Cherry Turnovers

The bright and sweet filling of a cherry turnover is the ideal flavor companion to crisp and buttery puff pastry. A wonderful treat for enjoying at breakfast, brunch, or dessert. At first bite, the exterior crisps and flakes before yielding to a gelled filling with chunks of soft dark cherries. The filling comes together in a pot before baking, ensuring that it is the right consistency before going into the pastry. Over the heat, the sugar quickly dissolves into the natural juices of the cherries, and the addition of lemon juice brightens the flavor of the cherries making it just a little tart. Lastly, a small amount of almond extract is stirred into the filling to compliment and accentuate the fruitiness of the cherries in a way that only this secret ingredient can. After the cherries have broken down slightly, some of the juice from the cherries is removed to dissolve the cornstarch before being added back into the pot. This trick prevents any lumps of cornstarch in your filling. Once the cornstarch slurry is incorporated into the warm cherry mixture, the pot goes back over the heat to boil again so the filling can thicken and make a velvety texture for the liquid the cherries are suspended in. After the filling has cooled, it's scooped into squares cut from store-bought puff pastry dough before the dough is folded into triangular pouches. The edges of the pastry are sealed, the pastries are brushed with egg wash, and in 20 minutes the turnovers are golden brown and waiting to be drizzled with a simple powdered sugar glaze.