Transform four simple ingredients into a festive dessert recipe for an Easy Puff Pastry Snowflake filled with chocolate or jam.
If there’s one thing I have in my freezer 365 days a year (other than vanilla bean ice cream), it’s store-bought puff pastry. It’s a staple in our house for countless reasons … and countless recipes!
Versatility ranks number 1 on my list, with this affordable freezer item working both its savory and sweet magic.
On the savory front, we’ve got the top two fan favorites: Bacon, Egg and Cheese Toast Cups and Everything Pigs In a Blanket. But the easy, and often times cheesy, creations don’t stop there!
Appetizers come in the form of Baked Brie Bites with Jam and a rainbow-centric Tomato Tart with Caramelized Onions.
Now that we have the savory front covered, we can direct all eyes to the newest, sweetest star on the block: Puff Pastry Snowflake! It’s the perfect complement to its confectionery cousin, the Puff Pastry Christmas Tree.
I’m all about the visuals when it comes to filling, slicing, twisting and transforming just four simple ingredients into something as show-stopping as an edible, pull-apart snowflake. And while you’re whipping up these festive treats, why not pair them with my Christmas Margarita to complete your holiday spread? It’s the perfect drink to sip while you create!
Don’t let the stunning end result intimidate you! Take it one step at a time, beginning with slathering Nutella or jam atop one sheet of puff pastry and sandwiching a second piece on top.
Placing a small bowl or cup in the center of the filled pastry pocket serves as a guide for where to make your cuts.
Pro tip: Ensure your wedges are evenly spaced apart by making four initial cuts (top, bottom, left and right) to create four even sections. From there, you can cut each of the four sections into four smaller wedges to form a total of 16 pieces.
Next up, grab two pieces and twist them around two or three times then pinch them firmly together. Repeat the twisting and sealing process with the remaining pieces to form eight tips to your puff pastry snowflake.
All that’s left to do is brush on an egg wash, sprinkle on a little sanding sugar (for glistening crunch) and get that powdered sugar ready for a snowy shower!
If you’re digging this sweet puff pastry treat, don’t miss my Puff Pastry Christmas Tree!
Ingredients
- All-purpose flour, for dusting work surface
- 1 (17.3-oz.) package frozen puff pastry (2 sheets), thawed
- 1/3 cup Nutella or jam
- 1 large egg beaten with 1 Tablespoon water
- Crystal sanding sugar, for topping (optional)
- Confectioners' sugar, for dusting
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Lightly flour your work surface then unfold both sheets of puff pastry. Using a rolling pin, lightly roll each sheet to seal together any perforations.
- Cut each sheet of puff pastry into a 9-inch circle. (The easiest way to do this is to trace around a large bowl.) Place one of the circles on the lined baking sheet.
- Spread the Nutella in the center of the puff pastry circle on the baking sheet, leaving a 1/2-inch border around the edges of the circle.
- Place the second puff pastry circle atop the Nutella, pressing the two pieces of puff pastry together lightly to seal them together.
- Place a 2- or 3-inch glass or bowl in the center of the circle. Using a sharp knife or pizza wheel, cut from the edge of the glass outward to make 16 wedges around the circle.
- Remove the glass then brush the pastry all over with the egg wash.
- Twist two of the wedges in toward each other then pinch them together to seal them shut. Repeat the twisting and sealing process with the remaining wedges to form 8 points to the snowflake.
- Sprinkle the sanding sugar (optional) all over the top of the snowflake then bake it until the pastry is golden brown and puffed, 20 to 25 minutes.
- Remove the pastry snowflake from the oven and set it aside to cool slightly before dusting it with confectioners’ sugar and serving.
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Recipe by Kelly Senyei of Just a Taste. Please do not reprint this recipe without my permission. If you'd like to feature this recipe on your site, please rewrite the method of preparation and link to this post as the original source.
I made a test one first! A smaller size
I cut my pastry in half and cut that half in half again making a square
Very very nice my cooking time was reduced due to size and temp reduced for convection oven (15 min @385 F)
So glad you enjoyed it, Page!
Hi Kelly,
Is there any way to make the snowflake with Brie cheese?
I am make a Brie appetizer for a party on Friday and thought this would be more festive than just the Brie round.
Thank you!
Hi Diane! Brie would be difficult in this recipe because you really want to use something you can spread (and that won’t ooze out too much). You could do an egg wash all over and then grated Parmesan, which would stick and not melt too quickly. Hope that helps!
