#puff-pastry

#puff-pastry

This is my quick version of pissaladiere, and it transforms a small amount of leftover pastry scraps into a spontaneous treat. Keep and combine any trimmings into a ball and re-roll as and when required. Pastry keeps well in the freezer, and by skipping two time-consuming steps in the traditional recipe that is, making the pastry and caramelising the onions this one comes together about an hour faster.

Every dinner party, even those with the most robust menus, requires a little something for people to snack on when they arrive. Thanksgiving, the Olympics of dinner parties, is no different. If you're like me and find it hard to convince yourself to squeeze anything more complicated than a cheese plate onto an already lengthy to-do list, then you'll appreciate this breezy galette. It's basically a cheese plate in pastry form.

These flaky, crispy pastries with a curry flavored filling are a popular snack sold in street food stalls and eateries right across Thailand. They're usually filled with a spiced mixture of potato, vegetables and curry powder, and you can experiment with variations for a personalized touch. These puffs also freeze well, making them a convenient snack to make ahead and have on hand. Substitute store-bought puff pastry if you need to save time.

Baking usually comes in recipe-precise ingredients and multi-step efforts, with hours upon hours of labor brought together by the oven heat. It's rarely something you throw together and be done in a flash. Unless, of course, you are making apple turnovers, and you already have the three bare essentials. Sheets of puff pastry, applesauce, and a glaze, plus just a bit of preparation and hands-off cooking, and voilà, a golden batch of fall desserts ready in no time.