Date and Mushroom Turnovers
Do you have difficulty finding options for those times where your beyond hungry but it’s too late for a full meal when the next is so close? Turnovers. Problem solved. Get tucked into a golden crusted bundle stuffed with a creamy vegan sweet and savoury filling that will satisfies the tummy grumbles but keep you ready for anything else that may come.
What are turnovers?
Turnovers. Well, kinda simple if you ask me. It’s literally pastry that’s stuffed with a sweet or savoury filling and then folded over on it’s self. Baked until golden brown and placed into hungry bellies for pleasure. Simple right? I told you.
You can either make your own puff pastry (this is somewhat a hard endeavour if your new to the pastry game) or buy it. I did use bought pastry in this recipe because the goal is needing food quickly like making lunches for the following day in a hurry. Making your own puff pastry doesn’t lend itself to speed, very well. If you are in the mood for a day long baking session, by all means, try making your own. As I always rant on about, make things from scratch when you can. It is so important to make purees, doughs, pastries, sauces and cakes yourself because these are the building blocks to cooking. When you have the time (and it helps when you’re in a good mood), try a dish or element in cooking that you normally wouldn’t to understand and challenge yourself in the kitchen.
I have written the recipe for puff pastry here just in case you are wanting that challenge i’m talking about;
Ingredients
2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups unsalted butter, cold
1/2 cup cold water
Instructions
Place the flour and salt in a large bowl and whisk to combine.
Cut the cold butter into 1/4-inch slices and add to the flour mixture, tossing to coat.
Stir in the cold water until a thick dough forms.
Gather the dough into a ball, flatten it into a disk-shape, and wrap in plastic wrap.
Chill for 1 hour in the fridge, or 20 to 30 minutes in the freezer.
Unwrap the dough, dust the work surface with flour, and roll the dough into a rough rectangle shape.
Fold the dough in thirds, like a letter.
Turn 90 degrees, roll and fold again.
Repeat about 2 to 4 times, wrap the dough in plastic wrap, and chill for 2 hours or overnight (reference)
Triangles aren’t in style..
Ok, if you don’t like the shape of triangles, no judgment here, there is room for change with this particular recipe. Rectangles, squares, even circles if you're feeling really adventures. I say the shape doesn’t really matter because this recipe isn’t structured and centred on the end shape. Many dishes, like Challah, pull apart rolls and cookies, are made with the exact shape in mind and changing this somewhat destroys the recipe.
Turnovers come in a variety of other names and it’s funny because many of these are also not triangles but I shall list them just so we are all on the same page if you’re a little confused. For example;
pasties
triangles
flip jacks
passels
patties
savoury tarts
I don’t agree with all these names as they are often very specific to a filling, type of pastry and funnily enough, shape. As I mentioned before, this doesn’t apply for this recipe. Shape as you want, shape as you please.
The Filling
Date and mushrooms are like tomatoes and mozzarella, peas and carrots, oil and vinegar or salt and pepper. Maybe not so commercialised or globalised as the other duos listed above but they sure are a match made in heaven. Why, you may ask? The woody, earthy notes from the mushrooms, especially when cooked (realising the flavour), complements the natural sweetness within the dates. When the dates are cooked, they don’t break down completely, but their flavour does bleed so you are tasting this subtle sweetness throughout. Dates also have a number of other benefits as do mushrooms. Shall I talk over them so this recipe becomes more than just a speedy snack, but a nutritious one too?
