Sweet juicy apple goes well with this tangy regional cheese in a puff pastry case. Quick to make using ready-made puff pastry, these parcels make great picnic food. Serve with a herb and leaf salad.

Preparation time – 20 minutes
Cooking time – 40 minutes
Calories per parcel – 226
Kcal Fat per parcel – 15g of which saturated – 6.9g
Makes – 12 parcels
Suitable for vegetarians

Ready-made puff pastry 500g pack
Egg 1, beaten to glaze
Cheshire cheese 175g (6oz)
Dessert apples 1 large, peeled, quartered, cored and cut into small dice
Chopped parsley 4 tbsp
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 Preheat the oven to 220°C/425°F/Gas 7. Make the filling. Crumble the cheese into a bowl and mix the apple into the cheese with the parsley and seasoning.

2 Roll out half the pack of pastry thinly on a lightly floured surface and, using a saucer or bowl as a guide, cut out four, 12cm (5in) rounds. Stack the trimmings on top of each other then roll them out and cut out another two rounds.

3 Brush the edges of the circles with a little beaten egg then spoon some filling onto one side of each of the rounds. Fold the other side over the filling and press the edges together well to seal. Knock up the edges with a knife blade then flute them.

4 Place the pastries on a baking sheet and brush with beaten egg. Score each pastry three to four times across the top. Bake for 15–20 minutes until risen and golden.

5 While the first batch of pastries is cooking, roll out the rest of the pastry and make the second batch, as above. Serve warm with salad.

Cook’s tips
Use a 600ml (1 pint) pudding basin as a size guide for cutting the pastry.
Cooking one batch at a time ensures a better rise for all the pastries rather than switching trays over halfway through cooking.

Recipe taken from
Around Britain Dairy Cookbook.

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