We’re all in self-isolation and practising social distancing, but that won’t stop us from celebrating some Easter fun! These are me Easter Garlic and Potato Hornets made with fresh dill, spring onions and delicious roasted garlic.
I always find the amount of chocolate consumed around this holiday a little bit crazy! As much as I love chocolate and sweets, I really wanted to create something simple and savoury to take along to an Easter luncheon. These are different, and are always a hit in the parties not just because they are delicious but because they aren’t sweet! I love that they look like carrots and are super fun to make along with kids – perfect for those obscure office parties and kids events!
You can make these with a range of fillings. I’ve done so before with a simple spinach and ricotta filling, but you could also use some cooked sausage, or left over mince to mix it up. The possibilities for the fillings are endless!
The trick to nailing these hornets is all in the pastry. You can use metal pastry cones to bake the puff pastry to get the cone shape (available on Amazon) or you can make your own foil cones. The foil technique is easy, creates rustic and different shaped cones and saves you a bit of room in the cupboards.
The other key in this recipe to maximising the flavour is the roasted garlic. Trust me when I say it will completely change your mashed potatoes going forward. Simply create a make-shift bowl using the foil and add some olive oil it along with whole garlic cloves with the skin on. Close the edges of the foil bowl such that you create a little pocket for the garlic and place this on the baking tray along with the prepared hornets.
The result? Incredibly flavourful roasted garlic to mix through the mashed potatoes,
To watch how we made these, check out our video below!
Here is the recipe card for you to follow
Garlic and Potato Hornets
Equipment
- Oven
- Foil or Metal baking cones
- Saucepan
Ingredients
- 3 sheets of puff pastry thawed and at room temperature
- 3 medium potatoes, boiled
- 4 cloves of garlic with the skin on
- 2 tbsp. chopped spring onions scallions
- 1 tsp fresh dill leaves ½ tsp if using dried dill
- 1 tsp black and white sesame seeds
- 1 egg at room temperature
- a few drops of orange food colouring mix red and yellow if you cannot find orange
- 1 tbsp. milk
- salt & pepper to taste
- Dill or parsley stalk
- 1 tbsp. olive oil
- Olive oil spray
- ⅓ cup milk or cream optional
- ½ tsp paprika optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 150°C/300°F and prepare a baking tray with baking paper
- If using metal cones, spray these with olive oil and set onto the baking tray. If using foil, cut a square piece and the fold it in half before using your fingers to wrap the foil into a cone. Spray this with olive oil and set onto the baking tray
- Cut the puff pastry into 1 inch thick strips
- Gently take 1 strip of puff pastry and fold in half lengthways (the strip should be ½ an inch thick) and then wrap this strip around the prepared foil cone or metal cone. Make sure you pinch the pastry at the tip. Repeat with another strip of pastry and then set the cone onto the baking tray. Repeat with the remaining pastry strips
- Mix the egg with 1 tbsp. of milk and a drop at a time of food colouring until you get a nice orange colour
- Use a pastry brush to brush this egg wash over the prepared cones
- Top the cones with sesame seeds
- Create a small bowl using foil and add in the olive oil, and the garlic cloves. Secure the top of the bowl by pinching the sides to create a pocket. Place this pocket on the side of the baking tray
- Place the baking tray in the oven for roughly 15-20 minutes until the cones are golden brown. Brush the cones once more halfway through to help develop some crunch and the orange colour. Note: the garlic needs to be removed after 12 minutes
- In a boil, mash the boiled potato with the spring onions, salt and pepper along with the ⅓ cup of milk/cream if you are using it. Add the paprika and mix well if you are using it. Mash this mixture until smooth
- Remove the garlic from the oven after 12 minutes and set aside to cool slightly
- Peel the skin off of the cooled garlic (this should be really easy) and then add the garlic to the potato mash and combine really well
- Remove the baking tray once the cones are orange, and crispy and set aside to cool
- Once the cones are cool enough to touch, remove the foil or metal cones gently aiming to preserve the shape of the cone as much as possible
- Fill a pastry bag with large nozzle with the potato mixture
- Pipe the potato mixture into each cone until filled
- Decorate the cone with the stalk to make it look like a carrot! Serve these right away
