Real Fruit Puffs/Strawberry Turnovers

Another episode of recipes down! This week we finish with Sookie’s “real fruit puffs” brought to Cinnamon’s wake at Morey and Babette’s. Wrapping up a lot happens at the end of this episode! We see Max attempt to pick up Lorelai for their first official date, Rory finding Max at their front door instead and Dean and Rory finally acknowledge their feelings for each other… all of which you probably could have gotten for the Netflix synopsis… moving on…

I posted a picture of Dean on my instagram page to get a feel for how you guys feel about the boyfriends from GG, I know it’s a very passionate issue for a lot of us, and I was even surprised to learn that those who did choose to comment with their allegiance were Team Logan! I feel like I need to do a follow up instagram poll to get a more accurate representation, so be on the look-out for that today!

I am hesitant to publicly proclaim which camp I’m in. Partially because it has changed several times throughout multiple watchings of the show, and also because I’m mainly here for Sookie’s food, so why not just grab a bowl of popcorn and watch everyone else duke it out in the comment section, right? Just kidding, I’m always willing to engage in a healthy Gilmore Girl’s-centered debate.

What I will say is, despite how you feel about Dean by the end of the series, the early Rory and Dean episodes are so adorable. I love watching the way Rory completely spazzes out on the bus when sneaks up behind her, and how she constantly puts herself where Dean is only to avoid him at all costs once he actually tries to interact with her. I definitely remember completely embarrassing myself several times from not knowing how to properly process the feelings from my first crush, but I know better than to embarrass myself eternally by documenting it here on the internet… Thank the Lord I went through that phase just before social media was around to proclaim love for someone in front of the world wide web!

But let’s get to the real purpose of this post now, shall we? Our last recipe from episode 1.05 - Cinnamon’s Wake are Sookie’s “Real Fruit Puffs.” A couple things here… 1 - I’m not sure what makes them “real fruit” puffs… what would fake fruit be? Based on the visual provided in the episode, when Sookie is fighting with Luke for table space at the wake she is holding a plate with what looks like puff pastry turnovers - I’ll have to find the screen-grab later, but you can see the plate at 29:56.

What I really struggled with in this recipe was whether or not to make classic puff pastry from scratch. Most of my cookbooks from my kitchen library had quicker variations of puff pastry dough, which tells me that the classic method is a big commitment. I have made it one other time from scratch using a friend’s recipe that she brought over, but I no longer had access to it. If you haven’t inferred already, it takes a very long time. There’s lots of repetition and refrigeration involved. Because this is such a delicate process, I obviously used another source for the recipe. The one with the most reasonable prep time and process that worked for me was King Arthur Flour’s Classic Puff Pastry Recipe.The link also includes directions in their own blog post for folding and turning the dough, as well as when and how to chill the dough between foldings. Follow the steps until #11 and then pick up with the directions included below.

Because there was such emphasis on these being “real fruit” puffs, I decided in true Sookie form that everything should be made from scratch, so I decided to make the strawberry jam filling myself as well. I even threw in a dash of cinnamon in and pointed a finger to the sky in remembrance of the very fat, very beloved cat. RIP Cinnamon.

Final Review: I’m gunna be honest with you, these took me about 5 hours to make from start to finish, and I didn’t even give the dough as much chilling/resting time as it truly deserved. They still turned out flaky and delicious!

Rating: If you’re up for a challenge, try them out! They’re worth the effort, but just as a disclaimer, probably not a recipe to try during a time of grief.

Real Fruit Puffs (or Strawberry Turnovers)

Ingredients Puff Pastry

3 1/2 to 4 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour

2 cups unsalted butter, 4 tablespoons chilled, the rest at room temperature

1 teaspoon salt

1 1/4 cups ice water

Strawberry Jam

2 cups chopped strawberries

½ cup sugar

1 cup orange juice

2 tablespoons lemon juice

¼ teaspoon cinnamon

Directions

Follow the directions until step #11 at this link: https://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/classic-puff-pastry-pate-feuillete-recipe

Cut the dough and half and roll each half to about ¼-½” thick. Use a sharp knife or square shaped cookie cutter to cut out even squares, placing them on a lined baking sheet as you go. Place the cut out pastry squares in the fridge and prepare the strawberry jam.

Chop the strawberries and place them in a saucepan over medium heat. Mix in the sugar and orange juice and lemon juice until the sugar is dissolved. Let the mixture cook until it is reduce and the sauce coats the back of a spoon or rubber spatula. Mash whatever bits of fruit remain and remove from heat. Stir in the cinnamon and let cool completely before using.

Preheat the oven to 450°.

Take your chilled pastry squares and carefully spoon about a ½ teaspoon of jam onto the center of the square. Fold over diagonally and pinch the edges closed with prongs of a fork. Create an egg wash by mixing one egg with a spoonful of water and brush over the tops of the turnovers. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes until golden brown.

Enjoy!