One of the best things about the Christmas period is that you have an excuse to make recipes like this cheese and onion plait (in case you needed an excuse).
Potatoes.
Cheese.
Pastry.
It's not exactly health food - in fact it's more of a carb fest, with plenty of cheese thrown in for good measure. But that's what Christmas is for, no?
My favourite thing about this recipe is that it looks super fancy - serve this up to your family at Christmas and even your great uncle Jim who thinks vegetarians are weird will be impressed - they don't ever need to know that making the plait shape is actually really easy.
All you need to do is to shape your filling into a log down the middle of your pastry, then make slits at an angle on either side (...the photo below will do a much better job at explaining). Then, alternating from side to side, just fold one strip at a time across the cheesy filling, sticking it down with a little bit of milk.
The whole process is extremely forgiving, so don't worry if you're not the neatest person in the world (who, me?)! If you need to, you can pull and stretch the strips right over the filling. It doesn't matter if you pull them out of shape a bit. Once it's all puffed up you shouldn't be able to tell - and even if you can, nobody's going to be inspecting your handiwork too carefully! The overall effect is still something pretty impressive.
Of course, this cheese and onion plait isn't only about looking good - it tastes amazing too! Oodles of sautéed onions and mature cheddar cheese, all held together by smooth mashed potato. It's like a huge cheese and onion pasty - but much more elegant!
Don't forget the gravy!
Cheese and onion plait
If you've cooked this recipe, don't forget to leave a star rating!
Print Pin CommentIngredients
- 600 g potatoes I left mine unpeeled
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 2 onions halved then sliced
- 5 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoon milk plus more for glazing the pastry
- 150 g cheddar cheese grated
- Salt
- Black pepper
- Plain flour for dusting
- 250 g puff pastry
Instructions
- Cut the potatoes into chunks, and boil in a pan of water until very soft.
- Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large frying pan, and add the onions and garlic. Cook over a medium-low heat for 5-10 minutes, until very soft but not browned.
- When the potatoes are soft, drain them, and add the 2tbsp of milk. Mash to your desired consistency. Add the onions and grated cheese, and mix well. Season with some salt and plenty of black pepper. Set aside.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll out the puff pastry into a rectangle - I used a pre-rolled sheet, but still rolled it out a little further. Shape the potato filling into a log along the centre of the pastry, leaving a few inches of pastry along two opposite sides, and just a centimetre or so along the other two sides.
- Using a sharp knife, cut the excess pastry at a slight angle into strips (my strips were about 1cm wide) - see photos. Alternating from side to side, fold the strips across to the centre of the filling, and stick them down with a dab of milk. Tuck the ends in neatly, again sealing with a little milk (you might need to cut of a bit of excess pastry at the ends).
- Brush the whole plait lightly with milk, and bake at 190°C (Gas Mark 5 / 375°F) for around 45 minutes, until the pastry is golden brown and crispy.
Nutritional information is approximate, and will depend on your exact ingredients. Please calculate your own nutritional values if you require accuracy for health reasons.
Christine @ Ciao Veggie says
I am a sucker for anything cheese and onion. This looks stupendous! ... Uh, I don't even know where that word came from. It just sort of arrived in my head when I saw the photo of it sliced open with the creamy filling peeping out! :)
cheryl says
Looks so delicious! I haven't tried using puff pastry before, but this could be the recipe that makes me finally do it. Do you buy it frozen? What are the approx measurements of your rectangle before and after you roll it out? Any clues would be helpful.
Becca @ Amuse Your Bouche says
Puff pastry is really easy to use! :) I usually buy the fresh (not frozen) pre-rolled sheets, but frozen is fine too - just make sure you defrost it very thoroughly before use, or it'll snap when you try to unroll it! I'd say my rectangle was probably something like 8x11 inches maybe?
cheryl says
Thank you! Definitely trying this for Christmas.
Georgia says
OMG this looks amazing! I could absolutely go for one of these right now for lunch... do you by any chance have any leftovers?
Becca @ Amuse Your Bouche says
Haha! Unfortunately not, we ate it all in like 2 days!! ;)
Alicia Caputo says
Really beautiful. With the delicate shape, its awesome filling is also adding points.I really appreciate the step by step procedure drawn for the recipe.
kavey says
Love the look of this and the flavours are right up my street too.
Kate @ Veggie Desserts says
Gorgeous! And thanks for adding the step-by-step pictures for the plait. I'm definitely going to try it!
lucie says
This looks absolutely beautiful!
Maryea {Happy Healthy Mama} says
This looks awesome! Perfect for a holiday dinner.
Darryl C says
I'm guessing U live in Canada... My scale doesn't weigh by grams - it's ounces, so 600 g of potatoes is_____?
Your would B appreciated! Thanking U in advance
Becca @ Amuse Your Bouche says
Hi Darryl, nope I'm in the UK! 600g is just over 21oz - if you google 'grams to ounces' you can find the conversion.
Darryl C says
Thank you for ur reply... but I'll use StartPage.com for my searches...
Marika Rajah says
This plait looks amazing! I have difficulty getting pastry (especially puff pastry) to bake on the underside, how do you manage?
Becca @ Amuse Your Bouche says
I've never had any problems actually! Make sure you use a metal tray so that it gets nice and hot. Also make sure you roll your pastry out relatively thin (I use pre-rolled and still roll it out thinner). Other than that I don't do anything special! Sorry I can't be more help!