How to Make “Blitz” Puff Pastry Dough for the Best Berry Turnovers

As a kid, I used to love Pepperidge Farm Fruit Turnovers. This Turnover Recipe uses an quick and easy “Blitz” Puff Pastry dough. It’s much less labor intensive than making authentic puff pastry. The end result? The pastry is so tender and flaky! Love, love, LOVE this recipe!

My husband is from the Midwest– Missouri, to be specific.  He loves pie.  Specifically, he loves berry pie. I like pie, but it’s not my #1 favorite dessert. I love tarts…custardy tarts.  But, today wasn’t about me!   I admit, that I keep a box of frozen Trader Joe’s pie crusts for days I want to make something fast– like my plum galette. Rolling out pastry really isn’t as hard as people think. There are just a few basic rules– that if you follow them, I bet you can make tender pie crusts.  Today’s recipe is one I’ve planned to make since summer.  I bookmarked the recipe, and bought most of the ingredients and gadgets that KAF “pitched” within the recipe. I hope, that at the end of this post, you’ll try making pie crusts or these puff turnovers. I’m sure glad I did:

I’ll talk about pie crusts another time, because people swear that shortening/lard is the key.  This “Blitz” puff pastry dough uses all butter and sour cream.  First tip: you want the butter to ice cold. I don’t use margarine, and I don’t recommend. It’s dessert… this is no place to cut calories, because the fat is what makes this puff. I use a food processor, and I pulse the butter with the dry ingredients of flour, baking powder and salt.  Second tip: Don’t over work the dough!  That’s what makes it tough.  You want chunks of butter.

You’ll be adding 4 oz of sour cream. I do use lite sour cream, because I think it works well. Maybe yogurt would work, but I didn’t want to risk it. Let me know if you try it! Add the sour cream and pulse it until just combined. Pat the dough into a rough square, then roll it into an 8″ x 10″ rectangle– it’s best to do this on a floured surface. Speaking of surfaces…

I have a marble pastry board, that I’ve used for years. I like it, because I freeze it for about 30 minutes so it stays nice and cold.  If you don’t have one, don’t sweat it.  It just buys me more time to work with pastry dough, which wants to stay cold.  Dust both sides of the dough with flour. Starting with one of the shorter (8″) ends, fold it in thirds like a business letter, flip it over (so the open flap is on the bottom), and turn it 90°.
 Roll the dough into an 8″ x 10″ rectangle again. Fold it in thirds, wrap in plastic, and place in the refrigerator to chill for at least 30 minutes (or overnight) before using.
NOTE: This is a very important step, to get puffy and tender dough.

There were prisms coming from Craig’s stained glass that were casting over my pastry photos. I noticed my feline, Tiger Lilly, was basking in the late afternoon sun and turning over from side-to-side. She looks like puff pastry, herself! Sorry, I couldn’t help myself..

While the dough is chilling, make the filling. Mix the sugar and ClearJel till well combined ** (ClearJel is a product sold on King Arthur’s website.) **If you’re using cornstarch, mix it with enough cold water to dissolve.   Add the sugar mixture to the raspberries, tossing to combine. Stir in the vanilla and cinnamon– I didn’t use cinnamon  and added 1/2 tsp almond extract, which I prefer– (and the cornstarch/water mixture, if you’re using cornstarch). My opinion? I really like ClearJel for thickening my fruit recipes.
 Heat the mixture in a saucepan over very low heat, stirring, till the berries soften and fall apart. The mixture will be thick and jam-like, even though it doesn’t really warm up much; this will take under 5 minutes. If you use cornstarch, cook and stir till the mixture bubbles and thickens. You can prepare the filling up to several days before; cover and refrigerate till you’re ready to use it.
NOTE: I only used half the fruit mixture, so decrease by half if you don’t want leftovers. I do!

So, here’s another gadget I bought — turnover press.  You don’t need these, by the way. You can cut squares and fold the turnovers into triangles. But, I’m a gadgetholic. It’s a curse to my budget.  This is my maiden voyage with these. As expected, I ran into some trouble:

An hour later, I removed the pastry from the fridge.  On a marble surface, I added flour.  Don’t unfold the dough!  You want to roll it out.  Another tip: to avoid frustration, I roll my dough, and give it a quarter turn.  This prevents the dough from sticking to the rolling surface, resulting in torn dough. I’ve done this so many times, but now this helps me a lot.  The press has a side that automatically cuts the dough for. Cool! I read the directions– press the dough into the form, then add the filling and squeeze. Ooops!  The filling oozed out a hole in the pastry.  I considered giving up.  But, I don’t give up that easily. Think, think, think.

Flour!  I had the side without flour, face down into the press. D’oh!  By folding the press in half, it released the dough (I battled to get two out, previously, resulting in tears. Next, I forgot to use a little egg was as glue.  I decreased the filling by half– there, that was looking better.

With a little practice, I got the hang of it.  I officially like the press– and I’m already thinking…. savory pasties… empenadas…nutella filling.  For $7.00, I think it’s a useful gadget– if you like to bake.

I got 11 turnovers– not 13-14.  I will double the pastry, next time. I paid about $15.00 for my marble cutting board– of course, this was over a decade ago.  The pastry stayed cold.   I did refrigerate some of the turnovers, while I made the rest.

