker!  So keep a close eye on them in general and particularly near the end of baking.

If you like to add chocolate, let the palmiers cool completely.  Then, melt a little bit of bittersweet chocolate, place it into a disposable sandwich bag, and snip a small opening to drizzle the chocolate randomly over the cookies.  I think dipping them might have been too heavy-handed so I went with the drizzle.  The chocolate-orange combination is always so good!

It was really fun making something I hadn't in a long time.  I'm totally in a Valentine's Day mood and looking forward to seeing all the wonderful Valentine's Day recipes that are sure to pop up!


Recipe:

Palmiers with Orange Zest
Adapted (mainly, the folding technique) from Ina Garten

- Approximately 2 dozen cookies - 

1/2 cup granulated sugar
Zest from one large orange, organic/unsprayed
1 sheet puff pastry, defrosted

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Place oven racks in the upper and lower third of the oven.  Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a bowl, combine sugar and zest together (I zest directly into bowl with sugar) by rubbing the zest into the sugar until mixture feels moist.

Spread half the mixture, or 1/4 cup, onto a work surface.  Unfold and lay the sheet of puff pastry on top.  Pour the remaining 1/4 cup of the sugar-zest mixture on top of the puff pastry, spreading evenly.  Using a rolling pin, gently roll the dough into a 13-inch square, pressing the sugar mixture into the pastry.

Fold each side of the square into the center so that they meet halfway in the middle.  Fold each side again so the dough meets again in the middle.  Repeat one last time as though closing a book.  You will have 6 layers.  Slice the dough with a sharp knife into 3/8-inch slices and place, cut side up, on the lined baking sheets about 2 inches apart.  

Bake cookies for about 10 minutes, or until the bottom has browned and caramelized.  Carefully flip the cookies over using a spatula (be careful because the caramelized sugar is very hot!).  Rotate the pans and bake for another 5-7 minutes, or until the other side is caramelized as well.  Keep a close eye on them to avoid burning.  Transfer cookies to a cooling rack.

If desired, you could drizzle the cooled cookies with melted bittersweet chocolate.  I simply used a disposable sandwich bag, snipping a small opening at the corner, to drizzle.  Allow chocolate to set before serving.  

These cookies are best the day they are baked but leftovers can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for a day or two.