crowd pleaser: caramelized onion, cheddar, and sage puffs

     With it being holiday party season, chances are you have have been asked to bring something to a party you've been invited to. Buying something totally pre-made just doesn't seem special enough, yet making something from scratch just seems so time consuming - especially for this time of year when you have gifts to buy and wrap and work to finish up before the actual holiday. The solution? Meet in the middle and bring something semi-homemade!

     I originally had planned on making puff pastry for this recipe from scratch. But then I started thinking about the day ahead of me - I had Christmas cards to make, presents to finish crocheting, grocery shopping to do...and not enough time to do all of it! Buying pre-made, frozen puff pastry sheets makes a world of difference in time management! With just a few other ingredients you'll be ready to make THE holiday appetizer people can't stop raving about.

cheddar and sage mixture

caramelized onions

     These bites are super savory and perfectly buttery with just a hint of salt. It's almost impossible to eat just one! They are best served warm, so if you have access to an oven wherever you bring them to then pop them in for a couple minutes just to reheat. It's not necessary though, but certainly don't serve them colder than room temperature. 

filling the puffs before baking

puff filling, gooey and delicious after baking!

     You should definitely treat yourself to one (or two, I won't tell anyone!) fresh out of the oven. Just be careful not to eat them all! Your fellow party-goers will be quite upset. At least get to your destination first then eat as many as you want!

beautiful, golden, and airy

Caramelized Onion, Cheddar, and Sage Puffs
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Servings: 24 puffs


You Will Need:

• 2 sheets frozen puff pastry, thawed
• 1 TBS butter
• 1 small white onion, minced
• 1 1/2 cups extra sharp cheddar, shredded
• 2 TBS fresh sage, chopped
• 1 egg
• kosher salt, for sprinkling

1. Place oven racks in middle and top third of oven. Preheat to 400 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. In a small pot, melt butter on low. Add onion and stir to coat with butter. Let cook on low until caramelized and brown, about 10 minutes, stirring every other minute or so to avoid burning and sticking. Remove from heat and set aside.
3. As onions are cooking, combine cheddar and sage in a bowl or plate and mix gently with fingers to combine. Set aside.
4. Unfold your puff pastry and cut each sheet into 12 equal squares (use the folds as a guideline to cut three long pieces, then in the other direction cut in half then each side in half again). 
5. Place a little cheddar sage mixture on one side of each puff pastry square and then top with some caramelized onion (see above photo for example). 
6. Fold over each square and pinch sides shut. Fold pinched sides underneath onto bottom side. Place each square evenly spaced apart on baking sheets with at least 1 1/2 inches between puffs.
7. Whisk egg in a bowl and brush onto the tops of each puff. Sprinkle puffs with a little bit of kosher salt.
8. Bake in oven for 20 minutes, rotating from front to back and top to middle shelves halfway through baking.
9. Remove from oven and let cool on sheets for 5 minutes. 

What is your favorite holiday party item?