Nutrition Profile of Dates;
In 100 grams of dried dates, they have a very similar calorie count to dried figs or raisins. This 100 grams also contains;
magnesium
fibre
copper
potassium
protein
iron
vitamin B6
carbohydrates
manganese
This means dates are great for;
digestive health
antioxidants to fight other diseases
effective in slowing or preventing neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s
beneficial to pregnant women (particular with cervical dilation)
bone health
naturally sweet to control added, processed sugar (reference)
And for our mushroom friends, they contain + benefit us how? They are;
high in antioxidants which helps fight anti-aging, boosts the immune system, can reduces risk of heart disease and cancer
contains beta glucan which is an essential solitary fibre that helps boost heart health and fights high cholesterol
contains 3 essential B vitamins - riboflavin, niacin, and pantothenic acid. The combination helps protect general heart health. Riboflavin = red blood cells, Niacin = digestive system + maintaining healthy skin and Pantothenic acid = the nervous system + hormone production and regulation
contains copper that is necessary for the production of red bold cells which regulates oxygen levels in the body
high levels of potassium which helps the heart, nerves and muscle function. It contains 2-3 times as much potassium as in bananas (reference)
There you have it. Not only is this mushroom/date duo a perfect flavour combination but it’s also a fighting team for the benefit to your body health as well. The most important factor for achieving and absorbing these benefits are the quality of your mushrooms and dates. I used dattlebäre dates because their quality - including bio farming, local sourcing, clean drying and flavour - means it’s hard to go wrong when purchasing from them. Trust me in this, I have tried a number of different date companies to give you accurate and reliable information.
For the mushroom types, you can use basic button or brown cup mushrooms if this is all you have access too - don’t worry many countries only source the most “common” types of mushrooms for maximum sales - but if you have access to shiitake or portobello mushrooms, then these have better advantages to them. For example, portobello mushrooms do contain more potassium that do the button cup mushrooms. Shiitake mushrooms have a much richer and nuttier flavour that lends itself better to the sweetness in the dates.
Packing these babies up
Ok, before I go, I wanted to touch on how to store and pack these gems up for daytime lunches or nibbles (if they havent been devoured upon initial baking). There is much discussion about whether puff pastry is successful in keeping for meals the following day. In my eyes, I think it’s about the way of keeping that is the determinate of this. Make sure you don’t stack the parcels on top of each other and this will be the main factor to extend the life of and make puff pastry work for the following day. I actually purposely make this a day ahead of time for convenience/ meal prep so I can pack them into my lunch (also often my boyfriend’s lunch). They do perfectly. Also, I know people cannot always heat their food the next day, which is absolutely fine as these do well as cold snacks, but if you have access to a microwave or stove or even an oven, given them a little zing of heat and they will be as good as gold.
Freezing is always a great solution for ahead of time prep. Make the filling and freeze for an easy, end of week dinner solution. Simply remove the frozen filling about 6 hours before needing or simply, in the morning when you wake up. Then all you have to do is heat the oven, fill the puff pastry and bake. That cuts 15-20 minutes of chopping and cooking off and then dinner will be ready in just 10 minutes. WOW! The perfect Friday night TV meal, cheaper and healthier than take away for sure.
Anyway, i’ll depart and leave you to enjoy.
xxx
Date and Mushroom Turnovers
Ingredients
For the Turnovers
500 grams brown mushrooms, peeled and chopped
1 small onion, peeled and diced
1/2 leek, halved and sliced
2 garlic cloves, peeled and diced
1/2 tsp dried thyme
12 DattelBare dates, pip removed and diced
1/2 cup brown lentils, cooked and drained
1/2 cup veggie or chicken stock
2 sheets of puff pastry, cold
For the Sauce
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp flour
1 tsp table salt
1 cup milk of choice
1/2 cup water
Method
In a large pan, cook the onion, leek and garlic for 2-3 minutes in one tablespoon of cooking oil. Add the remaining ingredients except for the stock. Cook for 5-6 minutes or until the vegetables have reduced in size. Add the stock and simmer for 4-5 minutes or until the liquid has evaporated. Set aside.
Next, add the butter and salt to a small pan and allow to melt. Add the flour, mixing to coat in the melted butter and then immediately add one third of the milk, mix until incorporated. Add half of the water, mixing to incorporate and repeat until the liquid has been used up and the resulting sauce is thick. Pour the sauce over the vegetables and mix to combine.
To assemble, create 6 squares out of each pastry sheet. Place 1-2 tablespoons of mixture in the middle of the square and fold on a diagonal. Seal by pressing a fork along the edges, creating a crimp. Repeat until the pastry has been used.
Line a baking tray with parchment paper. Place the triangles on the tray and brush with olive oil. Sprinkle a small amount of sea salt on each.
Bake in an oven at 175℃ for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown and risen in size. Enjoy nice and warm.