No Cinnamon Apple Turnovers

Cardamom-Clove Falvoured Apple Turnovers

Apple-Cinnamon seems to be the most popular combination around here. From pies to cookies, and fresheners to bath soaps, this is one combination that never goes out of style. I understand that apple-cinnamon evokes a festive mood, and reminds us of holiday season. But it gets on my nerves to find the same flavour over and over again. Don’t get me wrong, I do love cinnamon. Only that I prefer using it in savoury dishes than desserts.

To break out from this monotonous practice, I made apple turnovers with cardamom. I grew up savouring cardamom, as most of the Indian desserts call for it. I knew we would love these even before I started, and right I was. The temptation was too much, that two of 'em were gobbled before I could take a picture. If you think apple-cinnamon is the eternal combination, give cardamom a try. You will know what I am talking about.

I have already made these turnovers thrice and the last time I made it using tsp spices. Few weeks back, Jaden at Steamy Kitchen, invited fellow bloggers to test this product. tsp spices packages and sells organic spices by the teaspoonful. So every time you open a packet, the rest of the box remains fresh and sealed. I volunteered to test cardamom with this recipe in mind.

The package was too pretty to open. I also found the cardamom seeds were neither whole nor finely ground, which is what I expected. The spice was fresh, aromatic and convenient to use. So if you like a well-stocked spice rack that remains fresh for a long time, tsp spices may be the solution you are looking for.

Making Apple Turnovers

Ingredients

Puff pastry – 1 sheet (I used Trader Joe’s artisan puff pastry)
Apples – 2, medium sized
Sugar – 2 tbsp + 2 tsp
Cardamom – ¼ tsp
Cloves – 2, heads only, crushed
Butter – 1 tsp
Lemon juice – 2 tsp
Egg – 1 (I used Egg Beaters)

Method

Preheat oven to 400F. Thaw puff pastry according to package instructions. Peel, core and thinly slice. If using whole egg, beat the egg with a tbsp of water for egg wash.

In a skillet, melt butter, add apples and sauté until soft, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle 2 tbsp of sugar, cardamom, cloves and lemon juice and stir for another minute. Remove from heat and let cool.

Cut puff pastry into 4 squares. Brush the edges with egg wash. Place 1/4th of the filling in each of the squares and fold over to make a triangle. Press the edges together with a fork to seal. Transfer to baking sheet and brush the top with the remaining egg wash. Sprinkle the rest of the sugar over the turnovers and bake for 10 minutes. Lower the oven temperature 350F and bake for additional 10-15 minutes until the turnovers are golden brown and puffed. When done, cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes and serve warm. The turnovers can be stored at room temperature for 2 days.

Cardamom-Clove Falvoured Apple Turnovers

Ground spices can be prepared at home. But with cardamoms, the tough skins are not that easy to crush or grind. Sure you can use and save skins to be used later in tea or curry. But I find this inefficient. Instead, I follow what my mom does. As I said earlier, cardamom is used in many Indian sweets prepared during festivities. Hence, before the start of the festival season, my mom grinds a handful of cardamom with a tbsp of sugar in a spice grinder. The sugar provides enough friction to grind even the skins to a smooth powder. If stored in an air tight container, this remains fresh for 6 months. This way, the cardamom skins are used as efficiently as the seeds. Just a tsp to tea or curry would suffice.

Ground Cardamom

40 comments:

Anonymous said...

These look delicious Suganya!

amna said...

Cardamom and apples.. hmmm! thats a combo i havent heard of before. love the solid red and yellow base!

Padmaja said...

I love apple turnovers Sug, can't stop at one!! Yum pictures and hey hey congrats for a well deserved win!!!Btw I don't think you have enough place for those lovely awards to go on the side bar sweetie, better have a different page for all those awards!!

sunita said...

Sug, I know I'm going to love this...I adore cardamom :-)

Miri said...

I really think cinnamon is a bit over rates....there I said it!

MIL taught me the sugar ground with cardamom trick and I have a bottle of it always around for my kheers and payasams.

The turnovers look perfect - I just commented somewhere else too - wish we got puff pastry readymade here , it would make things so much easier!

indosungod said...

Apple Turnovers look fantastic and I love no cinnamon part even better, for a long time I never touched Apple Turnovers because of the cinnamon in it. Cinnamon reminds me of savory dishes, Briyani, Kurmas etc not dessert :)

FH said...

Turnovers look wonderful!!I made Raspberry and sweetend coconut for Super Bowl!:)
Apple and Cinnamon is as American as you can get, classic and traditional combo.
Cinnamon(sweet aroma and curly) used in desserts here in US is not the Cinnamon(spicy Cassia bark and flat) we use in India in curries.
There is a huge difference between them in looks and taste too. Look here to see them both.I didn't know about them until I moved to US too!:D

http://aromahope.blogspot.com/2007/12/
spinach-ricotta-parmesan-cinnamon.html

That pack of spice looks divine!

Laavanya said...

I love the flavour of cardamom.. beats cinnamon anytime. I do the same thing too.. grind with sugar so it's a fine powder and store it... :)

Rajesh &Shankari said...

Suganya, this is a dish that is to die for..I am sending you an email

Siri said...

Suganya - I love Apple-Cinnamon oats too..:DD... the turnovers look so yummy n delish..:D

Siri

Priya said...

Even I am so tired of the apple-cinnamon combo. I guess its my Indian instinct to attach cinnamon to savory foods and cardamom is a must in sweets ! I did a similar twist on a dessert recently by swapping the one for the other and it was wonderful.
Congrats on the Click award too !! And you can't walk away with it, you have to tell us how you took the picture. The curiosity is killing me every time!

