By The garden moved into its early-summer rhythm. The peas are six inches tall, the lettuce row needs thinning, the radishes are coming up thick, the asparagus is at peak. I am picking and eating constantly. The blog has settled into the May-June pattern of garden-driven posts, the readers in the same season as me and willing to read about whatever happens to be coming up in the row.
Made a pea soup Wednesday — fresh peas, water, butter, salt, pureed and finished with a tablespoon of cream and a sprinkle of chives. Served cold on the porch, eaten with bread and butter. The kind of dish that is barely a recipe and that depends entirely on the first peas.
The Friday vets coffee — Tom Albany announced that his wife had been diagnosed with breast cancer earlier in the week. The room received the news with the appropriate quiet. He said the prognosis was good — early stage, treatable — but that he would be more occupied in the coming months and might not always be able to convene. We told him to take the time he needed and that the gathering would happen with or without his presence and that he should not worry about us. He nodded. The gathering ran shorter than usual that morning. Outside afterward I told Tom that I had been through a similar phase with Helen's health (which was not strictly true — Helen's stroke gave us no warning — but I knew what he was about to face well enough to offer the gesture) and that he should call me if he needed to talk. He said: thank you, Walt. I will.
After that Friday morning — Tom’s news, the quiet that followed, the shorter-than-usual gathering — I found myself wanting to do something with my hands. The garden gives you that on most days, but some days you want a kitchen task, something warm coming out of the oven that you could wrap up and leave on a neighbor’s step. This ham and cheese puff pastry is exactly that kind of recipe: not a project, not a performance, just something golden and good that says I’m thinking of you without requiring you to say much at all.
Ham and Cheese Puff Pastry
Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 22 minutes | Total Time: 37 minutes | Servings: 8
Ingredients
- 1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed
- 4 oz thinly sliced ham
- 4 oz Swiss or Gruyère cheese, thinly sliced or shredded
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1 egg, beaten (for egg wash)
- 1 tablespoon water
- Flaky sea salt, for finishing
- Fresh thyme leaves, optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven. Heat your oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Prepare the pastry. Unfold the thawed puff pastry sheet on a lightly floured surface. Gently roll it out just enough to smooth any creases, keeping it roughly 10 by 12 inches.
- Spread the mustard. Spread Dijon mustard evenly over the pastry, leaving a 1-inch border on all sides.
- Layer the filling. Lay the ham slices evenly over the mustard, then top with the cheese. If using fresh thyme, scatter a few leaves over the cheese now.
- Roll and seal. Starting from one long edge, roll the pastry into a tight log. Pinch the seam closed firmly and tuck the ends under. Place seam-side down on the prepared baking sheet.
- Apply egg wash. Whisk the egg with 1 tablespoon of water. Brush the egg wash over the entire surface of the roll. Score the top lightly with a sharp knife in 3 or 4 diagonal cuts to allow steam to escape. Sprinkle with flaky sea salt.
- Bake. Bake for 20–22 minutes, until deep golden brown and puffed. Let rest on the pan for 5 minutes before slicing.
- Slice and serve. Cut into 8 even pieces with a serrated knife. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 245 | Protein: 9g | Fat: 16g | Carbs: 17g | Fiber: 1g | Sodium: 390mg