Buttery Almond Bear Claws Recipes

BEAR CLAWS

Steps:

• In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm milk. Stir in sugar, salt and egg; mix well. Add the flour all at once, stirring until mixed. Set aside., For butter mixture, sprinkle 1 tablespoon flour on a work surface; place butter on surface and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon flour. Press and roll out with a rolling pin. Scrape butter from rolling pin and continue to work the butter until it forms a smooth mass without any hard lumps. Knead in remaining flour, working quickly to keep butter cold. , Place butter mixture on a sheet of plastic wrap and shape into a small rectangle. Cover with another sheet of plastic wrap; roll into a 9x6-in. rectangle. Set aside., Turn dough onto a floured work surface; roll into a 14x10-in. rectangle, with a 10-in. side toward the bottom. Unwrap butter mixture; place on dough 1 in. above bottom edge and 1/2 in. from each side edge. Fold top half of dough over butter and pinch edges to seal., Turn dough a quarter turn to the right; sprinkle lightly with additional flour. Lightly roll into a 16x8-in. rectangle. Fold bottom third of rectangle up and top third down, as when folding a business letter, making a 5-1/2x8-in. rectangle (this is called one turn). Rotate dough a quarter turn to the right. Lightly roll into a 16x8-in. rectangle and again fold into thirds, finishing the second turn. Repeat rotating, rolling and folding two more times for a total of four times. Wrap loosely in plastic wrap; refrigerate for 30 minutes., Roll dough into a 12-in. square; cut square into three 12x4-in. strips. Spread 2 tablespoons filling down the center of each strip to within 1 in. of long edge. Fold lengthwise over filling and pinch seam to seal. Cut each strip into three pieces. With scissors, cut each piece four times from pinched seam to about 1/2 in. from folded side. Place 2 in. apart on greased baking sheets. Curve folded side slightly to separate strips and allow filling to show. Cover and let rise in a warm place until almost doubled, about 1 hour., Preheat oven to 400°. Brush bear clasws with egg. Bake 10-14 minutes or until puffy and golden brown. Remove from pans to wire racks. Combine glaze ingredients; brush over warm rolls. Cool.

ALMOND BEAR CLAWS

Steps:

• In a bowl, toss butter with 3 cups flour until well coated; refrigerate. In a large bowl, combine yeast and remaining flour. , In a saucepan, heat cream, sugar and salt to 120°-130°. Add to yeast mixture with 1 egg. Beat until smooth. Stir in butter mixture just until moistened., Place dough onto a well-floured surface; roll into a 21x12-in. rectangle. Starting at a short side, fold dough in thirds, forming a 12x7-in. rectangle. Give dough a quarter turn; roll into a 21x12-in. rectangle. Fold into thirds, starting with a short side. Repeat, flouring surface as needed. (Do not chill dough between each rolling and folding.) Cover and chill for 4 to 24 hours or until firm., For filling, in a bowl, beat egg white until foamy. Gradually add confectioners' sugar and almond paste; beat until smooth. Cut dough in half widthwise. Roll each portion into a 12-in. square; cut each square into three 12x4-in. strips. Spread about 2 tablespoons filling down center of each strip. Fold long edges together over filling; seal edges and ends. Cut into 3 pieces., Place on parchment-lined baking sheets with folded edge facing away from you. With scissors, cut strips 4 times to within 1/2 in. of folded edge; separate slightly. Repeat with remaining dough and filling. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour. , Lightly beat water and remaining egg; brush over dough. Sprinkle with sugar and almonds. Bake at 375° for 15 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool.

ALMOND BEAR CLAWS

Steps:

• In a large bowl, beat almond paste with an electric mixer to break it apart. Add the almonds, sugar, and salt; continue to mix until the almond paste is no longer lumpy. Stir in the butter, egg whites, almond extract and amaretto liqueur on high speed until its as fluffy as you can get it. Set aside.
• Using half of the dough at a time, roll it out on a lightly floured surface into a rectangle that is about 8 inches wide and 1/4 inch thick. Trim the edges of the dough. Cut the dough in half lengthwise to make two 4 inch wide strips.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Fill a pastry bag halfway with the almond filling and pipe a stripe of filling down the center of each strip. Whisk together the egg and water. Brush onto one edge of each strip. Fold each strip over the filling and press gently to seal it. Brush each piece with egg wash and sprinkle sliced almonds over the top. Cut into 3 to 4 inch pieces, then cut 1/2 inch slits into the sealed edge to make the ''claws''. Place the bear claws at least two inches apart on baking sheets. Refrigerate and repeat with the second half of the dough.
• Bake in the preheated oven until almonds are toasted and pastry is golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes. Cool and dust with confectioners' sugar right before serving.

PUFF PASTRY BEAR CLAWS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Beat 1/3 cup superfine sugar and butter together in a bowl with an electric mixer until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add eggs yolks and beat well. Beat in almond extract.
• Stir ground almonds and flour into butter mixture until mixture has a thick paste-like consistency.
• Cut puff pastry into 8 equal pieces. Place 1 tablespoon almond mixture in the lower center of each piece. Fold top of puff pastry down over the filling and press edges together to seal. Make three 1/2-inch cuts equal lengths apart on the bottom edge to make the "claws".
• Transfer pastries to a baking sheet.
• Whisk egg and water together in a bowl. Brush each bear claw with egg mixture and sprinkle with remaining 2 tablespoons superfine sugar and sliced almonds.
• Bake in the preheated oven until puffed and golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes.
• Note: To make ground almonds, freeze whole almonds, then place in a food processor and grind in short bursts. Do not over process or allow them to get warm, otherwise they will turn into almond butter.

