Cheese and Pesto Fantails
Cheese and pesto fantails are delightful, savory pastries with a great flavor combination and a visually stunning presentation. are ideal as appetizers, snacks, or even a side dish for meals.
Ingredients
For the Dough
- 3 ½ cups (440g) all-purpose flour
- 2 ¼ tsp (7g) active dry yeast , or 25g fresh yeast
- 1 tbsp (15g) sugar
- 1 tsp (5g) salt
- 1/3 cup (80ml) water , warm
- 3/4 cup (180ml) milk , warm
- 1 egg
- 1/4 cup (60g) butter , melted or softened
For Filling
- 1/3 cup (80g) pesto , softened, divided
- 1 cup (100g) cheddar cheese , grated, divided
Instructions
Prepare the dough.
- In a large bowl add yeast, sugar and warm water. Let it rest for 5-10 minutes to activate the yeast.
- Add the rest of the ingredients, flour, salt, milk, egg, and butter.
- Stir to combine and knead for 5-8 minutes until the dough is soft and pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
- Transfer the dough to an oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap and let it rise for about 1 hour in a warm area, until doubled in size.
- Spray with oil a 12-cup muffin pan.
How to shape the fantails.
- Punch the dough down and transfer to a floured surface.
- Divide the dough into 2 equal pieces.
- Using a rolling pin, roll one piece of dough into a 12-inch (30cm) square.
- Spread half of the pesto over the rolled dough.
- Spread half of the cheese over the pesto.
- Sprinkle salt and pepper.
- Cut the dough into 6 equal strips using a bench scraper or a knife.
- Stack the strips one on top of the other. Invert the last one and place it on top of the others, with the pesto side facing down.
- Cut into 6 equal pieces.
- Place each piece into prepared muffin cups.
- Repeat with the remaining dough.
- Gently separate the layers to create a fantail. Cover the pan with a kitchen towel and let them rise in the pan for another 15-20 minutes.
How to bake the fantails.
- Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 375F (190C).
- Bake the pesto and cheese fantails for about 18-20 minutes until golden brown.
- Let them cool on the pan for 5 minutes and then transfer to a cooling rack to cool. Enjoy!
Nutrition
Serving: 1 serving out of 12Calories: 207kcalCarbohydrates: 24.3gProtein: 6.9gFat: 9.1gSaturated Fat: 4.8gCholesterol: 51mgSodium: 279mgPotassium: 70mgFiber: 1gSugar: 1.7gCalcium: 87mgIron: 2mg