Puff Pastry Swirl with Plant-Based Baked Camembert
It's the moooost wonderful tiiiime of the yeeaaaar ... but every year, it's not just Christmas. It's also time for our Lazy Christmas Dinner, a festive meal for all those who don't have the time or inclination to cook for long on the holidays. You don't have to justify yourselves to us, don't worry. As much as we love making ourselves comfortable in the kitchen and patiently preparing roasts and dumplings, we also appreciate quick comfort food. Then there's more time to eat!
So far, our focus has mainly been on cooking quicker versions of our favorite Christmas components, for example a quick gravy, a red cabbage salad instead of red cabbage, vegan fillets instead of roasts. So we made loaded tater tots with jackfruit, red cabbage slaw and quick vegan gravy, a puff pastry wreath filled with dumplings, red cabbage and vegan sausages and a gnocchi with Brussels sprouts and vegan fillets.
This year, however, there's something completely different and yet our bells were ringing when we put it on the table. There's a savory and sweet-filled puff pastry wreath with a holy vegan baked camembert waiting for you in the middle – maybe even two, but we'll get to that in a moment. The whole thing is conjured up in just 30 minutes, so let's go through the components together.
The vegan camembert:
I tested several vegan camembert alternatives to see which one melts well but doesn't melt. I was advised against vegan camembert variants that are based almost exclusively on cashews or nuts. Don't be sad, dear cashewberts of the world. We love you on a vegan cheese platter, but you just don't melt at all, and that's the whole fun of today's thing. Go for a plant-based version instead, based on cauliflower or vegetable fats. It sounds strange, but just type it into your favorite search engine, and you'll quickly find what you're looking for.
In these photos, you can see ONE vegan camembert that has made itself at home in the middle of the puff pastry wreath. However, when we ate it afterward, we realized there was still much of the puff pastry wreath left but no vegan camembert. That's why I've now included two camemberts in the recipe. Just keep in mind that you can plan one vegan camembert per puff pastry.
The vegan puff pastry:
Speaking of puff pastry. Go for the puff pastry of your choice. I liked the XXL versions for this recipe a little more, but of course, it also works with smaller doughs, spelt puff pastry and probably even with frozen puff pastry. However, I really find the rolled ready-made puff pastry from the supermarket fridge the most convenient, and we are talking about LAZY Christmas Dinner here.
The fillings for your puff pastry:
For a bit of variety, I have filled both puff pastries differently, namely with cranberry jam and a mixture of herbs, so that you have a mix of sweet and savory – both go really well with the camembert. But feel free to get creative and try out other fillings. I can also imagine using pesto, vegan cream cheese, an olive paste or tomato paste, for example. However, remember that you are already eating puff pastry and a rather fatty vegan cheese – the more oil you add to the fillings, the longer the subsequent digestive nap will be.
If you don't just want to read the whole recipe, then click here to watch the accompanying video on Instagram.
Puff Pastry Swirl with Plant-Based Baked Camembert
Ingredients
For the vegan camembert:
- 2 vegan camemberts (preferably not cashew-based)
- olive oil
- chili flakes
- salt
- pepper
For the herb mix:
- 25 g (0.75 oz) fresh herbs (e.g. parsley, rosemary, thyme, oregano)
- 1 clove of garlic
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- salt
For the dough:
- 2 ready-made vegan XXL puff pastries
Also:
- cranberry jam
- plant-based milk
- maple syrup (or agave syrup)
- fresh rosemary for serving (optional)
Instructions
Place both vegan camemberts in an ovenproof dish and cut crosswise. Drizzle with a little olive oil and sprinkle with chili flakes, salt and pepper.
For the herb mix, chop the fresh herbs and grate the garlic clove. Place both in a bowl with the olive oil and season with salt. Alternatively, you can also put everything in a chopper to make the work a little easier.
Roll out the two puff pastries. Spread one with cranberry jam and the other with the herb mixture. Roll up the dough tightly. Then, cut the dough rolls in half lengthways so that you have two long, thick strands of dough. Grasp the top and bottom of each strand of dough with your hands and twist in the opposite direction.
Preheat the oven to 180 °C / 355 °F (convection heat). Place the two vegan Camemberts on a lined baking sheet. Place one-half of the twisted strands of dough around the first Camembert and the remaining strands of dough around the second Camembert. Mix some plant-based milk with a little maple syrup and brush the puff pastry with it.
Tipp: You can, of course, also use two baking trays if you need more space or put both Camemberts on a large tray and place the strands of puff pastry directly around both like an eight.
- Place the tray in the oven at 180 °C / 355 °F (convection heat) for approximately 20 minutes until the vegan Camembert is soft and the puff pastry is golden brown. Finally, decorate with sprigs of rosemary as desired.
