A cute twist on traditional cheese and spinach pockets! The beauty of these Ricotta and Spinach Puff Pastry Bites is that you get so much more out of just one sheet of puff pastry because there’s a higher filling to pastry ratio!
I am addicted to cheese and spinach triangles. For Friday nights in, I’ve been known to head to the supermarket to pick up microwave popcorn and frozen cheese and spinach triangles. Choose a chick flick, open a bottle of wine, and I’m good to go.
Ahhh. My idea of a perfect Friday night. Never in a million years would I have written that 10 years ago.
I really want to say that since I’ve started blogging, I’ve never bought microwave popcorn or frozen triangles. But that would be a blatant lie. There are just some days when I can’t muster up the enthusiasm to cook. Sometimes I wonder how it is that I can cook all day and yet have nothing to eat that night. Well actually, I do. I give away a lot of food. And sometimes I give away what I should be having for dinner myself!
So yes, I eat take out – very rarely, because I grew up believing take out is bad and I can’t shake that. More likely is that I pick up frozen savoury pastries or samosas, or something like that. I have it in my irrational mind that because I have to bake them, they are half home-made. 🙂
Weird that I’m admitting to you that I love frozen triangles when I’m sharing a recipe for puffs! So blowing right past that awkward realisation…..
I like these because they are shaped differently to the usual cheese and spinach triangles you commonly see. And not only that, you get more out of one sheet of pastry because there’s a higher “filling to pastry” ratio. You get 9 of these puffs out of each sheet of puff pastry, whereas I get 4 if I make triangles for around the same amount of filling.
I wasn’t going to share these, I thought they were too boring. But when I gave a stash of them to a friend recently, she instantly wanted to know how I made them into that shape. So here’s the recipe. 🙂
– Nagi
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Ricotta and Spinach Puff Pastry Bites
Ingredients
Filling
- 1 egg
- 7 oz / 200g ricotta (preferably full fat but low fat also works) (Note 1)
- 8 oz / 250g frozen chopped spinach , thawed and squeezed of excess water
- 3/4 cup grated cheddar cheese (or tasty or gruyere or any other melting cheese with flavour)
- 3/4 tsp salt
- Black pepper
Pastry
- 2 sheets puff pastry (25cm/10" square), defrosted
- 1 egg , lightly beaten (egg wash)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180C/350F.
- Spray 2 standard muffin / cupcake tins with oil.
Filling
- Place egg in a bowl and lightly whisk. Add remaining Filling ingredients and mix to combine. Taste and adjust salt to taste.
Pastry
- Cut each pastry into 9 equal pieces (18 in total). You probably won't use 3 pieces.
- Mould 15 pieces of pastry into the muffin tins.
- Divide the Filling between each, then bring the four corners into the centre and press down to stick together. Don't overfill otherwise you won't be able to seal the pastries or they will burst open when baking (which regularly happens with mine).
- Brush with egg wash, then bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until deep golden brown.
- Allow to rest for 5 minutes before removing.
- Serve warm or cool.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
“Friday nights in, I’ve been known to head to the supermarket to pick up microwave popcorn and frozen cheese and spinach triangles. Choose a chick flick, open a bottle of wine, and I’m good to go.”
— I wish we lived in the same city. We could hang out every Friday night! I hope you head for the buttery microwave popcorn? 😉
Tina….we have TRIPLE butter popcorn here!!! He he!!
These look lovely, glad you did post these little scrumptious guys. Puff pastry rocks!
Thanks Kevin!! I agree – PUFF PASTRY rocks!!
These look so lovely. I am a big fan of spinach and cheese triangles too but home made really is the best.
Homemade is ALWAYS best! 😉
Hey, Nagi … thought you might be interested … I posted this on my personal Facebook page (by accident? can’t remember!) and one of my friends in Belgium made the little pies. She said they were great and she took them to work the next day … still delicious! I should post your stuff on my FB page more often, as you seem to be pleasing people 😉
Aw, thanks Helen!! So glad your friend enjoyed them! And right back at ya! I’m making your 6 ingredient chocolate cake tomorrow! I was going to make it today but there’s torrential rains so I’m hunkering down 😉
I love the idea of using muffin pan…they look so cute…and yes, I love that they are packed with spinach and cheese…
Thanks for this awesome idea 🙂
Thanks so much Jualiana! I think they’re pretty cute too 🙂
These puffs look so nice! I love that you can see what is inside. Why cover up the awesome filling? Definitely saving up the recipe for later!
My theory is that I get more puffs out of one sheet of puff pastry = less calories = I can have more!! 😉
Oh Nagi…. AMAZING!! I just say these on instagram and nearly died. I love spinach and ricotta puffs but have never made my own. I certainly will be now!
**GASP!** I almost fell off my chair, what do you mean you’ve never made puffs before?? Are you telling me I BAKED something before you did?? 😉
** Uncooked.
(>.<)
Too boring??! Nah! Millions of Greeks agree with me, too! I sooo miss spinach and feta ‘things’ since I left there. Really like the way you’ve made this pies in the muffin tin, too. It’s sooo easy, so therefore just up my lazy alley!
