If Claire Saffitz shares a recipe with the world, you know it’s going to be good. From what I’ve seen on Gourmet Makes, she’s a rigorous tester and perfectionist in the best sense of the word.
So I was thrilled to receive a copy of Claire’s new cookbook, Dessert Person, from the folks at Clarkson Potter. It’s packed with beautiful photographs and meticulous instructions for baking more than 100 sweet and savory treats, including these cinnamon-sugar palmiers.
Follow Claire’s guidance and you can’t go wrong. I had no problem preparing her all-butter pie dough and proceeding with the cinnamon-sugar palmiers recipe (on Pages 136-137). More important, the finished product was utterly delicious. The pastries are crispy on the outside, flaky on the inside and perfectly caramelized underneath. (For those who are interested, you can find a simplified and by no means foolproof version of the recipe below.)
Now that I’ve tackled one of the creations in Dessert Person, I’m eager to keep baking. Up next: caramelized honey pumpkin pie or miso buttermilk biscuits.
Recipe adapted from Dessert Person.
- 1½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- ¾ teaspoon sea salt
- 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold, divided
- 5-6 tablespoons ice water
- ½ cup Demerara sugar
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ⅛ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 egg, beaten
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, granulated sugar and salt.
- Cut 5 tablespoons butter into small pieces and rub it into the flour mixture with your fingertips until it resembles coarse meal. Cut remaining 5 tablespoons butter into ⅛"-thick slices and gently rub it into the flour mixture with your fingertips until it resembles very coarse meal.
- Add 5 tablespoons water and mix with a fork. If it is crumbly, add more water, 1 teaspoon at a time, until the ingredients start to come together. Then use your hands to lightly knead the dough in the bowl until it forms a ball. Turn the dough out onto a piece of plastic wrap and pat into a rectangle about ¾" thick. Wrap dough and chill until firm, about 2 hours or overnight.
- After the dough has chilled, turn it out onto a lightly floured work surface. Roll out dough to a ¼"-thick rectangle. Fold into thirds, like a business letter. Wrap dough in plastic and chill for at least 30 minutes or up to 3 days.
- In a small bowl, combine the Demerara sugar, cinnamon and salt. Set aside.
- Remove the dough from the refrigerator and let it sit for 5 minutes. Transfer dough to a lightly floured piece of parchment paper and roll out to a 12"x10" rectangle. Brush the entire surface with the beaten egg. Sprinkle half of the filling in an even layer over the top of the dough. Using the parchment paper, roll up the long ends of the dough like a scroll until they meet in the middle.
- Brush beaten egg on outside of dough log and coat with remaining filling, pressing to adhere. Wrap in parchment paper and transfer to the freezer to chill until firm, 25-30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Once the dough log has chilled, use a sharp knife to cut off the ends. Then cut it into 16 equal segments. Place the segments on the prepared baking sheet about 2 inches apart.
- Bake for 25-35 minutes until golden.
- Remove from the oven and allow palmiers to cool completely on the baking sheet before serving.
Good recipe, thanks!
How do I measure butter by tablespoons, is there an equivalent weight?
Hi Valerie – One stick of butter is usually 8 tablespoons or 4 ounces. Hope that helps!