Cheesy Olive Pastries stuffed with Sun-dried Tomatoes

• Condiments

  • 30 Green olives, pitted
  • 1 tbsp Pesto, green

• Baking & Spices

  • 150 g (all purpose flour, plain

• Oils & Vinegars

  • 5 Sun-dried tomatoes - drained from the oil on kitchen paper

• Dairy

  • 150 g Butter, unsalted
  • 75 g Parmesan cheese

• Other

  • 75g/ 2/3 cup mature (sharp Cheddar cheese - finely grated

Found on littlesugarsnaps.com

Description

Ingredients

• 150g/ 1 1/4 cups plain (all purpose) flour
• 150g/ 2/3 cup unsalted butter - room temperature
• 75g/ 1 cup Parmesan cheese - finely grated
• 75g/ 2/3 cup mature (sharp) Cheddar cheese - finely grated
• 30-40 pitted green olives (depending on size)
• 5 sun-dried tomatoes - drained from the oil on kitchen paper
• 1 tbsp green pesto

Directions

• Put the flour and butter into a medium bowl. Rub the butter into the flour using your fingertips until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs
• Tip in the cheeses and briefly stir with your hands. Knead the mixture lightly with your hands to bring the pastry dough together
• Shape into a ball, flatten and wrap in clingfilm. Leave to rest in the fridge for 20 minutes (do not let the dough get too cold as it will be difficult to work with)
• Meanwhile chop the sun-dried tomatoes into small pieces and stuff the olives with one or two pieces. I used the blunt end of a wooden kebab stick to do this
• Toss the olives in the pesto
• Remove the pastry from the fridge and divide into 30 even sized pieces (approx 15g each)
• Roll each piece of pastry into a ball, lay between 2 sheets of clingfilm and roll into a circle approx 1-2mm thick
• Place an olive in the centre of the circle and fold one edge of the pastry over the olive, followed by the opposite edge. Trim a little pastry (1/2cm) from each end (see photograph). Discard any pastry scraps covered in oil, but save the rest
• Gently roll the pastry around the olive using the palms of your hands. Make sure the olive is completely encased in the pastry. Repeat until all of the chunks of pastry have been used up
• Scoop up the pastry off-cuts and reform into 15g chunks of pastry. Use to cover the remaining olives
• VITAL STEP (see notes): Chill the pastries overnight (or for 2 hours) - place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment and cover with clingfilm before transferring to the fridge. At this point they can be stored close, but not touching each other
• Preheat the oven to 220C/ 425F/ GM7
• Using 2-3 baking sheets, lined with parchment, spread the pastry balls out, leaving 3-4cm between each ball
• Bake for 12-15 minutes until golden brown
• Allow to cool on the baking sheet
• Serve warm or at room temperature
• Best eaten within 24 hours, but can last up to 48 hours stored in an airtight container at room temperature