Maple Apple Spiced Puffs

Ingredients

• 50 g soft butter
• 50 g icing sugar
• 50 g ground almonds

• 1 (375 g)  pack premade puff pastry
• 3 british apples, such as Cox's, cored, halved and sliced thinly
• 1 egg yolk, lightly beaten
• 1 teaspoon mixed spice
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup

Directions

1. 1

   Preheat the oven to 220C, fan 200C, gas 7. Beat the butter with the icing sugar and almonds until smooth, then set aside.

2. 2

   Unroll the pastry and cut it into 12 squares. Place them on 2 baking sheets, lined with baking parchment, leaving a little space between each one.

3. 3

   Spread the almond mixture over each square of pastry, leaving a narrow border all the way around. Arrange overlapping apple slices over the top of each one. Brush the pastry edges with a little egg yolk.

4. 4

   Bake the puffs for around 12-15 minutes until golden. Stir the mixed spice into the maple syrup. When the puffs are ready, remove from the oven, brush the apple slices with a little of the maple-syrup mixture, then return the puffs to the oven for a further 5 minutes.

5. 5

   Serve warm or cold with vanilla ice cream or creme fraiche.