For passionate cooks and appreciative diners, there is nothing more expected on these dates than having on the table any dish that smells, tastes or transmits Christmas. Traditional casseroles are greeted with joy every year, but new, easy and surprising recipes are also expected to delight your guests, and this pesto-stuffed Christmas tree will do the trick.

This is a very simple recipe, which only requires a little patience to give it the beautiful shape of a tree and to have a good pesto prepared (you can do it in advance or, if you prefer, buy it already made). The pesto for the filling of this tree is basil, but you can use the one you like the most or make several trees with the different pestos that you will find here , along with the basil one.

To make it easier for you, in addition to the recipe, you have the video of the process, which you can see below.

Ingredients

  • 2 sheets of refrigerated puff pastry
  • Traditional or basil pesto (you can buy it or make it, you will find the recipe here )
  • 1 beaten egg

Preparation

  1. Preheat the oven to 180 °C.
  2. Extend the puff pastry masses.
  3. Place one sheet on top of the other without pressing them, and cut them into triangles. Reserve the cut dough remains.
  4. Place parchment paper on a baking sheet ( De Buyer Perforated Nonstick Sheet Pan , or a smooth sheet pan, such as the Nordic Ware Naturals® Collection Sheet Pan ).
  5. Separate the two masses again and place one of them on the baking paper, and distribute the pesto on top, covering the entire surface. You want to use the well-blended pesto or the thickest part, or the oil will run off the puff pastry.
  6. Arrange the other triangle on the pesto, so that both masses are even.

7. With the leftover dough reserved earlier, cut out a star and place it on top of the tree.
8. With a sharp knife, cut the dough in straight lines, from the center out, leaving an uncut center line of about 2 centimeters. Do it first on one side and then on the other.
10. Curl the strips of the tree, also from the center out. You can curl them all up, or alternately twist one strip up and another strip down.
11. Brush the entire tree with beaten egg.
12. Bake at 180 °C for about 20 to 35 minutes, until you see the swollen and golden dough.
Serve, enjoy, and happy holidays!

    Grades

    • As I told you at the beginning, you can buy the pesto made. They are very rich and of good quality. But I assure you that doing it will take you very little time and you can always have it prepared in advance so as not to complicate yourself in the kitchen when you want to prepare the tree.
    • This recipe allows you many possibilities. You can apply the filling that you prefer to the tree, such as the classic empanadillas or a more "sophisticated" one with apple, foie gras and caramelized onion, for example; you can make several trees of different sizes with different fillings; or, if you are skilled in crafts, make the drawings you want and surprise your guests.

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