Let me pinpoint for you the moment I knew I wasn’t cut out for office jobs.
It was the summer of 2003 and I was working as a part-time receptionist at a doctor’s office between high school graduation and starting college. I was on my way to the office one early morning and decided on a whim to stop at the Blue Bonnet Bakery (of gingerbread man and florentine fame) and pick up some treats for my coworkers. You know, the sort of nice thing that you do every once in a while to brighten the mood.
Out of all the pastries they had on display that morning, I decided to go with cherry turnovers—pockets of ultra-flaky pastry filled with cherry pie filling. Everyone at the office loved having a treat around so much that that one act started a trend. Everyday after that, somebody brought something to share. One day it was Seven Layer Dip, another was Chipped Beef (which I have never had before or since). The doctor and his wife/office manager would bring in doughnuts or fresh figs from their own trees. I even brought in my mom’s Ham Salad once. (Sounds weird, but don’t knock it ‘til you try it.)
Long story short, by the end of the summer, I knew once and for all that while I liked my coworkers, I did not care about office work at all. AT. ALL. Bored me senseless. But I did care about trying new recipes and food as a social experience.
It would be almost ten more years before I learned to bake from scratch, but in that time I learned to cook, wrote my first recipes, dreamed about owning a neighborhood restaurant, and gathered friends into tiny New York apartments to share late-night dinners. I had a few more office jobs too, and I can say now that I spent most of those work days reading food blogs and surfing a then-newfangled thing called Pinterest in search of recipe inspiration.
(Oops.)
But it all goes back to that impromptu stop at Blue Bonnet Bakery. That was the catalyst for the chain of events that lead me to where I am right now. It just took another decade or so and a lot of professional misadventures to manifest itself into E2 Bakes and being that person who always has cookies. #crazycookielady
And so, here I am on the first day of June 2018–fifteen years after my first office job—writing on my very own food blog about the Sweet Cherry Turnovers that I made in my kitchen this week. They’re made with my shatteringly crisp rough puff pastry and a tried-and-true sweet cherry filling, and they’re topped with a sweet vanilla glaze. They’re basically the very best kind of hand pie.
Heck, if you’re lucky, they might even change your life.
Sweet Cherry Turnovers
makes 6 large turnovers
Cherry Filling:
1 lb fresh whole sweet cherries, pitted
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
pinch of ground nutmeg
pinch of Kosher or sea salt
1/8 teaspoon pure almond extract (optional)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
Rough Puff Pastry:*
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon Kosher or sea salt
5 ounces unsalted European-style butter, very cold, cut into small pieces
1/4 cup water or milk, very cold
Egg Wash:
1 large egg
1 teaspoon cold water
Glaze:
1 cup confectioner’s sugar
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
5-6 teaspoons milk
Cherry Filling and Pastry Dough may be made a day ahead and refrigerated overnight.
Make the Cherry Filling. Combine pitted whole sweet cherries, sugar, cornstarch, nutmeg, and salt in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring frequently, for 3-5 minutes or until cherries are starting to release liquid. Remove from heat and stir in optional almond extract and butter. Let filling cool to room temperature. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour or overnight.
Make the pastry. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour and salt. Use a pastry blender or two forks to cut butter into dry ingredients until the largest pieces are the size of small peas. Pour in cold water or milk and stir with a silicone spatula or wooden spoon until a shaggy dough forms.
Flour a surface and a rolling pin. Turn dough out onto surface, and use your hands to pat it into a rough rectangle. Roll the dough into an 8×10″ rectangle. Fold dough in thirds, and give it one quarter turn. Roll into an 8×10″ rectangle again, fold, and turn. Repeat rolling, folding, and turning until it has been done six times total. Wrap folded dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least one hour, or up to 48 hours.
Make the tart. Place an oven rack in the center position. Preheat oven to 400F. Line a rimmed sheet pan with parchment.
Make egg wash. Combine egg and water in a small bowl and whisk together with a fork.
Flour a surface and a rolling pin. Unfold dough. Roll dough out to 10×14-inch rectangle. Slice into 6 squares.
Working with one square at a time, roll it into a 5-inch square. Place 2 tablespoons of cherry filling in the center, leaving behind any excess liquid. Paint two edges of each turnover with egg wash. Fold dough into half to seal. Use a fork to crimp the edge. Remove to prepared pan. Repeat with remaining dough and filling, chilling for 15 minutes if dough becomes sticky or difficult with which to work.
Chill pan of turnovers for 10 minutes. Cut vents in each turnover. Brush all exposed pastry with egg wash. Bake 25-27 minutes or until golden. Let cool on the pan for 10 minutes before removing to a rack to cool completely.
Make glaze. Combine confectioner’s sugar, vanilla, and 5 teaspoons milk in a small bowl and whisk until smooth. For a thinner glaze, add 1 more teaspoon milk. Drizzle over cooled turnovers. Glaze should set after 20 minutes.
