Ham & Cheese Puff Pastries
Flaky and buttery with a delicious savoury filling of cooked ham, cheddar cheese, mustard, onion and fresh herbs, these easy pastries can be made with homemade rough puff pastry or bought puff pastry (see Recipe Notes).
This recipe makes 8 large pastries to serve as a main course alongside salad or vegetables. But they're equally good made smaller to eat as a snack, party food etc.
Always serve warm.
Ingredients
- 1 kg homemade rough puff pastry or bought puff pastry: see Recipe Notes
- plain flour for rolling out
- 1 egg, beaten (for sealing and glazing: you may not need it all)
For the filling
- 350 g cooked ham diced small
- 170 g mature Cheddar cheese grated
- 1 small onion skinned then very finely chopped
- 3 tbsp double cream
- 2 tbsp chopped parsley (or chives)
- 2 tsp wholegrain mustard
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- salt optional/to taste
- 1 egg, beaten (you may not need it all)
Instructions
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Preheat your oven to 220° C /200° Fan /Gas 7 /425° F with a shelf just above the middle position.
Line 2 baking trays with baking parchment.
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Make the ham and cheese filling
In a large bowl, stir together the diced ham, grated cheese, finely chopped onion, cream, parsley, mustard, and black pepper. Taste and add a small pinch of salt if you think it needs it (I usually find it salty enough without).
Stir in enough of the beaten egg to bind the mixture - it's unlikely you'll need it all so you can save some for sealing and glazing.
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Roll out the pastry, fill and shape the pastries
If using a double batch of rough puff pastry (see Recipe Notes)
Unwrap one half and leave the other to chill in the fridge. On a lightly floured surface, roll out 3 mm thick in a long rectangle approximately 60 cm long and 15 cm wide. Cut into 4 squares each 15 x 15 cm.
If using bought puff pastry sheets
Cut a sheet into 15 x 15 cm squares (or as close to that as you can get without wastage, depending on the size of the sheet).
Working with one square at a time, brush a 1 cm border of beaten egg all around the edge. Place ⅛ of the filling in a triangular shape over half of the pastry (see blog post image if necessary). Fold the other half over to cover the filling and firmly press down. Dip the tines of a fork into flour and press down again to seal.
Transfer the pastry to a prepared baking sheet.
Make more pastries with the remaining cut out squares.
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Brush the pastries with beaten egg then make 2 snips in the top with scissors to let the steam out.
Put the baking sheet in the oven and bake for 10 minutes.
Reduce the heat to 200° C /180° Fan /Gas 6 /400° F and bake for a further 10 - 15 minutes until puffed up and golden brown.
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While the first batch is baking, make more pastries with the remaining dough.
Before baking the second batch, remember to increase the oven temperature back to 220° C /200° Fan /Gas 7 /425° F.
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Transfer the cooked pastries to a wire rack to cool slightly before eating.
Can be stored in the fridge for 2 - 3 days or frozen. Reheat in the oven at 200° C /180° Fan /Gas 6 /400° F or in an air fryer.
Recipe Notes
Rough puff or puff pastry.
I make these pastries with the same homemade rough puff I use for my Rough Puff Pastry Sausage Rolls. To make the full amount of Ham & Cheese Puff Pastries you will need a double batch of the sausage roll pastry. After mixing the dough and shaping into a block, I recommend cutting it in two. This will make rolling out easier and you can keep one half chilled in the fridge while working with the other.
If preferred, you can use ready bought puff pastry sheets. The number of sheets you need will depend on their size. Refer to the packet and calculate how many you need to be able to cut out EIGHT 15 x 15 cm squares. Note that recommended cooking times and temperatures may differ from those in this recipe.