Ricotta and Mortadella Puff Pastry Baskets

These Puff Pastry Baskets are savory little morsels of flaky pastry filled with mortadella and creamy ricotta cheese. They make a wonderful canape during the holiday season with your favorite cocktail or chilled white wine. The beauty of this recipe is that it is easy to make and you only have to bake the puff pastry cups before filling them with store-bought ingredients. To begin, you cut a sheet of puff pastry into squares before lining cups of a muffin tin with the squares. Then, they get baked until golden before being filled with mortadella, ricotta, and chopped pistachios. While these puff pastry baskets are easy to make, even for the novice cook, they are beautiful as well!

What are Puff Pastry Baskets?

Mortadella is the original version of bologna, a type of salume that is made with cured pork, and often peppercorns and pistachios. While you could substitute with other types of deli meat, the combination of cured pork, creamy and delicately flavored ricotta, and the nutty pistachios is sophisticated and delicious!

Pro Tips

• Keep the puff pastry cold in the fridge until you are ready to bake it. Keeping it cold will not only make it easier to handle, but will also ensure it puffs up thoroughly in the oven.
• Use a measuring tape to ensure that you cut the puff pastry into even-sized squares.
• You will know the puff pastry is baked when it is puffed and golden.
• If you can’t have pork, you could substitute the mortadella with chicken mortadella instead. Meanwhile, if you can’t have meat, you may be able to find a vegan mortadella.
• If you prefer, you could replace the ricotta cheese with cottage cheese, which has a similar texture. However, mascarpone would also be a delicious choice.

What to Serve with Puff Pastry Baskets?

All these puff pastry baskets need to accompany them is a cocktail or glass of white wine or sparkling wine. However, they are a great precursor to a main meal served alongside other hor d’oeuvres as well.

Can I Make Mini Puff Pastry Baskets?

Yes, you definitely could! If you would like to make mini puff pastry baskets, simply use a mini muffin tin and cut the puff pastry into smaller squares so that they fit the muffin tin sufficiently. They may not need as long to bake as when you make full-sized puff baskets, so keep an eye on them as they bake in the oven.

Do I Have to Use Pistachios?

No, if you don’t have pistachios on hand or prefer not to use them, you could replace them with another type of nut. Almonds, hazelnuts, or pine nuts would all work well in this puff pastry baskets recipe.

How to Store Puff Pastry Baskets

Once assembled, these puff pastry baskets can be placed in an airtight container and stored in the fridge. It would be best to eat them within 1 or 2 days as the puff pastry may become soggy during the storage time.

How to Make Puff Pastry Baskets

Step 1: Cut the puff pastry sheet into rectangles and place them in a 12-cup muffin tin.

Step 2: Pierce the puff pastry rectangles all over with a fork and brush them with the egg. Bake them in a 180 C (360 F) oven for 20 minutes.

Step 3. Remove the puff pastry baskets from the muffin tin. Fill them with the mortadella, ricotta, and pistachios.

Step 4: Serve them on a platter and enjoy!