Turnovers are best the day they are made, but will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. Pastry will soften over time.
Note:
If you do not wish to make the Rough Puff Pastry, you may use one sheet of frozen all-butter puff pastry that you have thawed according to package directions.
If the warm weather could just get its act together and show up already, that’d be great. I am so tired of wearing a jacket.
Winter tends to linger up here. While the sub-freezing days are long gone, I could do without anything under 70 degrees. It seems like every time we get a nice day, the cold creeps back.
It could absolutely be worse, but…I just want some consistency, you know?
Anyway, I may not have any control over the weather outside, but it is decidedly spring at the green market and in my kitchen. I’ve got berries on the brain, as evidenced by last week’s 
I’ve made three batches of these traditional Czech pastries this week and I can’t. get. enough.
They’re a springtime spin on the 
I mean, it’s pretty hard not to love buttery, pillowy soft pastry, cinnamon crumble (posypka), and fresh blueberry filling ❤
Yep. Tastes like spring.
Today is Texas Independence Day! On March 2, 1836, Texas became independent from Mexico, briefly becoming the Republic of Texas before it became part of the United States in 1845. Growing up in the 
If you’ve ever driven up or down I-35 between Austin and Dallas-Fort Worth, you know the turn-off for West (the town, not the direction) means two things: a pit-stop and kolaches (“kohl-ah-cheh”). This small Czech enclave is one of the most popular food attractions in Texas. I’m not exactly sure how this came to be the state capitol of Czech pastry, but basically everyone who has ever stopped at the 
Fun fact: I happen to be of Czech descent (my mother’s maiden name is Fitzek), but my ancestors came to the U.S. by way of Chicago and didn’t bake, as far as I know. But back to the pastries…
If you haven’t had a kolache, just imagine a puffy, pillowy-soft pastry filled with sweet fruit filling (or sweet cheese or savory sausage & jalapeño). Apricot, prune, and poppy seed are some of the most popular traditional flavors, but when I set out to make quality homemade kolaches, I wanted to go extra Texan. I set my focus on a sweet-tart filling made from Texas Ruby Red Grapefruits.
As far as I’m concerned, kolaches are a great treat any time of day, but I think they’re especially good alongside a cup of coffee on a weekend morning. But who wants to get up way early and work with yeast dough for three hours on the weekend?!
My solution is to make the dough the night before and let it rise in the fridge while I sleep. This cuts waaaaay down on the early morning time commitment. Plus, the dough is initially super soft, thanks to the additions of sour cream, whole milk, and melted butter. It’s much easier to manipulate after a long chill.
Just punch it down in the morning…
Let them rise for half an hour while you mix together the posypka (crumble topping) and add a little flour to the homemade grapefruit curd filling. This will help keep it from running out of the kolaches while baking.
Once 30 minutes are up, press a well into each piece of dough.
Fill them with grapefruit filling…
Bake the kolaches at 350F for 12-14 minutes, just until they’re barely starting to turn golden and smell like butter and grapefruit and nostalgia for your Texan childhood.
Give the finished kolaches another brush of melted butter before digging in.
Whether or not you are familiar with these Czech pastries, you are in for a treat! Grapefruit Kolaches are super soft and buttery and the grapefruit filling has the perfect sweet-tart balance. One (or two) paired with a cup of coffee can make almost anyone happy to be awake.
As if there were any doubt, I’m always happy to be Texan.
Palmiers (you might know them as “Elephant Ears”) are a simple pastry made by rolling a thin layer of filling into a sheet of flaky pastry dough. If you’re anything like me, you spent way too much of the early 2000s watching Ina Garten make them on the Food Network.
The possibilities for filling are nearly endless. Since the pastry doesn’t contain any sugar on its own, it works well with both sweet and savory fillings. Basically, if it can be spread or scattered, it can almost certainly be rolled into a palmier. I mean, if you play your cards right, you can start and end your meal with these elegant little pastries.
If you’re looking for a way to spice up your Turkey Day hors d’oeuvres spread, look no further than my Spinach Artichoke Palmiers. They’re filled with a slightly deconstructed version of my mom’s 
As far as dessert goes, I love the idea of serving a plate of Pumpkin Palmiers alongside a pot of coffee. And 
What?! It’s Thanksgiving. It’s a two-dessert day. Three, if you count the 
Pumpkin Palmiers are filled with a very pared down version of 
Roll up the dough and give it a chill.
Slice up the palmiers and give them a quick brush with milk and a sprinkling of coarse sugar.
If you’re making the Spinach Artichoke version, swap the sugar for parmesan–toasty cheese, y’all 🙌🏻🙌🏻
No matter which kind of palmiers you’re making, the baking process is the same. Let them go for ten minutes at 400F. Flip them over, brush them with more milk and sprinkle on more coarse sugar (or cheese). Let them bake for ten more minutes and then, well…
This is the part where you pretend you know things about French pastry.
e2 bakes brooklyn 