Looks yummy and easy. Will definitely try
I hope you enjoy the recipe, Maria!
If I am using chocolate chips instead of Nutella, do I need to melt the chocolate chips first since it’s going in the oven anyway? Also, what kind and how many chocolate chips do I use? Please let me know as soon as possible and thank you so much for sharing this recipe.
Hi Krystina! Yes, you’ll want to melt about 1 cup of semisweet chocolate chips so that they are spreadable.
Love the snow flake puff pastry. I used PB instead. Delishes! Added mini dark chocolate chips! Yummy for sure!
So glad you enjoyed the recipe, Jo!
What did you use for the filling? I am not a fan of Nutella but love the idea of the snowflake.
You can use any other spreadable filling, including: jam, cookie butter, peanut butter, melted chocolate or even basil pesto or olive tapenade for a savory spin!
Kelly can I make it like a cinnamon roll I’m unfortunately not a fan of Nutella!
Please let me know if that’s possible
Thank Laurie
Absolutely, Laurie! You can use any type of filling.
I’m using apple pie filling that i chopped in the food processor and chopped walnuts on mine. House smells amazing! My next one I’ll try cherry pie filling with sliced almonds. Thanks for the recipe
Brilliant filling ideas, Chris! Enjoy!
This was an easy recipe and seems very adaptable to different fillings. It also looks very impressive to bring to an event!
I’m so thrilled to hear that you enjoyed the recipe, Julie!
My friend made one for a Christmas party. It was delicious! I made one to bring to our family Christmas party today but I’m NOT telling anyone how easy it is to make. It’ll be our little secret! LOL!
I’m so glad to hear that you enjoyed the recipe, Maureen!
Can I prepare it the day before and leave it in the fridge raw?
Hi Sole! I haven’t tried that but I’m concerned the pastry would start to dry out.
Just made this- very straightforward , looks great! Will be tasting it later!
I’m so glad that you enjoyed the recipe, Julia!
This was Soooo yummy! My family loved it. I made it with Nutella and I’ anxious to try it with jam! I made mine with a smaller bowl and got three from the pastry! Perfect for sharing!
I’m thrilled to hear that you and your family enjoyed the recipe, Dusty!
I made this with poppy seed filling and it was a big hit. Thank you for sharing. I love easy and tasty recipes.
I’m glad to hear that you enjoy the recipe, Mare! With poppy seed filling sounds great!
Your recipes are outstanding!
I’m so thrilled to hear that you enjoy the recipes, Sheila!
This looks great! Can it be made with cinnamon sugar for the filling?
Absolutely, Michelle!
I made both the snowflake and the Christmas tree desserts and both were easy and delicious. They may look complicated but could not have been much easier, and impressed our hostess and guests. Thank you for this festive last-minute idea.
I’m so thrilled to hear that you enjoyed making both recipes, Rose!!
Love this recipe!
Beautiful and a big hit with the family! Thank you so much
I’m so happy to hear that you and your family enjoyed the recipe, Debbie!
I’m still looking for the Pizza ring recipe
Hi Sheila! Do you mean the puff pastry with pesto ring?
Can I leave this out for a day or two after it’s cooked?
Hi Grace! This definitely is best when fresh :)
I made 2 of the snowflakes and they turned out amazing! I made them for my work Christmas party! I will be making this again!!
So glad you enjoyed the recipe, Tammy!
Could you make this ahead of time and freeze, then reheat?
Yes, that will work! It’s definitely best fresh but it can be frozen and reheated.
I think pie filling from can would also be great!!!
Definitely!
I’m making this next week, hope it comes out as good as this one did!!
Looking forward to reading your results, Dale!
I made 2. They loved it and it was so easy. So yummy and impressive. I sprinkled mine with powdered sugar thru a sifter. Looked so nice!
Amazing! I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe, Lori!
This will be a recipe I will definitely make. Thinking of making it for our Christmas get together….
I hope you enjoy the recipe, Beata!
I cannot use Nutella (allergies). What would work best for a chocolate filling?
Hi Mary! You could use any variety of melted chocolate or even cookie butter, pumpkin butter, etc.!
I made this beautiful creation with pesto rather than Nutella or jam
An incredible savoury dish
YUM! I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe, Karina!
This is absolutely stunning!
Thank you so much, Kristy! Enjoy!