Pesto Puff Pastry Christmas Trees

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Pesto Puff Pastry Christmas Trees

Level up your festive snacks with these super cute, super easy pesto puff pastry Christmas trees. Just sandwich basil pesto and grated cheese between puff pastry, fold into trees, and bake until golden and crispy. Less than 30 minutes from start to finish.

Prep Time10

Cook Time15

Total Time25

Course: Appetizer

Cuisine: American

Keyword: puff pastry christmas trees

Servings: trees

Calories: 200kcal

Author: Kate Phillips

Ingredients

2 sheets of ready-rolled puff pastry
½ cup fresh basil pesto
½ cup grated mozzarella cheese
¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
1 egg whisked (for the egg wash)
1 tablespoon hot honey sauce
2 teaspoons red pepper flakes

Instructions

Spread the pastry with pesto and cheese.
Heat your oven to 350°F (180°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Roll out a sheet of puff pastry on a clean, flat surface. I like to roll it out on the paper that it tends to come rolled in, for ease.
Spread the basil pesto all over the pastry, getting as close to the edges as you can. Scatter the mozzarella and parmesan evenly over the pesto.
Slice into strips.
Place the second sheet of puff pastry on top of the pesto and cheese-topped sheet, and press down with your hands to seal it in place. You can use a rolling pin to gently flatten it too if you like.
Use a sharp knife or a pizza cutter to cut 1"/2.5cm strips down the long side of the pastry rectangle (so you end up with more short strips, rather than long ones). Leave a 2"/5cm strip at one end, so that you can cut out pastry star toppers for your trees.
Fold the Christmas trees.
Pick up a strip of layered pastry, and carefully fold it over itself four times, to form a rough triangle shape. Press a skewer through the pastry tree and place it on the lined oven tray.
Repeat with the rest of the strips, then use a mini star cutter to cut out little star toppers for the trees. Skewer the stars onto the tops of the pastry trees, and set them on the tray.

PRO TIP: If your kitchen is hot, or you feel the pastry getting warm as you're working with it, pop the trees into the fridge for about 10 minutes before you bake them. This will help them keep their shape in the oven.

Bake the trees.
Brush the trees with egg wash, then transfer them to the oven for 15 to 20 minutes, or until they look super golden and crispy.
Garnish and serve.
Remove from the oven, then drizzle with hot honey and scatter with the red pepper flakes if you're using them. Serve while hot and crispy.

Notes

PREP AHEAD: Assemble the Christmas trees the day before you want to bake them if you like, then cover the oven tray with clingfilm and pop into the fridge until you're ready. You can also freeze the unbaked trees - just freeze on a tray until solid, then pop into ziplock bags to store. Bake them straight from frozen (add an extra five minutes to the cooking time).

STORAGE INSTRUCTIONS: The baked trees will keep for up to 3 days, stored in an airtight container. You can crisp them up again in the oven or air fryer at 350°F (180°C) for four to five minutes. Microwave them if you want, but they'll go soggy this way.

INGREDIENT NOTES: Swap the basil pesto for sundried tomato pesto, wild garlic pesto, fig jam, sweet chilli jam, caramelized onions or zhoug sauce. Play around with your cheeses - try to mix something mild and melty (like mozzarella) with something strong (like parmesan). Blue cheese is great, as is gruyere.

SKEWER SIZE: Ideally, use anything around 6 to 8 inches (15 to 20cm) is best - they're long enough to fit the pastry strip and still give you a handle. Cocktail skewers are too small. You can use longer ones, but they may be tricky to fit onto your baking sheet.

PASTRY DIDN'T PUFF UP? Your pastry may have warmed up too much - remember to monitor if it's getting a bit warm as you work with it. For peace of mind, pop the trees into the fridge for 10 minutes before baking them.

SOGGY BOTTOMED PASTRY? Either you spread your filling too thickly, or your pesto was quite liquidy.

TREES UNRAVELED? Make your tree folds a little tighter - you'll be surprised how much they'll puff up in the oven - or pop the trees into the fridge for 10 minutes before baking.

FILLING LEAKED OUT? You can press the cheese and pesto back into the pastry strips once you've formed the trees - a little may naturally come out in the oven, though. You can also press the pastry strips together to seal the edges if you prefer.

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