Chef John Apple Roses Recipes

APPLE ROSES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375°F. Grease a standard muffin tin.
• Core the apples and slice in half. Using a very sharp knife or mandolin on the second setting, slice paper thin 1/8-inch slices and immediately sprinkle and toss in lemon juice prevent browning. Toss in the butter, sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
• Microwave the slices for 45 seconds, or until soft and pliable enough to mold.
• Place the puff pastry on a lightly floured work surface. Roll out into a 9 by 12-inch rectangle. Cut six 2-inch wide strips of dough.
• In a small bowl, combine the preserves with 2 tablespoons of water. Microwave for 30 seconds if it was refrigerated. Spread evenly over each strip of dough. Arrange about 10 apple slices lengthwise in a straight line, overlapping slightly, on a strip of dough. Fold up the bottom part of the dough and begin tightly rolling the dough to form the rose shape. Press the edge to seal. Repeat for all the pies and place in the muffin tin.
• Make ahead: at this point the unbaked assembled roses can be covered and stored in the fridge for up to 1 day before baking as directed.
• Bake for 40 minutes, or until golden and cooked through. Sprinkle with powdered sugar, if desired. Pastries are best served the day they are baked but can be stored in an airtight container and rewarmed in a 300°F oven for 5 to 10 minutes, or until warmed through and flaky again.

BAKED APPLE ROSES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Butter 2 small ramekins (6 to 8 ounce) and dust with white sugar.
• Place apple slices on a plate, overlapping slightly if necessary. Microwave on High about 45 seconds just until slices have softened a bit. Cover plate with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel.
• Mix together sugar and cinnamon in a bowl.
• Roll puff pastry sheet to less than 1/8-inch thickness. Using a pizza cutter, cut two 3-inch by 12-inch rectangles. Reserve remaining pieces for another use.
• Spread melted butter over dough; top with a generous amount of cinnamon-sugar. Place apple slices along 1 long edge of dough, about 1/4 inch beyond edge of dough, overlapping slices slightly. Fold bottom half of dough over the apple slices to form a long "folder" of dough with rounded edges of apple slices exposed.
• Beat egg and water together in a bowl. Paint surface of dough with egg wash. Sprinkle with more cinnamon-sugar, to taste.
• Starting from one end, roll dough not too tightly to form a rose-shaped pastry. Seal roll with end of dough strip.
• Transfer roses to prepared ramekins. Sprinkle with a little more cinnamon-sugar. Place ramekins directly on middle rack of preheated oven.
• Bake until well browned, about 45 minutes. Remove ramekins with tongs and place on baking sheet to cool 5 to 10 minutes. Remove apple roses from ramekins and finish cooling on rack. Dust with confectioners' sugar before serving.

CHEF JOHN'S POTATO ROSES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Generously grease a 12-cup muffin tin with melted butter, reserving the rest for the potatoes.
• Slice potatoes to about 1/16 to 1/8 inch thickness using a mandoline or vegetable slicer. Discard end pieces that are mostly skin. Place slices in a bowl and add rosemary, salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper. Drizzle in the remaining melted butter. Toss with your hands to evenly distribute, about 2 to 3 minutes, trying to separate all the potato slices. Grate about a quarter of the cheese over the potatoes. Toss. Add more cheese; toss again. Continue until all cheese is incorporated.
• Stack potato slices in uneven layers (to resemble flower petals) in prepared muffin tin, ending with some of the smaller pieces.
• Bake in preheated oven until potatoes are tender, 45 to 60 minutes, testing with a metal skewer for doneness. Potatoes should be very soft. If potatoes look too brown but aren't yet cooked through, cover pan with foil for the final minutes of baking.
• Loosen edges of potato roses with a fork and lift out of pan to serving dish.