Many of us, myself included, routinely pick up our morning coffee and sticky pastry without registering how much the costs of these everyday treats can quickly add up over the course of a week. The price of a sweet pastry from a coffee shop chain on my local high street currently costs £3.05. Tag on £4.30 for a frothy coffee and I’m looking at less than three quid change from a tenner and that’s all before shelling out for a lunchtime sandwich.
Reluctant to forego my favourite buns, I set about recreating the most popular coffee shop pastries, aiming to match the stores for size and flavour while making worthwhile cost savings. As it turns out, the enticing-looking pastries are deceptively simple to make at home. Each of the recipes here uses just one sheet of ready-rolled puff pastry (no flour or rolling pin needed) and a handful of basic ingredients. For each batch, I was able to make six pastries for less than the price of a single store-bought equivalent.
Follow my simple tips and recipes below and save yourself a fortune without missing out on your favourite bakes.
Jump to:
- Cinnamon swirls
- Chocolate twists
- Jam foldovers
- Pains aux raisins
The recipe
The secret to a good cinnamon swirl (alongside plenty of butter and sugar) is to create a wide roll with lots of flaky layers. The pastry sheet in this recipe is cut in half and placed end to end to make a long length, ready for rolling up to create perfect plump buns. Gorgeous!
Scroll down for the full method
Timings
Prep time: 15 minutes, plus optional chilling time
Cook time: 15-20 minutes
Makes
6
Ingredients
- 50g butter, softened
- 50g soft brown sugar
- 1 tbsp ground cinnamon
- 320g ready-rolled puff pastry sheet
- 1 egg, beaten, or milk, to glaze
- 50g icing sugar
Method
- Remove the pastry from the fridge 15 minutes before using.
- Mix together the butter, sugar and cinnamon until soft and well blended.
- Unroll the pastry sheet and, leaving it on the baking paper, cut it in half to make two rectangles. Lay the rectangles so the two shorter edges overlap a little to make a long, roughly 18cm wide x 48cm long sheet.
- Place the pastry vertically on the work surface. Spread the butter mixture evenly over the surface, taking it right up to the edges but leaving a 1cm border across the top edge.
- Brush the border with water or milk. Gently roll up the pastry from the short edge at the bottom, rolling upwards (it doesn’t need to be too tight) to reach the border at the top. Press the join gently to seal.
- Cut the cylinder in half using a knife or dental floss (see tip below), then divide each half into three even-sized rolls. Transfer the pastries to a large parchment-lined baking sheet then press each one gently to flatten out a little. If you have time, chill the uncooked pastries for 30 minutes or longer before baking.
- Preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Brush the pastries with egg or milk and bake for 15-20 minutes until puffed and golden. Cool on a wire rack.
- Mix the icing sugar with 1-2 tbsp water until smooth. Use a teaspoon to drizzle the icing over the swirls then leave to set before serving.
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The recipe
These chocolate twists take minutes to make and bake and look and taste exactly like their pricey coffee shop counterparts.
Timings
Prep time: 5-10 minutes, plus optional chilling time
Cook time: 15-20 minutes
Makes
6
Ingredients
- 320g ready-rolled puff pastry sheet
- 100g custard
- 20g milk chocolate chips
- 1 egg, beaten, or milk, to glaze
- Icing sugar, for dusting
Method
- Remove the pastry from the fridge 15 minutes before using. Unroll the pastry sheet and, leaving it on the baking paper, lay it horizontally across the surface. Cut it in half to give two, even-sized rectangles.
- Spread one piece of pastry with the custard, taking it right up to the edges. Sprinkle over the chocolate chips.
- Gently lay the second sheet of pastry on top. Then, using a pizza cutter, slice into six strips, each approximately 3cm wide.
- Lift up a strip and twist 3-4 times. The custard is a little slippery so don’t worry if they’re not perfectly uniform, they’ll look great once baked.
- Transfer the pastries to a large parchment-lined baking sheet, leaving space for them to spread during baking. If you have time, chill the uncooked pastries for 30 minutes or longer before baking.
- Preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Brush the pastries with egg or milk and bake for 15-20 minutes until puffed and golden. Cool on a wire rack and dust lightly with icing sugar before serving.
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The recipe
The simplest of pastries, these little puffs are an attractive take on a classic jam tart.
Timings
Prep time: 5-10 minutes, plus optional chilling time
Cook time: 15-20 minutes
Makes
6
Ingredients
- 320g ready rolled puff pastry sheet
- 6 heaped tbsp strawberry or raspberry jam
- 1 egg, beaten, or milk, to glaze
- 1 tbsp granulated or pearl sugar
Price per pastry: 28p
Method
- Remove the pastry sheet from the fridge 15 minutes before using. Unroll the pastry and, leaving it on the baking paper, cut into six rectangles as close to squares as possible.
- Spread the jam diagonally across the centre of each square, corner-to-corner. Fold one of the remaining corners over the jam, then dampen the opposite corner with a little water and fold over so the points overlap in the centre; gently press together.
- Transfer the pastries to a large parchment-lined baking sheet. If you have time, chill the uncooked pastries for 30 minutes or longer before baking.
- Preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Brush the pastries with egg or milk, sprinkle with the sugar and bake for 15-20 minutes until puffed and golden. Cool on a wire rack and dust lightly with icing sugar before serving.
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The recipe
These classic French pastries are super-easy to make at home using some store-bought custard and a sprinkle of juicy raisins.
Timings
Prep time: 5-10 minutes, plus optional chilling time
Cook time: 15-20 minutes
Makes
6
Ingredients
- 320g ready-rolled puff pastry sheet
- 100g custard
- 30g raisins
- 1 egg beaten, or milk, to glaze
- Icing sugar, for dusting
Method
- Remove the pastry sheet from the fridge 15 minutes before using. Unroll the pastry and, leaving it on the baking paper, cut it in half to make two rectangles. Lay the rectangles so the two shorter edges overlap a little to make a long, roughly 18cm wide x 48cm long sheet.
- Spread the pastry with the custard, taking it right up to the edges but leaving a 1cm border across the top edge. Sprinkle the raisins over the custard.
- Brush the border with water or milk. Gently roll up the pastry from the short edge at the bottom, rolling upwards to reach the border at the top. Press the join gently to seal.
- Cut the cylinder in half using a knife or dental floss (see tip below), then divide each half into three even-sized rolls.
- Transfer the pastries to a large parchment-lined baking sheet then press each one gently to flatten them out a little. If you have time, chill the uncooked pastries for 30 minutes or longer before baking.
- Preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Brush the pastries with egg or milk and bake for 15-20 minutes until puffed and golden. Cool on a wire rack and dust lightly with icing sugar before serving.
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Seven simple tips for perfect pastries
1. To minimise cracks when unrolling the sheet of puff pastry, take it out of the fridge 15 minutes before using. Be sure to use it promptly once it’s come up to temperature as if it gets too warm the pastry will become floppy and difficult to handle.
2. Switch up the fillings to make use of ingredients you may already have to hand. Try stirring a little cocoa powder into custard for a chocolate twist, or swap the chocolate chips for chopped fudge or pecan nuts. Switch raisins for dried blueberries or cherries and try adding a sprinkle of desiccated coconut to the jam fold-overs.
3. Using a pizza wheel is the simplest way to slice through flat pastry. For cutting through cylinders, wrap a piece of dental floss around the pastry, cross it over and pull upwards gently. It will slice through cleanly, maintaining the shape without any squashing.
4. For the perkiest results, chill the shaped pastries for 30 minutes before baking. It will help minimise shrinkage.
5. When flattening pastry spirals, use the length of the fingers in a patting motion, rather than the palm. A burger press, if you happen to have one, is very useful for applying even pressure.
6. If you want to get ahead, freeze the uncooked pastries on a flat tray before glazing. Once firm, transfer to a freezer bag ready for baking as needed.
7. If baking one or two pastries at a time, rather than putting the whole oven on, try air frying at 170C for 8-12 minutes until puffed and golden.
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