Puff Pastry

The Tefal Cuisine Companion is excellent for making buttery pastry, whether it's shortcrust or danish or puff pastry the Cuisine Companion mixes the ingredients in a matter of seconds. I like to make a double batch and freeze half for another time.

Note: Dice chilled butter in 1&1/2 cm cubes, this can be done the night before and refrigerated.
Note: Place 130 gms water in refrigerator to chill. This can also be done the night before.
Note: Keep a pastry brush handy to brush off excess flour when folding pastry.

Puff Pastry

500 gms Plain Flour
500 gms Chilled Butter diced
130 gms Chilled Water

Insert Kneading Blade, Stopper in.
Add plain flour and 350 gms diced butter.
Pulse 15 seconds (I had to gently press down on the handles to stop CC vibrating too much). You should still have some chunks of butter visible.
Remove Stopper.
Start Sp9:35sec adding chilled water through hole in lid until pastry just starts to come together.
Remove pastry and place on floured board or silicone sheet.
Knead lightly for a few seconds to shape into a log.
Roll out to approximately  50cm x 20cm.
Place remaining 150 gms diced butter over bottom 2/3 of pastry.
Fold top third of pastry over butter then fold bottom third over the top to enclose butter.
Turn the pastry so one open end is facing you. (1/4 turn).
Flatten slightly with your hands and squish together the 2 open ends.
Roll out to approximately 50cm x 20cm.
Fold top third over, then bottom third over the top.
Make 1/4 turn.
Repeat the rolling out, folding and 1/4 turn of the pastry twice more.
Wrap in cling wrap and freeze for 20 minutes.
Remove from freezer.
Repeat the rolling out, folding and 1/4 turns 3 times.
Wrap in cling wrap and freeze 15 minutes.
Repeat the rolling out, folding and 1/4 turns 3 more times.
Wrap in cling wrap and freeze 15 minutes.
Repeat the rolling out, folding and 1/4 turns 3 more times.
The pastry should be well laminated now and ready to use or divided in two and frozen until required.

Folding bottom third over top before 1/4 turn and rolling.

After freezing and rolling, folding top third towards centre.

After rolling the butter will be visible under the surface. 

1/4 turn, slightly flattened and edges squished together before rolling.

Folding bottom third of pastry over the top. 

Folding top third of pastry over butter.

Placing 150 gms butter over bottom 2/3 of pastry.

First roll approximately 55cm x 25cm.

Pastry just coming together in Cuisine Companion bowl.

Butter diced into 1&1/2 cm cubes.

Amazing Flaky Pastry

This is a buttery flaky pastry not made in the traditional way, in fact it uses butter that is almost melted instead of the traditional chilled butter. The result is a rich buttery flaky pastry which is perfect for both sweet and savoury dishes. The dough after mixing in The Tefal Cuisine Companion must be refrigerated for at least 12 hours before use. I refrigerated mine for 18 hours before using.

Pastry rounds topped with bocconcini, diced chorizo and halved cherry tomatoes.

Chilled diced butter after adding boiling water. 

Note: You will need a generously floured surface to roll out the dough as it tends to be sticky, I find a well floured silicone sheet ideal. I also keep a pastry brush at hand to brush off excess flour from the dough after cutting out.
Note: This recipe makes a lot of dough, you can use half and freeze the other half.

500 gms Butter chilled
550 gms Plain Flour
5 gms Cream of Tartar
250 mls Boiling Water

Dice chilled butter into 1&1/2 cm cubes and refrigerate.
Insert Kneading Blade. Stopper in.
Add flour and cream of tartar
Sp10:15 sec
Remove stopper
In heatproof bowl add chilled diced butter, add boiling water and set aside for 2-3 mins stirring occasionally, there should still be small chunks of butter visible. (See photo above).
Add the butter and boiling water mixture to the flour in the Cuisine Companion bowl.
Select Pastry P1 and mix for 45 seconds.
Scrape dough onto a large plate, cover with cling wrap and refrigerate 12-18 hours. (I changed my cling wrap with a new piece after a couple of hours).
Take out of the fridge 15 mins before using.
Cut dough in half (place remaing half in fridge until ready to use) and roll out 1/2 cm thick on generously floured surface.
Use as desired.

