Crisp buttery, endlessly cute sugared puff pastry cookies, shaped like hearts and tinted pink with freeze dried raspberries
I don’t usually love kitsch, but when it comes to heart-shaped anything, I’m the Queen of Hearts. These adorable little Raspberry Heart Palmiers came to life when I was thinking of creative new Valentine’s Day treats for my kids last year. Aside from the typical chocolates and candies, they loved seeing one of their favorite cookies (palmiers) reimagined into these charming hearts. That’s not to say that these aren’t perfect year-round, with their caramelized sugar and flakey crisp pastry, *swoon*!
What are palmiers?
Palmiers are small cookies made of puff pastry, a laminated enriched dough. The dough is sprinkled generously with sugar, then folded in on itself, cut, and baked. The cookies bake up and resemble butterflies or hearts. Palmiers are sometimes referred to as elephant ears. The word ‘palmier’ actually means Palm Tree in French, because the cookies somewhat resemble palm fronds. It’s widely believed that Palmiers originated in France, but some claim their roots are actually Austrian. Either way, these crisp, buttery delicious cookies are now popular worldwide, especially at tea time, or the ol’ afternoon coffee break.
How to add raspberries to the sugar
The trick to getting that adorable pink tinted sugar for these Heart Shaped Palmiers is to combine the sugar and freeze dried raspberries in a high powered blender. Pulse until the sugar is fine, and the raspberries have broken down. If you don’t have a blender, you could do this using a food processor, mortar and pestle, or even a sealed plastic bag, and beat it with a rolling pin.
How to make heart shaped palmiers
Once you’ve made the raspberry sugar, you’re going to pour half of it onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Then, lay your sheet of puff pastry on top, and sprinkle the remaining sugar on top (so you have sugar on both sides of the dough). Press down on the puff pastry, so the sugar adheres to the top and bottom of the dough. Fold each long side of the dough into the center, then fold into the center again, like a book fold. I like to add more sugar in between the layers as I go, in case any of the sugar has fallen out.
At this point, you should have one long, thin folded rectangle of dough. Then, using a sharp chef’s knife, slice the cookies about 1/2-inch thick. Place them on a parchment lined baking sheet, and use your finger to pinch the bottom of the cookie to create a heart shape. The key to getting the cookies crisp on both sides, is to bake them for 5 minutes at high heat, then to use an offset spatula to flip them over, then bake for another 5 minutes until the sugar has caramelized on both sides.
NOTE: If the cookies have lost their heart shape a bit during baking, it’s ok! Just pinch the bottom of the heart a bit to exaggerate the shape after they’ve baked, and before they’ve cooled completely.
Ingredients
- Puff Pastry – these Palmiers are absolutely incredible when made with homemade puff pastry! Check out my recipe for 15-Minute rough Puff Pastry here. Don’t feel like making your own? Don’t sweat it! Use an all butter store-bought puff pastry, like Dufour. Since these cookies only have 3 ingredients, try to get the best quality puff pastry you can find.
- Sugar – I use regular granulated sugar here. The fine grind sticks to the puff pastry better, so avoid raw or coarse turbinado sugar.
- Freeze Dried Raspberries – This may seem like an unusual ingredient, but freeze dried fruit is actually pretty easy to find in American groceries stores now. Check out the dried fruit and nuts/organic section, and you can usually find it! Trader Joe’s always has them, and if you want to make life easier, just order them on Amazon here. If you can’t find raspberries, feel free to substitute freeze-dried strawberries.
How to store Raspberry Heart Palmiers
These cookies can be stored in an airtight container at cool room temperature for up to 3 days. Try to keep them in a cool, dry place so they stay crisp and delicious. In the humidity, the sugared exterior tends to melt a bit and the cookies become chewy.
Raspberry Heart Palmiers
crisp, buttery, endlessly cute sugared puff pastry cookies - tinted pink with freeze dried raspberries
Ingredients
- 1 sheet of all-butter puff pastry homemade or store bought
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup freeze dried raspberries
- pinch of kosher salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F.
- Add sugar and raspberries to a high powered blender or food processor, blend on high until powdery and pink.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Pour half of the pink sugar onto the parchment. Place thawed puff pastry on top. Use a rolling pin to press pastry into the sugar.
- Fold sides into the center. Press on more sugar on the folded pastry. Fold sides in once more, more sugar. Fold like a book.
Use a sharp chefs knife to slice 1/2” cookies. Use your pingers to pinch the bottom of the hearts to create an exaggerated heart shape. Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment, 2” apart.
Bake for 5 minutes, use an offset spatula to flip each cookie over, bake for another 4 mins. Allow to cool completely.
Recipe Notes
If these cookies have lost their shape slightly during baking, it's ok! Just use a knife or your fingers to gentle pinch the bottom of the heart, in order to accentuate the shape. Do this before the cookies have cooled completely.
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