This pastry is as easy as it gets and very satisfying. I would make them the day you want to eat them as the crust does not stay as crispy after the first day. Anything with guava was very much a part of our cuisine growing up. We had guava trees all over the neighborhood. My grandmother would hollow out the fruit and candy the outer part to make home made casca de guayaba (guava shells). We use to have that for dessert with a slice of cream cheese. In my hometown, almost every bakery had pasteles de guayaba (guava turnovers). They were pretty much a part of any family gathering or event.
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 Pkg frozen puff pastry (I like the one from Whole Foods because it is made with real butter)
- 12 Tbsp. Guava preserves (or a preserve of your choice, if you don’t like guava.) You can order guava preserves on line if you can’t find it in your local grocery market.
- 12 Tbsp. slice almonds, toasted
- Powdered sugar for dusting
INSTRUCTIONS:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Spread almonds on a cookie sheet covered with parchment paper.
- Roast in the oven for approximately 10 minutes.
- Remove from oven and let cool.
- Turn up oven to 425 degrees F.
- Roll puff pastry out on a lightly floured surface to approximately 1/8 inch.
- Cut the pastry into 12 strips.
- Bake on a cookie tray lined with parchment paper on the upper rack of oven for 7 minutes.
- Remove from oven and spread 1 Tbsp. of preserves on each strip.
- Return to oven for an additional 5 minutes. They should be golden brown.
- Remove from oven and sprinkle the tops with the toasted almonds.
- Let cool and then dust with powdered sugar.
These go great with a demitasse of espresso!
