Puff Pastry Turnover Recipe

Name: Puff Pastry Turnover Recipe
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 18 min
Ingredients: 1 sheet Puff Pastry; 8 oz Cream cheese; ⅓ cup Granulated sugar; 1 tsp Vanilla extract; 1 Egg; 1 tbsp Milk

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This Puff Pastry Turnover Recipe is way too easy to be this good! Flaky pastry and sweet cream cheese filling cooked to perfection makes this great recipe one that you will come back to time and time again for a special weekend breakfast or dessert!

I don’t know about you, but I love to have an easy recipe on hand that can serve as either a special breakfast or dessert–or both! These Puff Pastry Turnovers are so simple, but feel so fancy! They come together in ten minutes, are done in under 30, and are sooo good. The full recipe is below!

I mean, who wouldn’t love rich, flaky puff pastry filled with creamy, sweet, cream cheese, am I right?! Once you make these, I guarantee that they are going to be a regularly requested breakfast in your home–they sure are by my crew! And if your crew is anything like mine, they will probably be requested again for dessert!

Our school season has officially begun over here, and we have found ourselves in a new season, and it’s a busier one than ever! With our two biggest officially off to school, several sports and activity commitments, and homeschooling the rest, our mornings are full and fast. So when the weekend rolls around and we are able to have a little bit slower start to our day, I love making something that feels special for breakfast, and to celebrate another successful week in the books!

These Puff Pastry Turnovers are just so delicious they make the weekends feel so special, and yet they are so easy to throw together! When I have time, I like to make a double batch so we can carry a few into our week for breakfasts and afternoon snacks. It’s the best when we can start the fresh week off with something a little special, too, with no extra time spent in our busy morning.

Looking for other go-to breakfast ideas? Check out my Pancake Mix Coffee Cake, Cranberry Orange Muffins, Coffee Cake Muffins, and Apple Cinnamon Muffins recipes.

How to Make Puff Pastry Turnover Recipe

Begin by preheating your oven to 425 degrees. You’ll want to have already set your puff pastry out to thaw if it is still frozen before you get started, since it doesn’t take long at all to get them ready to pop in the oven!
Grab a baking tray and line it with parchment paper. Set it aside on your work surface.
In a medium mixing bowl, combine your cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla extract. Beat until the mixture is smooth.

Unroll your thawed puff pastry sheet onto your lined baking sheet. Cut the pastry with a sharp knife into 16 rectangles, separating them out as you go. If necessary, you might need to move some to a separate lined baking sheet, to make sure that you have at least ½ inch of space between each rectangle.

Take your cream cheese mixture and add a tablespoon onto the center of each pastry rectangle, leaving a ½ inch edge. Optional: You can score or make a small slit in each rectangle’s edges with a knife ½ inch all the way around so that you have a guide for how far to spread the cream cheese. They also look so pretty this way when they are finished!

Fold the edges over to meet the ones diagonal to each other, turning the rectangles into little triangles. Gently press down along the edges to seal them closed.

In a small bowl, beat your egg and milk together. This will make an egg wash to make the top of the turnovers lovely and golden when they are done. Brush the tops of each of your Puff Pastry Turnovers with the egg wash. You can even sprinkle a little coarse sugar on top of each turnover if you want.

Bake your turnovers on your parchment-lined baking sheet in your preheated oven for 15 minutes, until golden brown, and until the edges are flaky.
Serve warm and enjoy!

Simple Ingredients in Puff Pastry Turnover Recipe

Puff Pastry: Puff pastry dough is the base of this recipe and is what makes these so simple–so much of the work is already done for you! If you’ve never used puff pastry before, you can usually find them in the frozen foods section of your local grocery store. You’ll need one sheet of store-bought puff pastry. If you want to double the recipe make sure you buy a few sheets of puff pastry.
Cream Cheese: Cream cheese is the base of this lovely, decadent filling. If you’d like to make this recipe dairy free, substitute with your favorite brand of plant-based cream cheese. You’ll need 8 ounces of cream cheese.
Sugar: White sugar blends beautifully with the cream cheese and turns it into a sweet, tangy filling. You’ll need ⅓ cup of white or unbleached sugar.
Vanilla: Vanilla adds to the depth of flavor in this filling, blending everything together and making it just so lovely! This recipe calls for one teaspoon of vanilla extract.
Egg: Egg wash is what makes the tops of these turnovers so crispy and perfectly baked! You’ll need one egg for this.
Milk: Milk is the other ingredient in the egg wash for the tops of these Puff Pastry Turnovers. If you’d like to make this recipe dairy free, substitute with your favorite plant-based milk. You’ll need one tablespoon of milk.

Frequently Asked Questions

What pastry are turnovers made from?

These Puff Pastry Turnovers (and turnovers generally as a rule) are made with pastry dough, and usually always puff pastry. You can almost always find puff pastry sheets available in the frozen food section of your local grocery store.

What is a turnover pastry?

A turnover pastry is just what it sounds like! They are individual, pie-like treats that consist of folding a rectangular piece of puff pastry in half into a triangle, around a yummy filling, and then baked. You have probably heard of apple turnovers filled with apple goodness! You are sure to love any turnover pastry!

Can you use pie crust for puff pastry?

To make most Puff Pastry Turnover recipes, puff pastry is what you need. However, you can try to work with pie crust if you are in a pinch. Just add some butter and roll it out, though it will result in a much different texture and won’t quite be the same. I recommend sticking with puff pastry for these (and it’s the easiest way to make them, too)!

Are turnovers baked or fried?

Traditionally, turnovers are baked. Every once in a while you will come across turnovers that are indeed fried, but these Puff Pastry Turnovers probably won’t hold together well for the frying process with such a soft filling, so I recommend sticking with the baking instructions.

Why is a turnover called a turnover?

They are called turnovers because they are just that–you “turn over” the pastry dough and fold it into a triangle, and voila! The yummiest little pastry pocket. They are just so good!

Is phyllo pastry the same as puff pastry?

They might look similar, but phyllo dough and puff pastry are very different! Phyllo dough is mostly just flour and water, whereas puff pastry has a much higher fat (butter) content, resulting in much more of a rich, buttery, airy texture. I definitely recommend sticking with puff pastry for this Puff Pastry Turnover Recipe.

What are other variations can you add to this puff pastry?

There are many different ways you can change up this puff pastry to your family’s liking! If you are adventurous you can always try your hand at homemade puff pastry! You can substitute the cream cheese for cherry pie filling for flaky cherry turnovers or make puff pastry apple turnovers with apple pie filling or your own apple filling.
I also think a vanilla glaze would be amazing over the tops whether you use the cream cheese filling or the fruit filling! When you make these as a dessert, a scoop of ice cream also pairs well or even just a sprinkle of powdered sugar can do the trick!

How ever you decide to make these Puff Pastry Turnovers, I know you’ll love them and they will quickly make their way on to a recipe card for the next time you are wanting a little something special for these upcoming cool fall mornings!

This Puff Pastry Turnover Recipe is such a perfect blend of savory and sweet. The turnovers are so light and delicate, but with the rich creamy filling they are so wonderfully indulgent! And the bonus of having such a special feeling breakfast/dessert being SO easy to prepare, I guarantee you won’t be able to just make them once. Just remember to go ahead and make extra so you have the yummiest afternoon treat, or a yummy breakfast to heat up for the next day!