Jill continues this week with her fabulous festive food, and this week's creation is perfect for any Christmas party, family and friends get-together, or just because you deserve a little treat of chocolatey goodness!
INGREDIENTS…
Makes 1 tree
2 sheets ready rolled puff pastry
2-3 tbsp Nutella or any other chocolate spread
6 segments Terry's Chocolate Orange, melted
1 egg, beaten
Icing sugar, to dust
INSTRUCTIONS…
• Preheat the oven to 180 degrees fan. Line a large flat baking tray with baking paper.
Unroll the two puff pastry sheets and place one on top of the other on the baking tray.
• Cut the pastry into a tree shape with a trunk at the bottom. Peel off the top pastry layer and set it aside.
• Spread the Nutella gently over the puff pastry right to the edges. Melt the chocolate orange in the microwave for about a minute. Drizzle over the Nutella. Place the other pastry tree cut out on top.
• Use a star cutter or knife to cut out a star from the pastry cut offs and set aside.
• Cut branches into the sides of the triangle tree, each about 2cm wide. Leave a bit of room at the top for the star. Then twist each branch twice away from you.
• Place the pastry star on top of the tree using a little beaten egg to stick. Brush the tree with beaten egg.
• Bake for 16-20 minutes, or until risen and golden brown. Cool for a few minutes before moving to a wire rack to cool a little. Dust with icing sugar to serve.
Top tip: you can do steps 1-5 in advance and leave in the fridge until you need to cook it - just leave out of the fridge for about 20 minutes before completing steps 6&7.
MEET JILL STEWART…
Jill Stewart, from Portglenone, is a true Foodie who brings her passions together to create a unique balance of both healthy dishes and sweet treats on her Instagram social media blog, Jill Bakes.
Jill is passionate about creating and sharing recipes on her Instagram platform (@jillbakes_) which are easy to follow, quick to make and not using hundreds of ingredients! And with over nearly 49,000 followers, a lot of people are enjoying Jill’s food journey.
The County Antrim lady has been a keen baker from a very young age, learning many skills from her late Grandma who was a fantastic baker.
Jill is a regular recipe contributor for Ireland’s Homes Interiors and Living magazine.
CLICK HERE to head over to INSTAGRAM to discover JILL BAKES - it is a fantastic blog where you'll discover enough inspiration to keep you baking and cooking for months!