Craving buttery, flaky pastries from your favorite bakery? Make this Cherry Puff Pastry Braided Twist at home from scratch using our famous pastry dough or if you are short on time, opt for frozen puff pastry sheets. Perfect for breakfast, dessert, or a coffee break, this twist is easy, elegant, and full of classic bakery flavor. Learn to make it here!
I won’t lie… puff pastry treats are my weakness. Every once in awhile, I get a massive craving for some, and the only way to make it go away is to just satisfy the craving!
There’s nothing quite like waking up in the morning and NOT having to get dressed to run to the local coffee shop or bakery to get a sweet treat. When you have these homemade cherry puff pastries in your home, you’re going to want to heat one up with a cup of coffee or tea and enjoy life’s simple pleasures.
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Baking the Cherry Puff Pastry Braided Twist
This cherry puff pastry braided twist recipe has been on my top fifty baking list for some time, and I had some homemade puff pastry in the freezer (you can get our puff pastry recipe by clicking here). So I thought, what the heck, it’s time to make the cherry twist.
Cherries are typically in season for a short period of time in California from April until about June. I love buying fresh cherries from the local grocery and snacking on them. Usually I just eat them and spit the seed out… so when I decided to make this recipe from scratch, I was like, “Ummm, how do you pit cherries really quickly???”
Thank goodness for Google! Ha!
Did you know you can pit cherries with a paper clip?
Yep! Simply unfold a large paper clip in the middle and use one end as the handle and the other end to pit the cherry. Push the paper clip end into the stem end of the cherry, rotate it around a few times and then pull the seed out. Voila!
If you don’t want to get messy while pitting, you may want to try this cherry pitter.
And it’s not like we don’t have tons of time on our hands right now, so, why not pour yourself a glass of wine, put on some fun music, and get to pitting your cherries.
Now onto the tips for making the yummy cherry puff pastry filling!
I usually like to keep the filling recipes super basic in order to preserve the flavor of the fruit being used. Usually for any pie or filling recipe, you’ll see me add a few handfuls of sugar, a few teaspoons of lemon or lime juice, along with a few tablespoons of flour or arrow root for thickening. For this cherry puff pastry filling recipe, I heated the cherries with a half cup of sugar and lemon juice from half of one lemon until just boiling. Then strained the cherries from a lot of the juice and added two teaspoons of arrow root to thicken the filling. If you don’t strain the juice, you will end up with a mess when baking!
Here are my tips for making the cherry puff pastry braided twist:
- Make your puff pastry dough the day before or buy it from the store because making puff pastry should be a relaxed all-day-kinda-thing. If you’ve made it ahead and frozen some, simply remove it from the freezer and let it thaw in the refrigerator over night. Here’s our puff pastry dough if you want to make your own.
- Pit the cherries with a paper clip or cherry pitter the night before as well.
- When ready to assemble the puff pastry twist, take puff pastry dough out of the fridge to let it thaw a bit more.
- Cook the cherries, sugar and lemon juice (as specified below).
- While the cherries are warming, roll out the puff pastry dough into a rectangle until it’s about 1/4″ thick.
- The cherries should be coming to a simmer. Turn off the heat, strain the cherries (here’s my favorite strainer) and add arrow root (or cornstarch or flour) to thicken. Set aside.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and cut the design (specified below) into the puff pastry dough.
- Make sure the cherries are cooled and turn the oven on to pre-heat for baking the puff pastry twist.
- Once cooled, scoop the cherry puff pastry filling onto the center line of the cut puff pastry design. Braid the dough.
- Add an egg wash to the top of the braided puff pastry to help it get that shiny golden brown look. Sprinkle some sugar on top.
- Bake up the pastry, cut and serve warm!
HERE’S THE RECIPE FOR THE CHERRY PUFF PASTRY BRAIDED TWIST:
✅ Ingredients
- 1 homemade puff pastry dough (or store-bought package of puff pastry)
- 2 cups fresh or frozen cherries, pitted and halved
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 Tbsp lemon juice
- 2 tsp arrowroot or cornstarch, for thickening
- 1 egg, for egg wash
- 1 Tbsp water (for egg wash)
- Sprinkle of coarse sugar
🔪 Recipe Steps
- Make the cherry filling
To make the homemade cherry filling, in a medium saucepan, combine cherries, ½ cup sugar, and lemon juice over medium heat. Stir until it simmers. Strain off most of the liquid, then whisk in arrowroot (or cornstarch) to thicken. Set aside to cool. - Prepare the dough
On a lightly floured surface, roll your puff pastry into a rectangle. With a sharp knife, cut 1″ strips down both long sides, leaving the center intact for the cherry mixture.
