Almond Puff Loaf
Almond Puff Loaf
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| Yield: | 16 to 20 servings |
Ingredients
First Layer
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter*, cut into pats or 1/2-inch cubes
- 1 cup King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
- 1/4 cup water
- *If you're using unsalted butter, add 1/4 teaspoon salt.
Second Layer
- 1 cup water
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter*
- 1 cup King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
- 3 large eggs, at room temperature; warm them, in the shell, in hot tap water for 10 minutes if they're cold from the fridge
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- *If you're using unsalted butter, add 1/4 teaspoon salt.
Topping
- 2/3 cup jam or preserves
- 1/2 to 2/3 cup slivered or sliced almonds, toasted in a 350°F oven for about 7 to 10 minutes, or until they're a light, golden brown
Icing
- 1/2 cup confectioners' or glazing sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 4 teaspoons milk or water (approximately)
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease (or line with parchment) a large cookie sheet.
1) First layer: In a medium-sized mixing bowl, combine the butter, flour, and salt (if you're using it), working the butter into the flour with a pastry blender or fork, your fingers, or a mixer. Mix until everything is crumbly, then stir in the water. The dough will become cohesive, though not smooth.
2) Divide the dough in half; if you're using a scale, each half will weigh about 4 5/8 ounces. Wet your hands, and shape each piece of this wet dough into a rough log. Pat the logs into 10" x 3" rectangles on the sheet, leaving at least 4" (but preferably 6") between them, and 2" on each side. These puff up in the oven (hence the name), and you need to leave them room for expansion.
3) Second layer: In a medium-sized saucepan, bring the water and butter to a boil. Stir until the butter melts, then add the flour (and salt, if you're using it) all at once. Stir the mixture with a spoon till it thickens, begins to steam, and leaves the sides of the pan; this will happen very quickly.
4) Transfer the dough to a mixing bowl, or the bowl of an electric mixer. Beat it at medium speed for 30 seconds to 1 minute, just to cool it down a bit.
5) Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition; beat until the dough loses its "slimy" look, and each egg is totally absorbed.
6) Mix in the almond extract.
7) Divide the batter in half. Spread half the batter over one of the dough strips on the pan, covering it completely. Repeat with the remaining batter and dough.
8) With a spatula (or your wet fingers) spread the batter until it completely covers the entire bottom layer of dough. Smooth it out as best you can.
9) Bake the pastry for 50 minutes to 1 hour, or until it's a deep golden brown. Remove it from the oven, and transfer each pastry to a wire rack.
10) Topping: Spread each warm pastry with about 1/3 cup of jam or preserves. (Any flavor is fine, but our favorites are raspberry and apricot.)
11) Sprinkle the toasted almonds atop the jam. By this time, your beautifully puffed pastries are probably starting to sink; don't worry, this is all part of the plan.
12) Icing: Stir together the sugar, vanilla, and enough milk or water to form a thick but "drizzlable" icing.
13) Drizzle the icing atop the pastries.
14) Cut into squares or strips to serve.
Reviews
05/06/2012- Once again, it's a 5 stars, I made it for a special occasion diner, and it was the peak of the party, some of my guest told me that it is the best dessert they have ever eaten, it made me feel proud, I will bake it for every special occasion. The only difference in the recipe, is that I baked it 8 minutes longer.
- 02/07/2012
- I tried this recipe finally today (I've been drooling over it for awhile). I halved the recipe to make just one "log" and mixed the pie crust in the food processor. I rolled it out to about 1/4" thick and stuck it in the fridge on parchment while doing the choux pastry. I Followed the recipe pretty exactly (rare for me, LOL) and as I watched it bake decided two things: Next time I will roll the pie crust just a little thinner, and I learned that I hadn't spread the choux far enough beyond the edge of the pie crust in some places, because it shrunk up especially at the ends and exposed the pie crust (this made the two layers separate easily when cool). I found that the full hour baking made a beautifully browned pastry. I used apricot unsweetened jam and toasted slivered almonds on top, then the bare minimum of icing flavored with vanilla and almond extract. It's delicious and just sweet enough for us, who like sweets but not TOO sweet - the jam and icing were just enough. But before I baked this I was reading the reviews about putting a filling between the pie crust and the choux pastry and was muttering to my husband about what would be good for that - cream cheese, lemon curd, custard?" He said "How about that sun-dried tomato and gorgonzola mixture you put in that savory cheesecake you made?" On goes the lightbulb! The only choux pastry I have done before is cheese gougere.....how about a savory base with a spread of sun-dried tomatoes and gorgonzola cheese with the cheese choux pastry above? Then I said, "But what would I put on top instead of jam and almonds?" and he said, "More cheese, of course!" I'll be doing some serious experimenting now - thanks for the inspiration!
- 10/22/2011
- This is a very old, traditional Scandinavian recipe which my family has made and handed down all my life (without the jam). It is also called Kringle or Kringler. It is an outstanding recipe, which has a cream puff batter on top of a pie crust-like base. We use almond in the icing which adds to the almond flavor. It is a very special recipe which we bake for Christmas morning. My family would not know what to do if they did not have it before opening gifts. It is not difficult. Try it!! everyone is always impressed and goes for seconds!!
09/16/2011- This is very tasty but not delicious. Perhaps adding another layer before the fruit jam of custard or pastry cream could move it from tasty to delicious. Made the recipe as directed except I had no slivered almonds so I toasted chopped almonds - slivered would definitely be better. This is relatively simple and quick to throw together so I most likely will try it again with an extra layer of something creamy and sweet under the fruit spread.
08/14/2011- i have been making this recipe for 31 years. as has been noted it is in the betty crocker cookbook without the jam, and more glaze. for those of you who found the almond flavor lacking, i suggest leaving off the jam, and going for more glaze. this has been my tried and true company breakfast pastry all this time, with me getting up extra early to have it ready for breakfast. i also have never used a mixer to beat in the eggs. it is not hard to do with a good wooden spoon and a little elbow grease. a couple less things to wash. i gave it four stars because the recipe is right, but i can't imagine taking away from the pure almond flavor with jam!
- 07/11/2011
- Comparatively fast and easy for the elaborate look and taste. Toasting almonds, glazing and spreading, etc was pretty fussy, but not difficult. It's not a one dish dessert, that's for sure. Next time I think I will use lemon curd instead of jam on top - maybe a cream cheese layer between the two pastries as discussed by other bakers. I did not grease or parchment my pan and they still slid right off beautifully.
- 05/13/2011
- Could not believe something this easy could possibly be this delicous!
- 05/12/2011
- This recipe looked beautiful just like the picture and tasted pretty good. But my family preferred a sweeter pastry when indulging.
- 05/11/2011
- This recipe is so easy to make though it does take time with all the steps. I made homemade blueberry jam today specifically for this recipe. It's a fabulous recipe! I love the texture and taste! Delicious!
- 05/09/2011
- This was not as almond-y as I though it would be. I used 2 tsp. extract in the pastry, and it still did not taste like almond. Also, there was not very much icing to drizzle -I would probably double the recipe for icing if I made this again. I used half the amount of extract, and subbed almond for the vanilla, so it helped a little with the flavor. Maybe next time I will try some ground almonds in the crust. Overall, it was a good recipe, it just needs a little "tweaking", I think.
