Ham and cheese Danish pastries recipe

Step-by-step

To make the Danish pastry dough

1. Combine the flour, sugar, yeast and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook.
2. Warm the milk until lukewarm and pour this into the bowl along with the beaten egg. Mix on low–medium speed to combine, adding 1–2 tablespoons of water, if needed, to bring the dough together. Continue mixing for 2–3 minutes, until the dough is smooth.
3. Turn out the dough onto your work surface, shape it into a ball and return it to the bowl. Cover and leave it to rise at room temperature for about 1.5 hours, until doubled in size.
4. Meanwhile, cut the butter into 1cm-thick (0.5inch) slices and arrange them side-by-side on a sheet of baking paper. Cover the slices with another sheet of baking paper and, using a rolling pin, flatten the butter into a neat 17–18cm (7inch) square. Transfer the butter square to the fridge to chill for 30 minutes.
5. Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured work surface. Punch the dough to expel any large pockets of air and roll it out into a neat 27–28cm (11inch) square. Take your time over this and if the dough is not very elastic, roll it a little, leave it to rest briefly and roll again.
6. With the dough positioned squarely in front of you, place the chilled butter square at an angle on top, so that the butter corners point north, south, east and west. Fold the exposed dough over the butter so that the corners meet in the middle and completely encase the butter.
7. Lightly flour the work surface and gently roll the dough, starting at the middle and working away from you and then towards you, into a neat rectangle three times as long as it is wide.
8. Fold the top third of the rectangle down to cover the middle third and the bottom third up to cover this, as if you were folding a business letter. Rotate the dough 90 degrees clockwise, wrap it in baking paper and chill it for 30 minutes.
9. Lightly flour the work surface and roll out the dough again to a neat rectangle three times as long as it is wide. Take your time over this and roll, then rest and roll again if needed.
10.  Turn the rectangle so that one of the long sides is nearest you and fold each side in to meet in the middle, so that the edges are just touching. Fold the dough at the middle, so that the left-hand side goes over, on top of the right, giving you a four-layer thick rectangle – this is called a book fold. Wrap the dough in baking paper and chill it for 30 minutes.
11.  Lightly flour the work surface and roll out the dough again into a rectangle three times as long as it is wide. Fold the top third down to the middle and the bottom third up over this as in step 8. Wrap and chill again for 1–2 hours while you prepare the topping.

For the topping

1. In a small pan, melt the butter over a low heat. Stir in the flour and cook, stirring continuously, for 1 minute, until the mixture smells biscuity.
2. Gradually add the milk, stirring continuously until smooth. Bring the mixture to the boil, reduce the heat to a gentle simmer and cook the sauce for 3–4 minutes, until it is thick and glossy.
3. Remove the pan from the heat, add the mustard and season well with salt and pepper. Spoon the sauce into a bowl and leave it to cool. Then, add 100g (3.5oz) of the grated cheese. Cover and chill the sauce until you’re ready to assemble.

To assemble

1. Lightly flour the work surface and cut the dough in half. Roll each piece into a rectangle roughly 38 x 26cm (15 x 10inches). Slide each one onto a lined baking sheet and chill them for 15 minutes.
2. Trim the edges of the dough to neaten and cut each rectangle into six 12cm (5inch) squares to make 12 in total.
3. To make the kite shapes, fold one square in half to make a triangle. With the long side of the triangle nearest you, use a sharp knife to cut a straight line through the dough 8mm in from the bottom right-hand corner to the top corner, stopping 1cm in from the top corner. Repeat on the left side, making sure that the cut stops 1cm (0.5inch) in from the top corner of the triangle.
4. Open out the triangle into a square and lightly brush the top with milk (or water). Take the left-hand corner of the square and fold it to the inside right-hand corner, making sure that the sides line up neatly.
5. Pick up the right-hand corner and fold it over and neatly onto the left-hand edge. Gently press the edges together to seal. You should now have a diamond shape with a square middle, borders and twists top and bottom. Place the pastry kite onto the lined baking tray and repeat with the remaining squares to make 12 diamond shapes in total.
6. Spoon the cold cheese sauce into the middle of each square, cover the pastries (ideally with oiled cling film) and leave them to prove in the fridge for at least 4 hours, but preferably overnight, until the pastries have risen to nearly double their height.
7. Heat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan/400°F/gas mark 6.
8. Carefully brush the edges of the Danishes with egg wash to glaze. Arrange the halved asparagus spears on top of the cheese sauce (three per pastry) and sprinkle with the chives. Divide the ham between the pastries and scatter with the remaining 50g (1.7oz) of grated cheese. Bake for about 20 minutes, until crisp, golden brown and well risen. Serve hot, warm or at room temperature.

The Great British Bake Off: A Bake for All Seasons is published in hardback by Sphere, priced £22.00. eBook also available. Food photography: cr. Ant Duncan.