DAMSON DELIGHTS

Damsons are a fruit I'd not even heard of until two weeks ago. Now that I'm more immersed in foodiness I like to see what's in season and they are apparently due to be. Then by a strange coincidence when in the Llanberis slate museum gift shop this week (random I know!) I spied a jar of damson jam and thought it was sign. I snapped up a jar and used it in this recipe for some sweet puff pastry treats that are so quick to make you can have them in your gob in just over 1 hour.

Again as with all my puff pastry bakes I'm using a packet of shop bought pastry. It's quick, simple and delicious which means you can have these treats knocked out of the park in no time. Always keep a packet of puff in your freezer, it's so handy for a speedy bake. 

Now I know damsons are in season but I've never seen them in my local supermarkets hence why I've adapted this recipe to use my recently discovered damson preserve. If your lucky enough to find some fresh ones locally then by all means snap them up and make your own filling by boiling them down with some sugar. You can find tips on how to do this online so give it a google and I'm sure you'll really taste the difference plus you'll be able to preserve any leftovers so you can bake these damson delights out of season.

Speaking of out of season treats it's great to be using marzipan other than Christmas time, a first for me. It's sweet edge really works with the Damson flavour and should also help prevent any soggy bottoms. I've used golden marzipan in this recipe as I prefer the colour but white will work just as well.

Get you rolling pins out and let's get started. You should have these little bites of heaven ready in less than one hour.

Damson Delights

400g Defrosted Block Of Puff Pastry

100g Golden Marzipan

250g Damson Preserve

3 Tbsp Ground Almonds

1 Beaten Egg

1. Cut the puff pastry block in half. Roll out one half on a large floured piece of baking paper into a large roughly 18x18cm square piece.
2. Roll out the marzipan to roughly the same size (a little smaller so there is a gap around the edge of the pastry) and place on top of the pastry.
3. Spread the damson preserve over the marzipan square so all parts are well covered before sprinkling over the ground almonds.
4. Use the beaten egg to wash the edge between the pastry andmarzipan. Roll out the other half of the pastry to the same size of the first half and carefully use this to cover your jammy/almond/marzipan filling. Crimp the edges of the pastry to seal with the egg wash.
5. Take the rest of the beaten egg and use it to brush over all the pastry. Cut two/three holes in the top of the pastry before transferring on the baking paper to a lightly greased tray and leaving to rest in the fridge for 20 minutes
6. Whilst the delights rest, turn on your oven to 200 degrees (180 fan). Once the pastry has chilled, place in the oven and bake for 30 minutes until the pastry is crispy and golden brown.

Remove your delights from the oven and leave to cool slightly on the tray for five minutes before cutting into strips and transferring to a wire rack. You can either leave the delights to cool or serve straight away with some custard or cream.

I mentioned earlier that you can find it quite difficult to find damsons but this recipe is very versatile. You could use whatever preserves you have in your cupboard or make your own jam using the fruit in season at the moment.

Whatever filling you use, anyone who tries a slice will have to agree that they are ever so delightful!