The Greeks know the spinach and feta thing better than anyone in the world!!! Come back to Australia and show us how it’s done please 🙂
Oops, I meant spinach and ricotta of course (blush)
Same same….I always interchange the two of them, inevitably have one or the other in the fridge!
These are so clever, Nagi and I LOVE you for admitting that food writers, bloggers and chef eat crap food just like everyone else, just not so often. I would much prefer these puffs than a frozen triangle and now my brain is racing trying to decide what else to stuff these with.
Possibilities are endless, right?? I’m thinking of trying a samosa filling next!
What’s particularly amazing about this recipe (aside from your brilliant pastry saving, labor simplifying, time creating shape), is that spinach puffs freeze so well!
I’m really the only spinach puff person in the house (though they’re one of my go to party foods) so every couple months I make up a batch, freeze them on a cookie sheet, pop the frozen puffs into a zippy bag and toaster oven 3-4 every now and then for happy mom snacks. (I don’t even bother to thaw them, just toss them on some foil and add 5min to the cook time) [+red pepper flakes, and a dash of greek seasoning]
I have bags of these in my freezer too! Do you freeze them cooked or uncooked? I freeze them cooked 🙂 Main reason being that my freezer is so full, a cookie tray won’t fit!
Over the years I’ve cracked down on how much we put in our tiny freezer, so there’s always a space at the top under the vent for a cookie sheet of something. =^.^= I had to start getting people to put things away in portion size bags, but it’s been worth it.
Every week I try to clear out my freezer, plan to make things to reduce it down to necessary stock. Never works! One trick I learnt is to put soups and things into ziplock bags and flatten them, and stack them on top of each other, lying flat. That saves so much space!
Exactly! Between that, having a “leftovers remastered freeforall” dinner once a week where everyone gets to do what they want with w/e leftovers we’ve got in the house, and pressure canning leftover soup/stew into pint jars, our freezer is a much happier place.
A plastic file bin has helped keep the flattened frozen bags from escaping. And set across the freezer from the ice bin gives the cookie sheets something stable and flat to rest on while letting cold air circulate under them.
They are perfect finger food for parties. I am glad that you shared with us. The shaping is so cute, easy to grab!
Yup, totally true!! Glad you like the shape too. Convenient AND cute! 🙂
Love any combination of spinach and cheese! I’ve actually made the Bon Appetit recipe with feta but using ricotta sounds delicious, too. I’ll have to give these a try! Also – sounds like a perfect Friday night 😉
Oh! I think Feta was the original recipe, and I just used ricotta cause that’s what I had 🙂 Pretty sure their ingredients list was longer too!! 🙂
These look amazing! School goes back next week, so I think I’ll be making a batch of these for my lunch! Yummo!
Oh, and my idea of a great Friday night 10 years ago WAS a nice bottle of Semillon and a platter of cheese, cold meats, pate and crackers. Showing my age now! ;)
So what’s your idea of a perfect Friday night now?! 🙂
Since I’m still on maternity leave after having the Small One, every night is a Friday night, right? 😉
A perfect night = kids asleep by 7.30pm, a leisurely dinner with J Daddy, and then full control of the TV remote, and if it takes my fancy, a small snack of chips (I love my chips). I don’t even need wine if this happens. And, to be honest, this actually happens more often than not! 😀
I love my chips too!! I could happily live on chips and dip forever 🙂 No chocolate required. And I would choose chips over a glass of wine anyday!!
And of course you have full control of the TV. I would not expect anything different!!
Oh Nagi these are just gorgeous! Beautiful photography. You blow me away girl. I have spinach and ricotta empanadas sitting in my drafts folder, but these look wayyyy better! I love the way you folded these! Absolutely beautiful Xxx
I am 20000% sure that your empanadas ROCK! I can’t wait to see them, I love empanadas! 🙂
Now that sounds like my kind of Friday night! Isn’t it amazing how we change as we grow older? These look fantastic Nagi, I’m a little excited to know I’ve got all of the ingredients to make these in my fridge and freezer too!
I know, right? I wouldn’t have a CLUE what the “hot spots” in Sydney are now!!
These are cutest ever!! Nagi, thanks for sharing. I will be snacking on these some time in near future!
Thanks Shinee! They are cute, aren’t they?? 🙂 Love that there’s a higher ratio of filling to pastry too!
Nagi, It is amazing how food blogging has completely changed my buying and eating habits. Like you, I use to buy frozen and eat out – but now not so much. Sometimes , I miss those days… but then again ,with all the sumptuous recipes I get to try from my kitchen and other blogs- Not so much. I rather make this than buy frozen- Yum!!!
It is so true! Since I started blogging I practically never get take out….though I have gotten the odd frozen spinach and cheese triangles!! Can’t resist, sometimes it’s an emergency!
We love the these no matter what shape! Ricotta and spinach duo is just too hard to resist. They are amongst the perfect food pairs ever!!
Julie & Alesah
Gourmet Getaways xx
I’m with you there!! 🙂 Stuffed in pasta, in pastry, in omelettes….the list goes on and on! 🙂
Such a great idea Nagi, and a GREAT shape! 🙂 A little sad about the wine… :p but these definitely make up for it! I probably might sneak in some bacon or ham in there… 😉 to appease the carnivores I know!