Recipe: Basil Palmiers

Recipe Source: Holuigue, Diane.  Savoring Provence.  Oxmoor House, Menlo Park, 2002 p. 36

This is, I promise, the last Easter recipe I have to post.  It's essentially a savory cookie.  My favorite Sesame Street character was always Cookie Monster (and the Count...) so serving cookies just makes sense to me.  I do feel kind of ashamed of having used store-bought puff pastry, but given all the chaos surrounding Easter this year and the short time frame I had to prepare the meal, it just made the most sense.  The only change I made was to double the amount of garlic, and I used kosher salt instead of sea salt.  Since I only used 2/3 of the package of puff pastry for this recipe, I was able to use the remaining 1/3 package for the lamb pockets I made the next day. 

Basil Palmiers (makes approx. 20 cookies; approx. $0.54/cookie)

20 fresh basil leaves

8 cloves garlic, roughly chopped

1/4 cup olive oil, plus more for brushing

1/2 pound puff pastry, thawed if frozen

Equipment:

• Cookie sheet
• Rolling pin
• Pizza cutter
• Food processor (a mini-prep works just fine)

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
2. Combine the garlic and basil in the food processor and process until a paste begins to form.
3. Add the olive oil and process to a smooth paste.
4. On a floured work surface, roll out your pastry into a rectangle about 15x12".
5. Spread the paste over the pastry surface.
6. Figure out where the halfway point on your sheet is.
7. Roll the 2 ends of the pastry sheet inwards to that halfway point.  Don't roll too tightly. 
8. When the rolls meet at the center, press together very lightly and freeze 20 minutes.
9. Lightly lube your baking sheet.
10. Remove the pastry roll from the freezer and cut crosswise into pieces about 3/8" thick.
11. Transfer each pastry piece to the baking sheet.
12. Sprinkle each piece with kosher salt.
13. Bake 15 minutes or until golden. 
14. Cool completely before serving.

Comments

[The Duo Dishes]

Wow, this is the most original palmier we've seen. We're so used to all sweet versions. This is a great one.

[Natasha - 5 Star Foodie]

Basil flavor sounds excellent in this palmier. Delicious!

[Haley W.]

Basil palmiers sound great! I like to make mine with sundried tomato pesto, but this would be a great compliment to them!

[Sophie]

MMMMMMM...Basil in a palmier: that must be divine in taste!! Yum!!!

[Fearless Kitchen]

Sophie - It was pretty good, if I do say so myself!

Haley - That sounds great too - I'll have to try it sometime.

Natasha - There's just something about the flavor and scent of basil that say, "Spring is finally here."

Duo - Thanks! I'm more used to sweet palmiers too, but this one looked just right for my purposes. I might make it again for this weekend, who knows.