Ingredients
45ml/3 tbsp near-boiling water
30ml/2 tbsp ground coffee
40g/1½oz/3 tbsp butter
115g/4oz/½ cup caster (superfine) sugar
1 egg yolk
115g/4oz/1 cup ground almonds
1 egg, beaten
275g/10oz/1 cup apricot jam (jelly)
30ml/2 tbsp water
175g/6oz/1½ cups icing (confectioners’) sugar
50g/2oz/½ cup flaked (sliced) almonds, toasted
50g/2oz/¼ cup glacé (candied) cherries
For the pastry
275g/10oz/2½ cups plain (all-purpose) flour
1.5ml/¼ tsp salt
15g/½oz/1 tbsp caster (superfine) sugar
225g/8oz/1 cup butter, softened
10ml/2 tsp easy-blend (rapid-rise) dried yeast
1 egg, beaten
100ml/3½fl oz/scant ½ cup chilled water
Details
Makes: 16
Method
1. To make the pastry, sift the flour, salt and sugar into a bowl. Rub in 25g/1oz/2 tbsp butter. Stir in the yeast. In a separate bowl, mix the egg and water together, add to the flour mixture and mix to a soft dough. Lightly knead for 4-5 minutes. Place in a plastic bag, seal and chill for 15 minutes.
2. Put the remaining butter for the pastry between two sheets of baking parchment and beat with a rolling pin to make an 18cm/7in square. Chill.
3. Roll out the dough on a floured surface to a 25cm/10in square. Put the butter in the middle of the dough square, angled like a diamond, then bring up each corner of the dough to enclose it fully.
4. Roll out the pastry thinly to measure about 35cm/14in in length. Turn up the bottom third of the pastry, then gently fold down the top third. Seal the edges together with a rolling pin. Wrap the pastry in clear film (plastic wrap) and chill for 15 minutes.
5. Repeat the rolling and folding three more times, turning the pastry after folding over so that the short ends are at the top and bottom. Allow the pastry a 15-minute rest between each turn.
6. To make the filling, pour the hot water over the coffee and infuse for 4 minutes. Strain through a fine sieve. Cream the butter and sugar together. Beat in the egg yolk, ground almonds and 15ml/1 tbsp of the coffee.
7. Divide the dough and filling equally into three. Roll one dough portion to an 18 x 35cm/7 x 14in rectangle. Spread with filling and roll up from a short end. Cut into six equal slices. Roll another portion into a 25cm/10in round, and cut into six equal segments.
8. Put a spoonful of filling at the widest end of each segment. Roll the pastry towards its point to form a crescent.
9. Roll out the remaining dough into a 20cm/8in square; cut into four. Place some filling in the centre of each piece, and shape by making cuts from each corner almost to the centre, then fold four alternate points to the centre.
10. Preheat the oven to 220°C/425°F/ Gas 7. Space the pastries well apart on greased baking sheets. Cover loosely with oiled clear film and leave to rise for about 20 minutes, until almost doubled in size. Brush with the egg and bake for 15-20 minutes until lightly browned and crisp. Cool on wire racks.
11. Put the jam in a pan with the water; bring to the boil, then sieve. Brush the jam over the warm pastries. Mix the icing sugar with the remaining coffee to make a thick icing. Drizzle the icing over some of the pastries and decorate some with almonds or chopped glacé cherries. Leave to set before serving.
Energy 387Kcal/1623kj; Protein 5.1g; Carbohydrate 48.1g, of which sugars 34.6g; Fat 20.8g, of which saturates 9.4g; Cholesterol 76mg; Calcium 65mg; Fibre 1.3g; Sodium 161mg