Small bite sized pastries are like my favorite thing ever. And they’re also my biggest enemy. I find it really hard to practice any sort of discipline because they’re so good and I always end up eating just enough to almost regret how many I had. So naturally I’m going to share one of my favorite pastries - these cheese filled crescents. The dough here is soft and airy like a cloud and the different fillings in this are absolutely to die for. It does take a bit of work to put this together so if you have help it could be great bonding time. These are great for dinner party appetizers or to store in the freezer and heat up every once in a while.

Serves: 10

Time: 5 hours

Ingredients

Dough:

1 pack Active Dry Yeast
0.5 tsp Granulated Sugar
1.5 cup Warm Water
5 cups AP Flour
0.33 cup Powdered Milk
1 tsp Salt
1 Egg
0.33 cup Neutral Oil

Fillings:

1.5 lbs Akkawi Cheese
0.25 cup Za’atar
2 tbsp Olive Oil
0.25 cup Green Onion
0.25 cup Fresh Mint
0.25 cup Fresh Parsley
1 tbsp Caraway Seeds

Extra:

1 Egg White
2 tbsp Whole Milk

Instructions

Prep the dough by mixing the yeast, sugar, and water in a small bowl and mix well. Allow 10-15 minutes for the yeast to activate. It should be foamy and almost double in size otherwise the yeast is dead and you need to restart.

Whisk the flour, powdered milk, and salt together in a large bowl. Add the egg, neutral oil, and 0.75 cup of water and mix together. Add the bloomed yeast and mix.

Set a stand mixer with a dough hook and knead the mixture on medium speed for about 3 minutes or until the dough pulls away from the bowl. Then change to high speed and mix until the dough is smooth and elastic (about 2 minutes). Or skip the stand mixer and knead by hand on a well floured surface for about 10 minutes. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover, and set aside until it has doubled in size (2-3 hours).

Prep the fillings by first crumbling the Akkawi cheese into small pieces. Chop the green onion, mint, and parsley into small pieces and set aside. Add the zaatar to another bowl and mix with olive oil and set aside. Whisk the egg white and whole milk together in a small bowl and set aside.

Remove half the dough and place on a floured surface. Roll the dough into a 0.25 inch thick circle. Use a 2.5 inch cookie cutter to cut circles out of the dough. Place 2 tsp of the filling in each (cheese, cheese + herbs, or cheese + za’ater) and pinch closed making a crescent shape. Place in an oiled baking tray, brush with the egg wash, and bake at 375F for 15 minutes on the bottom rack then transfer to the top rack for 5 minutes.

Serve right out of the oven or allow them to cool and enjoy.

Waleed Asadi

Cheese Crescents