A recipe for Joulutorttu (Finnish Christmas Tarts)! These flaky Finnish tarts are filled with a homemade prune jam and folded into pinwheels/stars or flowers.
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Christmas Sweets Week
Welcome to #ChristmasSweetsWeek! What better way to celebrate the holidays than with food?
Forty-four bloggers from around the country have come together to share over 180 sweet Christmas recipes!
Deck the halls and get ready for very merry sweet treats, like fudge, cookies, Christmas morning breakfasts, layer cakes, martinis, cocoa, and more!
I previous shared a recipe for Gingerbread Cupcakes with Eggnog Buttercream and today I am joining the event with a recipe for Joulutorttu (Finnish Christmas Tarts)!
Joulutorttu (Finnish Christmas Tarts)
Joulutorttu is a Finnish pastry popular during the Christmas season. These pinwheel/star-shaped tarts are traditionally filled with a prune jam, but I also topped a few with some leftover apricot jam I had on hand for a little contrast in color.
I formed the pastry with a buttery, pie crust-like dough from The Great Scandinavian Baking Book, but using pre-made sheets of puff pastry is also common.
The prune jam comes together fairly easily. Pitted prunes are soaked in water for a couple of hours (many recipes I came across skipped this step), then simmered on the stove with a little sugar and water for about 20 minutes until softened enough to easily mash.
If desired, you can also puree the jam at this point for a smoother texture.
After forming the Joulutorttu into their desired shapes, they are brushed with an egg wash and baked until golden. Dust the pastries with powdered sugar and refrigerate if not serving immediately.
Joulutorttu Shapes
The most popular shape for these Joulutorttu is the star/pinwheel design. I have seen them formed with the jam either below or above the folded corners.
After cutting the sheet of dough into squares, use a sharp knife to make cuts from each corner about halfway towards the center. If you want the jam covered, place a teaspoon in the center of the square before folding every other split corner to the center.
Fold before adding the jam if you want it on top.
I also came across this interesting flower design and I think it may be my favorite shape of all.
Christmas Sweets Week recipes:
- Boozy Salted Caramel Apple Cider from The Beard and The Baker
- Gingersnap Eggnog Shooter from Seduction In The Kitchen
- Hot Buttered Rum from Moore or Less Cooking
- Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate from The Bitter Side of Sweet
- Salted Caramel Hot Apple Cider from Culinary Adventures with Camilla
- Creamy Cheese Fudge from Take Two Tapas
- Grinch Fudge from An Affair from the Heart
- Milk Chocolate Toffee Fudge from Rants From My Crazy Kitchen
- Reindeer Food Snack Mix from Big Bear’s Wife
- Gingerbread Cupcakes from The Redhead Baker
- Holiday Pavlova from My Suburban Kitchen
- Hot Chocolate Whoopie Pies from Strawberry Blondie Kitchen
- Joulutorttu (Finnish Christmas Tarts) from Tara’s Multicultural Table
- Minty Grinch Dip from Who Needs A Cape?
- Oatmeal Maple Cream Pies from Blogghetti
- Peppermint Stick Cookies from Karen’s Kitchen Stories
- Red Velvet Cookies from Live Love Texas
- Red Velvet Truffle Sugar Cookie Cups from The Spiffy Cookie
- White Chocolate Dipped Gingerbread Cookies from Cheese Curd in Paradise
Joulutorttu (Finnish Christmas Tarts) Recipe
Adapted from The Great Scandinavian Baking Book and Cake Crumbs & Beach Sand
Joulutorttu (Finnish Christmas Tarts)
Ingredients
Prune Jam:
- 10 1/2 ounces (300 grams) pitted prunes
- 1/4 cup (50 grams) granulated sugar
Joulutorttu:
- 3 cups (375 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 1/2 cups (355 milliliters) heavy cream whipped
- 1 cup (227 grams) unsalted butter softened at room temperature
Topping:
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon (15 milliliters) milk
- Powdered sugar for sprinkling
Instructions
To make the Prune Jam:
- Cover the prunes with water and soak for two hours.
- Drain, rinse, and place in a medium saucepan. Add the sugar, top with just enough water to cover, and place over high heat.
- Once boiling, reduce heat to a simmer and cook, stirring often, until the prunes have softened and are easily mashed, about 20 minutes. If needed, add a little more water to keep the mixture from burning.
- Mash the jam to desired consistency or puree. Refrigerate until ready to use.
To make the Joulutorttu:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine the flour and baking powder.
- Mix in the whipped heavy cream, followed by the softened butter.
- On a lightly floured surface, knead the dough until soft and smooth. Shape into a disc, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for at least an hour.
- Preheat oven to 400˚F (200˚C). Line two baking sheets with parchment or lightly grease.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough until 1/4 inch (6 millimeters) thick.
- Fold the dough into thirds by folding 1/3rd towards the center followed by the other side towards the center.
- Roll the dough out again, turn, and fold into thirds again along the other side to form the dough into a square.
- Roll out a final time to make a square about 1/4 inch (6 millimeters) thick.
- Cut the sheet of dough into 3 inch (8 centimeter) squares (I made 30).
- To make the traditional shape, use a sharp knife to make cuts from each corner about halfway towards the center.
- Place a teaspoon of jam in the center of the square.
- Lift every other split corner towards the center over the jam filling and pinch together to create a pinwheel/star shape. Place on the prepared baking sheet and repeat with remaining squares.
- In a small bowl, beat together the egg and milk. Brush the top of each Joulutorttu with the beaten egg wash.
- Bake in preheated oven until golden, 7-10 minutes.
- Allow to cool to room temperature and top with powdered sugar. Refrigerate in an airtight container if not serving immediately.
karen
Tara these are so beautiful!!! I love the detail on these. Love!!