Anonymous said...

i really love hot apple turnovers with some vanilla icecream.. thats one of easy desserts and great to taste!!! shud give your version a try

Shilpa said...

Beautiful pics Suganya.I don't love cinnamon in any sweet dishes :(, initially I used to like it, but now,I cant take it. I am sure I will also love this combo. Well done

Mythreyee said...

I love cardamom, I love apple. Fantastic recipe. Love it.

Anonymous said...

I do have a thing for cinnamon, but these sound like a tasty change of pace. Plus, it would be easily veganized by simply using margarine instead of butter and leaving off the egg wash!

Manasi said...

Ummmmmmmmmmmmmm!!!! mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!!!!

Ashwini said...

I got some sage... and am planning to make something with it myself. It's great isnt it?

Kalai said...

I hadn't thought of putting cardamom with apples, but it sounds great now that you mention it. Will bookmark this one! :)

Suganya said...

Thank Latha.

Nags, Thats a combo even I hadn't tried before. But am loving it.

Thank you, Padmaja. I think the side bar will be enough, after all :D

Thank you, Sunita.

Miri, I always have a box of ground cardamom too. Payasam, kheers, kesari all gets a pinch toward the end.

ISG, Thats probably the Indian in us. If I had born here, I may be an cinnamon addict too :)

Asha, Thanks for pointing that out. I know there are different varieties of cinnamon. I forgot to mention about it.

Laavanya, I am happy to find this practice followed in many households. Easy, isn't?

Shankari, Waiting for your email :)

Siri, Don't get me wrong. I yearn for apple pie with cinnamon too. But may be twice or thrice a year. A-C in oats is what got to me..argh.

Priya, Glad to see you here. I think your new job keeps you busy from blogging. Take care.

Dee, Sure. If you visit me, I will serve 'em myself :)

Me too, Shilpa. Try this combo. I think you will like it.

Thanks Mythreyee.

Hannah, Thats exactly what I was thinking while I made these turnovers. I am not sure whether puff pastry is vegan, though.

Manasi...hmmmmmm ;)

Do post your yet another wonderful creation, Ashwini. Playing with spices is fun.

Sure do, Kalai. Let me know if you like it.

Namratha said...

Ahh, now you are talking my kinda flavours in food. I hate cinnamon, no matter in what...so this one really works for me :) Looks lovely Suganya. And I make cardamom powder the same way as your mom.

Mansi said...

Looks neat Sugs! nice idea of adding in cardamom:)

Pooja said...

the first picture is awesome Suganya.
not only cooking you are best at photography too :).
thansk for sharing dear.

Shammi said...

Your mother's tip to grind cardamom with sugar is brilliant! Please thank her, and thank YOU too for letting us know! :)

Dhivya said...

looks yummy and nice fotos...

KonkaniBlogger said...

I don't like cinnamon in anything sweet too. Adding cardamom to the apple turnovers is a neat idea. Sure it will be great, I'm biased towards elaichi ;)..

Finla said...

Really a clever thing to do. Using cardamom.
The turnovers looks perfect

TheCooker said...

I'm with you on not enjoying cinnamon in sweets; savoury dishes are another story.
Love the idea of apple-cardamom.
Nutmeg pairs well w/ apple too.

Rajitha said...

my mom grinds the elichi the same way like urs..with a lil sugar :)..love apples and cardamom..i sometime sautee the apples in lil butter..top it with brown sigar and cardamom..soo good..and healthier..well a little bit healthier ;D

Suganya said...

Thank you Namratha, Mansi, Pooja.

Glad to be of help, Shammi :)

Dhivya, HC, Thanks for dropping by.

Maya, I used to hate elaichi flavoured cream biscuits, still do. But cardamom in certain desserts is unbeatable. I am biased too :)

TC, Nutmeg does taste good with apples. But hubby dear is not a big fan of it :(

Rajitha, Its definitely healthier without the puff pastry. No denying that :)

Aparna Balasubramanian said...

I know what you mean about a cinnamon overkill. This is great. Actually, I tried out something different using cardamom, too and that will be my next post!

Susan said...

Cinnamon is a lovely spice, but to me cardamom is ethereal. Love the deeply saturated photos; they have a 3D quality.

Cynthia said...

I love cinnamon but I am definitely going to try using cardamom instead the next time I make any apple dessert.

Actually I was thinking that cardamom would be great in porridge instead of cinnamon too.

Grihini said...

wow gr8 combination apple and cardamoms :)

Susan from Food Blogga said...

I do love apples and cinnamon, but apples and cardamom sounds enticing. And those photos, oh my.

DEEPA said...

Awesome pic first of all !!!Turnover is excellent and yummy one !!!

Rasa Malaysia said...

Spices are hard to make it into powder form. I tried to grind coriander seeds at home for my Malaysian satay but it wasn't powdery. So now I just buy the powder. ;)

Linda said...

Suganya! I couldn't even stop to read the recipe. Can you come give me a cooking and then photo class please :):)

Archana Doshi said...

Looks absolutely delicious, can I call it apple puffs :).

mollycal said...

These look amazing! I'm actually a little tired of cinnamon. Can't wait to try the cardamom twist, thanks for the idea.

Kribha said...

wow suganya. I know that I keep saying this all the time. But I can't help it. Your pictures are awesome. Lovely recipe too.

Post a Comment