This is a simple puff pastry recipe that uses up leftover ham, perfect for brunch or a grab and go breakfast. These ham and cheese puffs have all the rich flavor of a ham and cheese croissant, without any of the messy rolling or leaking of cheese.
How do I cut puff pastry?
If your puff pastry is frozen, you need to defrost it before attempting to work with it, by placing it in the fridge until it thaws.
Once thawed, remove the puff pastry sheets from the package and unfold each sheet to make a square. I use Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry, which comes folded in thirds and makes it SUPER simple to cut right along the fold lines.
If your puff pastry is the correct temperature, you shouldn't need any special tools to cut it other than a knife. If you find it is sticking to the knife, you may dip your knife in water before each cut and the pastry should slide right off.
What type of ham should I use?
This is a great way to use up leftover ham, but you can just as easily grab a package of ham from the store. Sweet slice, Virginia, Black Forrest, Spiral, Glazed - I have yet to have a variety of ham I don't like in this recipe.
What type of cheese is best for this recipe?
I use a regular sharp cheddar for this recipe most of the time, but I've also tried some other variations that are awesome, including:
- Gruyere
- Swiss
- Fontina
How to fold puff pastry diamonds
- Add any filling on a diagonal spanning one tip of the puff pastry square to the other
- Brush a small amount of egg yolk, water, or milk onto one of the corners of the puff pastry that does not have filling
- You should have one corner of puff pastry left that has neither egg nor filling on it. Gently pull that corner over the filling.
- Pull the egg brushed corner over to the other side and press to seal.
How to freeze and reheat later
Puff pastry freezes REALLY well - and so do these little ham and cheese parcels. So make the full recipe, freeze any you don't want to cook immediately, then bake them later!
To Freeze:
- Place individual, uncooked puff pastry ham and cheese bites on either a greased or lined tray, uncovered
- Freeze for 1 hour, or until they are firm / frozen through
To Reheat:
- Bake in a 350 degree F oven for 25 - 30 minutes, or until puff pastries are brown and cooked through
Other Easy Puff Pastry Recipes
Ham and Cheese Puff Pastries
Ingredients
- 2 sheets puff pastry 1 box
- ¼ cup mustard Dijon, grainy, and yellow are all fine
- 1.5 cups ~8 ounces chopped ham
- 1.75 cups cheese ~6 ounces shredded cheddar or gruyere
- 2 egg yolks
Instructions
- Cut defrosted puff pastry into 18 squares by cutting each sheet into thirds, and cutting each third of a sheet into a third to make squares.Place each square on a greased or parchment lined baking sheet.
- Spread ¼ teaspoon of dijon diagonally across each square.
- Place about 1 Tablespoon of chopped ham on top of the dijon, followed by 1 Tablespoon of shredded cheese onto each square.
- Spread a small amount of egg yolk on one corner of each pastry square. Make sure it's NOT one of the corners with the ham/cheese/mustard. Fold the opposite corner over the filling, then fold the egged corner on top of it and press to seal. Repeat for all pieces of puff pastry.
- Brush the top of each pastry with egg yolk.
- Bake at 350° F for 20-25 minutes, or until the pastries are golden brown.
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