Tear and Share Christmas Tree Pastry
“Oh Christmas tree, O Christmas tree. How lovely are your branches!”
And with this spectacular festive bake, the branches don’t just look amazing – they’re mouth watering too!
Our modern take on traditional flavours is the ideal centrepiece for any Christmas party or dinner. It’s bound to be a talking point, wherever you serve it.
Best of all, it’s the perfect project for families to bake and enjoy together, creating treasured Christmas memories.
Tear and Share Christmas Tree Pastry
Our Tear and Share Christmas Tree Pastry is modern take on traditional flavours. A Fabulous centrepiece for any Christmas party or dinner. It’s bound to be a talking point, wherever you serve it. Best of all, it’s the perfect project for families to bake and enjoy together, creating treasured Christmas memories.
Equipment
- 1 Weighing scales
- 1 Mixing bowl (for soaking fruit)
- 2 small bowls
- 1 spoon
- 1 Fork
- 1 Butter knife
- 1 pastry brush
- 1 Lined baking tray
- 1 sift
Ingredients
- A little dusting of Gem plain flour
- 2 320g packs of ready-to-roll puff pastry
- 200 g Gem Christmas cake fruit mix
- 100 g Gem brown sugar
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- A pinch of ground ginger
- A pinch of ground nutmeg
- 1 egg for egg wash
- A sprinkle of Gem icing sugar
- Serve with ice cream or fresh cream
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200c /180c fan/gas mark 4
- Soak the Christmas cake mix in boiling water
- Lightly dust your work surface and rolling pin with Gem plain flour. This will prevent your pastry from sticking and make it easier to roll out.
- Place one sheet of puff pastry (the contents of one pack) onto the floured surface.
- Sprinkle the pastry with brown sugar and your spices
- Strain the water from the fruit mix using a sieve. Sprinkle the fruit on top of the pastry.
- Place the second sheet of puff pastry on top.
- Using a knife, carefully cut a large triangle (with a rectangle at the bottom) into the pastry. This will give you the signature shape of a Christmas tree with a trunk.
- Pull away the excess pastry and put to one side. Keep this excess for other recipes – scraps are ideal for making into small appetisers or starters!
- To form the trunk of your tree, lightly score two lines down the middle of your triangle. Follow the triangle shape as a guide, making the top of your trunk narrower than the base.
- Now start to create the branches of the tree. From the outer edges of your tree trunk, make horizontal cuts. Leave approximately one inch between each cut.
- Holding the end of a branch, twist it away from you, taking care not to rip or tear the pastry. Aim for two twists in the longer, bottom branches and one twist in the smaller branches further up the tree. Repeat until all the branches are complete.
- Use a star-shaped cookie cutter to make a small star from the excess pastry. Place this on top of your Christmas tree.
- Lightly beat an egg in a small bowl with a fork.
- Use a pastry brush to gently spread this egg wash over your creation. This will help your pastry to turn golden brown and develop a beautiful shine.
- Gently place your tree onto a lined baking tray.
- Bake for 20 minutes until the pastry has risen and turned golden brown.
- Allow your Christmas tree to cool slightly. Scatter it with icing sugar and serve with ice cream or fresh cream
- Enjoy the result of all your hard work!
Video
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