CRESCENT BEAR CLAWS

Steps:

• Heat oven to 375ºF. Line cookie sheet with parchment paper.
• In a medium bowl, beat egg lightly with whisk. Place 1/2 of the egg (about 1 1/2 Tbs.) in a custard cup and beat in the milk until well blended. Set this aside, it will be used as a wash later.
• To the remaining egg in the bowl, stir in the remaining filling ingredients until well blended.
• Meanwhile, in 1-quart heavy saucepan, mix glaze ingredients. Heat to boiling and remove from heat; cool while making rolls.
• On a lightly floured work surface, unroll dough; press into a 12x8-inch rectangle, firmly pressing perforations to seal.
• Spoon filling into a 12x2-inch strip lengthwise down the center 1/3 of the dough.
• Fold 1/3 of dough over filling. Then fold the filling-topped section over the last 1/3 of dough so the seam is on the bottom.
• With hand, gently flatten 1-inch wide strip of dough along one long side of folded dough.
• Cut folded dough crosswise into 6 (2-inch) pastries. Along flattened edge of each pastry, cut 1-inch long cuts about 1/2 inch apart.
• Lightly brush the egg-milk mixture from earlier over each pastry. Place almonds on a plate and invert each pastry onto almonds. Press gently so almonds stick to dough.
• Place almond side up on the cookies sheet, spreading each cut slightly to form claw like shape. Sprinkle remaining almonds over top of pastries.
• Bake for 15-18 min or until golden brown. Remove to wire rack and cool for 5 minute.
• Drizzle cooled glaze over each pastry.
• In another small bowl, mix icing ingredients until smooth - if too thick, add 1/2 teaspoons water at a time until drizzling consistency. Drizzle icing over cooled pastries.

BEAR CLAWS

Steps:

• Scald milk. Stir in sugar, salt and butter. Cool to lukewarm. Place the warm water in a large bowl. Sprinkle the yeast over the water and stir until yeast is dissolved. Stir in the milk mixture, egg and half of the flour; beat until smooth. Stir in remaining flour to form a stiff dough. Cover tightly with wax paper or foil. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Divide dough in half. Roll out one half on a floured board into a 9-by-18-inch rectangle. Sprinkle half of the almond filling OR half of the cream cheese filling over the dough. Fold outside third of dough toward center. Fold dough once more to make three layers. Pinch ends of dough to seal. Cut into nine 2-inch sections. Make four 1/4-inch cuts through the open side of each section. Place on greased baking sheets and shape into bear claw by separating the four cut sections. Repeat procedure with remaining dough and filling. Combine egg yolk with water and brush the tops of bear claws. If desired, sprinkle with some chopped nuts and additional sugar. Let rise, uncovered, until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour. Bake at 400 degrees F for 10 to 15 minutes or until golden. A couple of tips: Making the dough the night before was a time saver. The directions say to bake the claws for 10 to 15 minutes or until golden. Ours were done after 8 minutes. For Almond Paste Filling: Melt and simmer for about 2 minutes the butter and brown sugar. Remove from heat and stir in the remaining ingredients. Cool slightly before using. For Cream Cheese Filling: Beat cream cheese and sugar until fluffy. Stir in flour, egg yolk, lemon zest and juice.

BUTTERY ALMOND BEAR CLAWS

Steps:

• Almond filling: Smoothly blend together 1/2 butter (at room temp) with 1 1/3 cups unsifted powdered sugar. Add 2/3 cup all-purpose flour and 77-8 oz almond paste. Stir until crumbly and evenly mixed, then beat in 1 tsp. grated lemon peel and 2 of the reserved egg whites. Stir in 3/4 cup finely chopped almonds. Cover and chill until firm-1-3 days.

ALMOND BEAR CLAWS

Steps:

• In a large bowl, beat almond paste with an electric mixer to break it apart. Add the almonds, sugar, and salt; continue to mix until the almond paste is no longer lumpy. Stir in the butter, egg whites, almond extract and amaretto liqueur on high speed until its as fluffy as you can get it. Set aside.
• Using half of the dough at a time, roll it out on a lightly floured surface into a rectangle that is about 8 inches wide and 1/4 inch thick.
• Trim the edges of the dough. Cut the dough in half lengthwise to make two 4 inch wide strips.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Fill a pastry bag halfway with the almond filling and pipe a stripe of filling down the center of each strip.
• Whisk together the egg and water.
• Brush onto one edge of each strip. Fold each strip over the filling and press gently to seal it.
• Brush each piece with egg wash and sprinkle sliced almonds over the top.
• Cut into 3 to 4 inch pieces, then cut 1/2 inch slits into the sealed edge to make the ''claws''.
• Place the bear claws at least two inches apart on baking sheets Refrigerate and repeat with the second half of the dough
• Bake in the preheated oven until almonds are toasted and pastry is golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes.
• Cool and dust with confectioners' sugar right before serving.