Ham & Egg Puff Pastry
Puff pastry is always a good option in our kitchen when we want to make something fairly quick. You can fill it with almost anything, and with the right filling it can turn into a pretty substantial meal too. At least that's usually what happens in our kitchen — if we're filling puff pastry, we're definitely not going to leave it half empty. 😄
This is one of the versions we like to make for breakfast. There's nothing particularly unusual about the ingredients. In fact, most of them are things we'd quite happily have on a normal breakfast plate or throw together in scrambled eggs: eggs, smoked ham, leek and cheese. Sometimes, though, you just want the same familiar flavours in a slightly different form, and that's when puff pastry comes in handy.
For these, we add a homemade parsley and garlic cream with sour cream, a little lime and some chilli flakes. It gives the filling a fresher flavour and works really nicely with the egg and smoked ham without taking over everything else. Then, because we like our puff pastries properly filled, there's cheddar both underneath and on top of the filling. We did say substantial. 😂
There's nothing complicated about making them either. You don't need any special kitchen equipment, and even the parsley cream doesn't depend on having a mini chopper. If you don't have one, simply chop the parsley and garlic as finely as you can and mix everything together by hand. The cream might have a little more texture, but there's absolutely nothing wrong with that.
That's probably one of the reasons we like recipes like this so much. You can work with what you have, you don't need to spend ages preparing breakfast, and at the end you get something warm, filling and a little different from the eggs and ham you might otherwise have put straight onto a plate.
And these are definitely best while they're still warm. The pastry is golden and flaky, the filling is creamy and cheesy, and everything inside is still lovely and soft. We would tell you how well they keep for later... but, to be completely honest, they don't usually survive long enough in our kitchen to find out. 😄
📝 Ingredients
Parsley & Garlic Cream
Puff Pastries
🥄 Instructions
Cook and prepare the eggs
Place the 4 eggs in a saucepan and cover them generously with water. Add 1 teaspoon of salt and cook until hard-boiled.
Once the eggs are cooked, place the saucepan under cold running water for a few minutes to cool them down.
Peel the eggs and give them a quick rinse to make sure no little pieces of shell are left behind. Cut them into smaller pieces and set aside.
Make the parsley and garlic cream
Add the fresh parsley, garlic, sour cream, egg yolk, lime juice, chilli flakes, freshly ground black pepper and salt to a mini chopper.
Blend everything very finely until smooth and creamy.
If you don't have a mini chopper, finely chop the parsley and garlic and mix everything together by hand. The finished cream will have a little more texture, but that's perfectly fine.
Set aside while you prepare the rest of the filling.
Cook the leek and ham
Slice the leek and cut the smoked cooked ham into smaller pieces.
Heat 1 teaspoon of butter with about 1 teaspoon of cooking oil in a frying pan.
Add the leek first and cook for a couple of minutes until it softens.
Add the ham and continue cooking for another couple of minutes. This gives the leek time to soften and also helps some of the excess moisture cook away before the filling goes into the pastry.
Remove from the heat and allow the mixture to cool slightly.
Fill the puff pastries
Divide the puff pastry sheet into 4 equal pieces.
Add the filling to each piece in the following order:
Grated cheddar → chopped hard-boiled egg → parsley & garlic cream → ham and leek mixture → more grated cheddar
Don't be afraid to give them a generous amount of filling, but keep the edges of the pastry clear. You'll need those clean edges to close and seal the pastries properly.
Close the pastries
Take hold of the pastry and bring the two sides together in one confident movement, making sure the edges meet and cover each other.
With this much filling, don't panic if a little tries to escape. 😄 Push as much of it back inside as you reasonably can, then press the edges together.
A small amount of filling on the edge shouldn't cause a problem. Press the pastry together firmly and then seal all around the edges with a fork.
Brush the tops with the beaten egg.
Make the slashes
Make a few short slashes across the top of each pastry to give the steam somewhere to escape while they cook.
We made 4 slashes in each of ours, and the pastry handled them perfectly well. You can make fewer if you prefer.
The important thing is to keep the cuts well away from the sealed edges and especially the corners. If they're too close to the edge, the hot filling can find its way out during cooking.
Air fry
Air fry at 180°C / 350°F for about 12 minutes, or until the puff pastry has risen and turned beautifully golden brown.
Air fryers can vary, so keep an eye on the colour towards the end rather than relying entirely on the clock.
Let the pastries rest for a few minutes before serving.
Serving Suggestions🍽️
These are substantial enough to serve on their own for breakfast or lunch, especially while they're still warm and the filling is soft and creamy.
If you want something alongside them, keep it simple. Fresh tomatoes, cucumber or a small green salad all work well and add something fresh without competing with the filling.
You could also serve them as part of a bigger breakfast spread with some extra vegetables or your favourite breakfast sides.
And, of course, there's absolutely nothing wrong with simply picking one up while it's still warm and eating it exactly as it is. That's usually what happens here. 😄
Why You’ll Love It⭐
Familiar breakfast ingredients in a different form
Egg, ham, onion and cheese aren't exactly strangers to the breakfast table. Puff pastry simply turns them into something a little different.
Properly filled
We like our puff pastries substantial, and these definitely aren't short on filling.
Easy to adapt
A little more chilli, a different cheese or a slightly chunkier parsley cream won't ruin anything. There's plenty of room to make the recipe your own.
No special equipment needed
The mini chopper makes quick work of the parsley cream, but you can make it perfectly well without one.
Quick air fryer cooking
Once everything is assembled, the pastries need only about 12 minutes in the air fryer.
💡 Pro Tips & Variations
Let the ham and leek cool a little
Don't put a piping-hot filling straight onto the puff pastry. Giving it a little time to cool makes the pastry much easier to work with.
Keep the pastry edges clear
You can be generous in the middle, but leave enough uncovered pastry around the outside to get a proper seal.
Don't worry about a little escaped filling
When you bring a generously filled pastry together, a little filling may try to escape. Push it back in where possible and continue sealing. A tiny amount left around the edge isn't the end of the world.
Keep the top cuts away from the edges
We used four cuts, but fewer are perfectly fine. Their exact number isn't particularly important — their position is. Keep them away from the sealed edges and corners.
No mini chopper? No problem
Finely chop the parsley and garlic instead. Your cream will be a little more textured, but the flavour will still be there.
✨ Final Thoughts
This is really just one of our usual breakfasts dressed up in puff pastry — and that's probably why we like it so much. 😄
The ingredients are familiar, there's nothing particularly difficult about making it, and you don't need a cupboard full of special equipment. But once everything is wrapped inside golden puff pastry with that parsley and garlic cream and plenty of cheddar, it feels completely different from putting eggs, ham and onion on a breakfast plate.
It's also a recipe you can easily play around with depending on what you have in the fridge. Just don't be too shy with the filling.❤️
