Quesitos (Cream Cheese Pastries)
Flaky puff pastry rolled around sweet cream cheese and brushed with a shiny syrup. A Puerto Rican bakery favorite.
Recipe in testing: I'm cooking it in my TM7™ and will update the steps and the photo with my own.
Quesitos are the pastry that disappears first from every Puerto Rican bakery case: flaky puff pastry rolled around a sweet, creamy cream cheese filling and brushed with a shiny syrup as soon as they come out of the oven. They are made for breakfast or a midafternoon break with a strong cup of coffee.
With store-bought puff pastry they are easy to make at home. The Thermomix® TM7™ cooks the syrup and mixes a smooth filling, you roll the pastries, and the oven does the rest. Eat them warm, while the pastry still crackles.
Made in the Thermomix® TM7™
Quesitos (Cream Cheese Pastries)
Makes: 8 quesitos
- Prep25 min
- Cook25 min
- Total1 h
- Serves8
Ingredients
For the syrup
For the filling
For the pastries
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Place the sugar, water and honey in the mixing bowl and cook 5 min/100°C (212°F)/speed 1. Pour the syrup into a small bowl and let it cool.
- Place the cream cheese, sugar, egg yolk, vanilla and salt in the mixing bowl and mix 20 sec/speed 4. Scrape down the sides and mix 5 sec/speed 4 more, until smooth. Refrigerate the filling 15 minutes so it firms up.
- Unfold the puff pastry sheets on a lightly floured counter and cut each one into 4 squares, about 12 cm (4 3/4 in) each.
- Spoon about 2 tbsp of filling (35 g) in a line along one edge of each square, leaving the ends open. Roll the pastry up into a tube and place it seam side down on the baking sheet, 5 cm (2 in) apart.
- Brush the tops with the egg white wash. Bake in the oven 18 to 22 minutes, until puffed and deep golden.
- Brush the hot quesitos with the syrup twice, letting it soak in between. Let them cool 10 minutes and serve warm.
Tips
- Keep the puff pastry cold until the moment you fill it: cold pastry puffs higher and is easier to roll.
- For bite-size party quesitos, cut each sheet into 9 squares, use 1 tbsp of filling for each one and bake 15 to 18 minutes.
- Quesitos are best the day they are baked. Keep leftovers covered in the fridge for up to 2 days and warm them in the oven at 180°C (350°F) for 5 minutes.