Still, I love to brush on an egg wash. I think it gives pastry a pretty color.  I also have the coarse white sugar.
I also order the pre-cut parchment paper, because shipping is free. They fit my baking sheets perfectly! I have Silpat mats, but I think pastries bake better on parchment paper. By the way, I am not paid by King Arthur to recommend these products. I wish!  I just love their store– and it’s my toy store. I checked the pastries at 14 minutes in a 400F oven…

They smelled amazing, and they were golden brown.  But, some of them did open up–

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Homemade Berry Turnovers

As a kid, I used to love Pepperidge Farm Fruit Turnovers. This Turnover Recipe uses an quick and easy "Blitz" Puff Pastry dough. It's much less labor intensive than making authentic puff pastry. The end result? The pastry is so tender and flaky! Love, love, LOVE this recipe!

Prep Time45 minutes mins

Cook Time25 minutes mins

Total Time1 hour hr 10 minutes mins

Course: Breakfast, Brunch, Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Berry Puff Turnovers

Author: Debby – www.AFeastfortheEyes.net

Ingredients

DOUGH:

• 1 1/2 cups Unbleached All-Purpose Flour recommended: King Arthur
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 cup cold butter
• 1/2 cup sour cream

FILLING:

• 3 tablespoons Instant ClearJel® or cornstarch If you use cornstarch you'll want to dissolve it in cold water, rather than stir it into the sugar.
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 3 cups raspberries fresh or frozen (or berries of your choice)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon** NOTE: I omitted the cinnamon and added 1/2 teaspoon of almond extract
• 1 large egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water, to seal pastries (optional)

Instructions

To make the crust:

• Whisk together the flour, salt, and baking powder.
• Cut the cold butter into pats, and work it into the flour mixture till it’s unevenly crumbly, with larger bits of butter remaining intact.*
• *NOTE: I used a food processor, and simply pulsed the cold butter.
• Stir** in the sour cream. The dough will be craggy, but cohesive.
• **I pulsed the sour cream, until the dough became cohesive.
• Turn the dough out onto a well-floured surface, and bring it together, if necessary, with a few quick kneads.
• Pat the dough into a rough square, then roll it into an 8″ x 10″ rectangle.

Shaping the dough:

• Dust both sides of the dough with flour.

  Starting with one of the shorter (8") ends, fold it in thirds like a business letter, flip it over (so the open flap is on the bottom), and turn it 90°.
• Roll the dough into an 8" x 10" rectangle again. Fold it in thirds, wrap in plastic, and place in the refrigerator to chill for at least 30 minutes (or overnight) before using. This is a very important step, to get puffy and tender dough.
• While the dough is chilling, make the filling.

Filling (can be made a day or two ahead:

• Mix the sugar and ClearJel** till well combined. If you're using cornstarch, mix it with enough cold water to dissolve.
• **ClearJel is a product sold on King Arthur’s website. I prefer it over cornstarch, because it doesn’t “muddy” the look of fruit fillings. Cornstarch still works.
• Add the sugar mixture to the raspberries, tossing to combine.

  Stir in the vanilla and cinnamon (or omit and add almond extract, which I prefer) (and the cornstarch/water mixture, if you're using cornstarch).
• Heat the mixture in a saucepan over very low heat, stirring, till the berries soften and fall apart. The mixture will be thick and jam-like, even though it doesn't really warm up much; this will take under 5 minutes.

  If you use cornstarch, cook and stir till the mixture bubbles and thickens. You can prepare the filling up to several days before; cover and refrigerate till you're ready to use it.
• You can also do this in a microwave; heat till the berries soften, then stir till they fall apart and the mixture thickens, like jam.
• When you’re ready to assemble the turnovers, preheat the oven to 400°F.

Making the turnovers:

• Roll the chilled dough into a 16inch square.

  Cut sixteen 4-inch squares, for small, triangular turnovers. For round turnovers, use a turnover press** to cut nine 4 1/2" rounds. Re-roll the dough scraps, and cut 4 or 5 additional rounds, as many as you can get out of the scraps.
• If desired, for a tighter seal, brush two adjoining edges of each square (or half of each circle) with 1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon cold water.
• Place about 2 teaspoons filling slightly off-center in each square. Or about 4 teaspoons** slightly off-center of each round; a level tablespoon cookie scoop works well here.
• Fold the turnovers in half. If you’ve cut the dough in squares, fold in half diagonally, to create triangular turnovers. Press the edges with a fork to seal.
• NOTE: At this point, you could freeze the pastries to bake later.( It is not recommend freezing them after baking.) Don't thaw before baking, just add 5 extra minutes to the baking time.
• Place the turnovers on a baking sheet, preferably one lined with parchment to catch any spills.

  Bake in the preheated 400°F oven for 20 to 25 minutes, or until they're a deep, golden brown; you may see some of the filling beginning to ooze out.
• Remove the turnovers from the oven, and cool on a rack. Serve warm, or at room temperature.

Tip:

• For a pretty, glittery top crust, brush turnovers with milk, and sprinkle with coarse (sparkling) white sugar just before baking.

Notes

NOTE: I have a marble pastry board, that I chill in my freezer. It’s a great tool to keep pastry cold!

**I bought a turnover press kit, which took some practice. I show you how to use it on my blog. It’s a gadget that’s fun (once you get the hang of it) but not necessary. I could only fill 1 teaspoon of filling, or it would overflow.

Recipe source: King Arthur Flour

Tried this recipe?Mention @afeastfortheeyes or tag #afeastfortheeyesblog!

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