These Spinach & Mushroom Puff Pastry Parcels have to be one of my all-time favourite recipes. While I don’t always make these parcels with puff pastry, we use this filling on a regular basis for pies and parcels. In fact, this filling is delicious with pasta or even as a filling for quiche.
When I don’t have time to make puff pastry, I use my shortcrust pastry recipe. And I also often make it as a single large pie. But there is absolutely nothing that beats homemade puff pastry.
These Spinach & Mushroom Puff Pastry Parcels are made with rough puff pastry. It takes a fraction of the time of classic puff pastry, but it still has all the buttery flavour and flaky goodness of the longer version. Who wants to slave for days to get the same results, right?
I made these parcels for my campaign with Kerrygold South Africa last year. I used their iconic Irish butter for the puff pastry, and their super delicious mature cheddar cheese in the filling. The recipe was posted on their website at the time, but thought it might be convenient to post it here on the blog too.
As I make this recipe often, I am sure I will share the shortcrust pastry version soon too.
Spinach & Mushroom Puff Pastry Parcels
Spinach & Mushroom Parcels with buttery flaky rough puff pastry, herby mushrooms, spinach and pine nuts for crunch.
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Ingredients
Homemade Flaky Rough Puff Pastry
- 250 grams Butter (divided: 50g and 200g) Grated and frozen
- 350 grams All-Purpose/Cake Flour
- Pinch of salt Omit if using salted butter
- 150 ml Cold/Ice Water
- ½ tsp Lemon/Lime Juice or white vinegar
Filling
- 50 grams Pine Nuts Toasted
- 2 – 3 Tbsp Olive Oil
- 2 Cloves of garlic Crushed
- ½ Medium yellow onion (or 1 shallot) Finely chopped
- 250 grams Portabellini or Button Mushrooms Finely chopped
- 100 grams Baby Spinach Roughly chopped
- 1 Tbsp Dried Italian Herb Mix
- ¼ tsp Chili powder Optional
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- 1 Tbsp Finely chopped fresh parsley Optional
- 2 Tbsp Finely chopped chives Optional
- 50 grams Grated Strong/Mature Cheddar Optional
Instructions
Homemade Flaky Rough Puff Pastry
- Place your block of butter in the freezer 15 – 30 minutes before you start
- Add the flour and salt to a large bowl, then grate 50g of the cold butter into the flour. Grate the remainder of the butter (200g) into a separate bowl and place it back into the freezer to chill for use later
- With your fingers or a pastry cutter, rub or cut the butter into the flour
- Measure out the water, add the lemon juice, then add the liquid to the flour mixture, one tablespoon at a time, while mixing with a wooden spoon or spatula to bring the dough together. Add enough water to form a firm dough that is not tacky or too wet
- Knead the dough on a floured surface for about a minute, then cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for 5 minutes to rest
- Roll the dough out into a long rectangle (approx. 20cm x 35cm), then evenly distribute half the grated cold butter onto ⅔ of the rectangle (leaving ⅓ without). Fold the portion without butter towards the middle, covering half the butter. Then fold that same section towards the end, covering the rest of the butter (the same way you would fold a letter in 3)
- Turn the dough 90° and roll it out to form another long rectangle, around the same size as before, then repeat the above step with the remainder of the grated butter (you have now incorporated all the butter in two folds)
- Next, repeat the folding step another 2 – 3 times to create super flaky pastry. I.e. turn the dough 90°, roll into a rectangle, fold in 3 (letter fold)
- Note: Speed is more important than precision as you do not want the butter to melt. On warm/hot days, place the dough in the fridge for a few minutes between folds
- Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and store it in the fridge for at least 2 hours or until needed
- Note: The dough can be made in advance. It will store in the fridge for a few days, just ensure it is wrapped air tight as not to dry out. Or feel free to freeze for longer storage. Defrost in the fridge overnight when needed
Filling
- If your pine nuts are not toasted, place in a dry pan on medium high heat for a few minutes until they start turning slightly golden, then set aside and prepare your other ingredients
- Place the butter, olive oil, chopped onion and crushed garlic into a large pan and bring to medium heat
- Add the finely chopped mushrooms and spinach, as well as the herbs and Chili powder and cook for around 5 minutes until they start to soften. Season with salt and black pepper, then add the chopped chives and parsley, stir through and remove from the heat
- Next, place the mixture into a strainer above a bowl to drain and cool for 15 – 30 minutes (the filling must be cool with no additional liquid before adding to the pastry)
Assembly
- Preheat the oven to 200°C and prepare a baking sheet or two with baking paper or a silicone baking mat
- Add the toasted pine nuts and grated cheese to the filling and mix through. Then prepare an egg wash, whisking one egg with a little dash of milk
- Cut the pastry into 10 – 12 portions (depending on the size and shape of parcels you want). Roll each portion out into the desired shape and fill the centre with a heaped spoon full of filling, leaving a rim around the edge for sealing. Then, using a pastry brush, brush a small amount egg wash around the edge to help seal the parcels.You can either fold the pastry over and seal the edge or add a second piece of pastry to create a lid (whatever shape you wish)
- Space the prepared parcels out onto your baking tray(s), leaving at least a 2cm space between each, then egg wash the top (I sprinkled some sesame seeds on mine) and bake for around 25 minutes until golden and flaky. Serve warm
- Note: the baking time will depend on the size of your parcels so keep an eye from around 20 minutes if they are small. They may need to bake for an additional 5 minutes if they are very large. It's best to bake them in batches of 4 – 6 to get even colour on all the parcels
Tried this recipe?Post your pics and tag us at @my_homemade_kitchen_za or #myhomemadekitchen!
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