Raspberry Cream Cheese Pastries

It’s my BLOGVERSARY!

It’s hard to believe 9 years ago today our son talked me into starting a food blog. Oh the time, it goes quickly! It has been so much fun and I have loved being able to show people that living gluten free and dairy free, really can be enjoyable.

I am blessed to have such kind followers, here on the blog and on Instagram. I am truly honored when you share that maybe even a snippet of a recipe I post or something that is going on in my life that I share with you, may have made a bit of difference in your day. When I started this blog I set out to help others, but you have been a blessing to me! Sharing the things we have in common, or learning from each other’s experiences and specialties is an incredible gift that I cherish.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart. You guys are the best.

Raspberry Cream Cheese Pastries

*This recipe makes 8  pastries

For the bottom layer:

1 Cup of Mama’s Almond Blend All Purpose Gluten Free Flour

1/2 Cup of Miyokos Vegan Cultured Butter

1/4 teaspoon of Xanthan Gum

Pinch of Sea Salt

2 teaspoons of Pure Maple Sugar

3 Tablespoons of Cold Water

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees

Whisk the flour, xanthan gum, salt, and sugar. Cube the butter and with a pastry blender or fingers, quickly cut the butter into the flour mixture until the mix is crumbled and the butter is dispersed into small chunks. Stir the water in with a fork and with the back of the fork, work the the dough a bit to get it to come together. Don’t over work it! Form the dough (lightly) into a ball and slice into 8 sections. Line a baking sheet with parchment. Roll (lightly) all 8 dough pieces into a ball, and with floured fingers, pat them out into about 4  inch circles. I added fork marks to the edges of mine for aesthetic reasons, but it is not necessary. Set aside.

For the Cream Cheese Filling:

1  – 8 ounce Container of Plain Kite Hill Almond Milk Cream Cheese

1 1/2 teaspoons of Grated Lemon Peel

2 teaspoons of Lemon Juice

1/2 teaspoon of Pure Almond Extract

1/2 teaspoon of Pure Vanilla Extract

2 teaspoons of Pure Maple Sugar

Beat until smooth and refrigerate until ready to use.

For the Top Pastry Layer:

1 Cup of Water

1 Cup of Mama’s Almond Blend All Purpose Gluten Free Flour

1/2 Cup of Miyoko’s Vegan Cultured Butter

1/8 teaspoon of Xanthan Gum

2 teaspoons of Pure Maple Sugar

Pinch of Sea Salt

3 Large Eggs – room temperature!

1/2 teaspoon of Pure Almond Extract

Raspberry Jelly

Whisk the flour, xanthan gum, sugar, and sea salt, set aside. Warm the water, add the butter, bring to a boil. Remove from the heat as soon as it boils. Add the flour mixture and whisk until smooth. It will begin to stick together, don’t panic! With a wooden spoon, beat in one egg at a time. At first, it will separate, just keep beating and it will come together after each egg. Once all of the eggs have been incorporated, add the almond extract and beat with the wooden spoon to combine. Spoon the pastry mix over each of the rounds on the baking sheet. It will be sticky, spread it with a metal spoon. Make a small well in the center of each.

Remove the cream cheese mixture from the fridge and dollop about 1-2 Tablespoons in the middle of each well.

Bake for 30 minutes. (I use convection for all of my baking. A conventional oven may take a bit longer. You want the pastries to be lightly golden.) Remove from the oven and let sit for 10 minutes. Remove to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Once the pastries have completely cooled, dollop the top of each with the raspberry jelly. About a 2-3 teaspoons. Not so much that it takes over the top of the pastry!

For The Frosting Drizzle:

About 3 Cups of Powdered Sugar

About 1 Tablespoon of Melted Vegan Butter

About 2 – 3 teaspoons of Water to thin

I say “about” because with powdered sugar frosting, the consistency and amounts can vary greatly. If it’s not thin enough to drizzle (but you don’t want it too thin of a drizzle either!) then add a tiny bit more water at a time until you reach the consistency you like. If it’s too thin, add a Tablespoon of powdered sugar at a time until you like the looks of it. It’s really that simple.