- Assemble the braid
Spoon the chilled filling down the middle of the dough. Alternate folding the top and bottom pastry strips over the filling, creating a lattice crust braid effect.
- Egg wash & bake
In a small bowl, whisk egg + water. Use a pastry brush to brush the egg wash over the braid, then sprinkle coarse sugar on top. Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Bake
Preheat oven to 400°F. Bake the twist for about 20–25 minutes, rotating halfway for even browning. The pastry should be golden brown, flaky, and puffed. - Cool & store
Cool on a wire rack. Store cooled pieces in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. Or individually wrap the pieces in plastic wrap and place in a Ziplock bag and freeze.
💡 Expert Tips for Best Results
- Use frozen puff pastry sheets if you’re short on time—they work just as well.
- Keep your dough chilled until ready to bake—cold dough puffs better.
- Ensure the filling is thick before filling, to avoid a soggy pastry center.
- Score edges with a sharp knife to promote even golden brown baking.
- Sprinkle some almond extract along with the vanilla extract into your filling for a classic bakery touch.
🩺 FAQs
Can I use cherry pie filling instead of fresh cherries?
Yes! Just make sure to drain the cherry pie filling well as it might be too runny. Add a little lemon juice and arrowroot to thicken further.
How to avoid soggy bottom crust?
Line your baking sheet with parchment and bake until the underside is golden, checking with an oven-safe spatula.
What’s the best puff pastry to use?
For extra flavor, try our popular homemade puff pastry recipe. All-purpose retail puff pastry sheets melt easily and deliver flaky layers as well.
Can I turn the puff pastry twist into cherry turnovers?
Of course! Simply cut the pastry dough into squares and add cherry filling to the middle of each square and then take a corner and stretch it over the top to the other corner and use a fork to press marks into the edge of the pastry dough. Cut a few slits on the top of each turnover to allow steam to escape during baking.
Can you freeze the cherry puff pastry braided twist?
Yes! You can freeze the puff pastry dough and cherry filling separately and then assemble and bake it. Or you can bake the cherry twist, wrap and freeze cut pieces, and then re-heat them as desired. Here are the instructions for both:
If you want to get the dough and cherries ready and bake the twist for breakfast fresh, you can make the puff pastry and cherry filling days before and freeze them separately in freezer grade Ziplock bags. Then move them into the fridge the night before and thaw on the counter before assembling. Then bake as normal.
If you have baked the puff pastry twist, and you want to freeze a bunch of pieces for later, you can cut the twist into 2″ pieces, wrap each piece in Saran Wrap, place in freezer grade Ziplock bags and freeze for later. When you want a cherry puff pastry treat with your breakfast or for dessert, simply take it out and thaw for a few minutes, and then heat on a baking sheet in a warm oven or counter top oven.
Other Recipes You Might Like:
Here’s the recipe card for the cherry puff pastry braided twist:
Cherry Puff Pastry Braided Twist
Ingredients
Method
- Boil the 4 cups pitted cherries, 1/2 cup sugar, and 2 tsp. lemon juice until just simmering. Turn off heat, let cool. Add the 2 tsp. arrow root or cornstarch to thicken.
- Prepare a baking sheet with wax paper. Roll out the puff pastry into a rectangle and transfer to the baking sheet.
- Then cut triangles and slits into the puff pastry to match the design in picture.
- Scoop the cherries, allowing much of the juice to strain off, and line cherries onto the center line of the puff pastry dough. Braid the dough over the cherries.
- Heat oven to 400 degree F. Scramble one egg with 1 Tbsp of water and brush the top and edges of the puff pastry with egg wash. Sprinkle the top of puff pastry with sugar.
- Bake at 400 for 10 minutes and then lower the temperature to 375 for another 20-30 minutes. Wait until the puff pastry turns a deep golden brown (may require more baking time). Check it often once it reaches this stage and look for the inside parts to firm up. You want the top to be golden and flaking. Remove from oven and allow to cool about 10-15 minutes. Cut into 2" pieces and serve warm.
Tried this recipe?
Let us know how it was!