These vegetarian pesto, mascarpone and tomato pastry wheels are simply amazing. Just roll them out and watch them go.
Ingredients
- 25g pine nuts
- 2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
- 50g fresh basil leaves
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 25g vegetarian Parmesan, grated
- 375g pack fresh ready-rolled shortcrust pastry, brought up to room temperature
- 125g mascarpone
- 100g sun-dried tomatoes (we like Merchant Gourmet), chopped
Method
- 1. Put the pine nuts into a blender with the garlic, basil leaves and oil. Whizz to a rough-textured pesto. Season with freshly ground black pepper, add the Parmesan and pulse briefly to combine. Set aside.
- 2. Unroll the pastry and spread evenly with the mascarpone. Top with the sun-dried tomatoes and dot evenly with the pesto. Starting with 1 long edge, roll the pastry tightly like a Swiss roll. Freeze for 30 minutes.
- 3. Preheat the oven to 200°C/fan180°C/gas 6. Using a large serrated knife, slice the pastry into 28 thin rounds. Divide between 2 non-stick baking sheets, spaced slightly apart, and cover each tray with foil – this will stop the sun-dried tomatoes turning too dark in the oven. Bake for 15 minutes, then uncover and bake for 3-5 minutes more, until cooked, crisp and pale-golden. Transfer to a wire rack to cool slightly.
- 4. Overlap the pastry wheels in a circle on a large, round serving plate. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Nutritional info
Per wheel: 121kcals, 9.9g fat (3.1g saturated), 1.6g protein, 6.8g carbs, 0.3g sugar, 0.3g salt
Chef's tip
Once cooked, you can freeze these for up to 1 month. Defrost at room temperature and reheat in the oven at 200°C/fan180°C/gas 6 for 5 minutes.