Danish Pastries With Cream cheese and Jam filling

Danish Pastries

Who can resist the rich buttery taste of a true Danish Pastry. A lot of recipes use puff pastry as a base for their Danish Pastry and although they are a quick alternative when you're in a hurry the taste cannot be compared to a proper Danish Pastry using an enriched yeast dough. The Tefal Cuisine Companion effortlessly makes the dough, cream cheese and jam filling. Recipes for jam and cream cheese can be found on my blog by using the 'search' function. 

Scoring pastry squares with a smaller cutter

Note: This pastry is very sticky and will need to be rolled on a generously floured board or silicone sheet. 

Pastry

250 gms unsalted butter diced in 1cm cubes and refrigerated

60 gms water

130 gms milk

5 gms sugar

7 gms yeast ( I used active dry yeast)

1 large egg beaten and at room temperature 

350 gms plain flour

5 gms salt

10 gms sugar extra

In heatproof bowl combine water and milk. Microwave on low for 1-2 minutes until warm, stir through 5 gms sugar, sprinkle yeast evenly over top and leave to bloom for up to 1 hour. 

Insert Kneading Blade. Stopper in. 

Add flour, salt and extra sugar. Sp5:10sec. 

Add large diced butter. Pulse 20 sec, there will be large chunks of butter visible. 

Stir beaten egg into milk/ water/sugar and yeast mixture and add to CC

Pastry P1:30sec only. Place mixture into glass bowl and cover with cling wrap. Refrigerate 2 hours or overnight. 

Generously flour board and rolling pin. Roll into rectangle, fold pastry in thirds, roll again. Repeat 3 times. Refrigerate 30 mins. 

Cream cheese and jam filling

125 gms cream cheese

55 gms caster sugar

20 gms thickened cream

1/2 tspn vanilla extract

2 tablespoons jam

Insert Kneading Blade. Stopper out. 

Add cream cheese and caster sugar

Sp8:40sec scraping bowl every 10 sec. Add cream and vanilla extract, Sp8:20sec or until smooth remove blade and swirl through 1 to 2 tablespoons of home made jam. Set aside. 

Roll out pastry. Cut out 15 squares with 6 to 7cm square cutter. Score pastry with 4cm square cutter. Brush outside of pastry squares with milk. Add a teaspoon of cream cheese and jam filling in centre of pastry squares. Bake 180deg 15-20mins or until cooked and well puffed. Cool on wire rack. 

When cold drizzle with icing made with sifted icing sugar mixed with milk until consistency of thick honey.

Lemon Tarts

Lemon Tarts with Cream Cheese Pastry

I love anything made with lemons, the fresh tart flavour especially when teamed with a light cream cheese pastry and whipped cream is a taste sensation. The Tefal Cuisine Companion makes light work of this pastry and lemon filling. 

Note: Australian cup and spoon measurements used. 1 cup = 250mls. 1 tablespoon = 20mls

I've used eggs from an 800 gm carton of 12 eggs. 

Cream Cheese Pastry 

170gms cream cheese softened

170gms butter softened

10gms sugar

270gms plain flour

Insert kneading blade. Stopper out. 

Add all ingredients. Pastry P1:2mins. Wrap in cling wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour. 

Grease a 24 hole mini muffin tin. 

Roll pastry out to approx 3mm thick. Cut out rounds large enough to fit bottom and sides of mini muffin holes. 

Refrigerate. 

Lemon Filling 

115 gms lemon juice

210gms caster sugar

3 large eggs

80gms sour cream

Insert whisk. Stopper in. 

Add all ingredients 

Sp6:2mins

Fill pastry shells nearly to the top and bake at 170deg for 20 to 25 mins or until filling is set and pastry is cooked. Leave in tin for 5 mins before transferring to cooling rack. Serve with whipped cream.