How To Braid Puff Pastry

Whether savory or sweet, dishes made with puff pastry tend to elicit plenty of "yums." Here's a technique that's guaranteed to add "oohs" and "ahhs" to the chorus. And it's ridiculously easy!

All you have to do is make diagonal cuts down the sides of your sheet of pastry and criss-cross them over the filling. When the pastry puffs, it transforms into an intricate-looking main dish or dessert. In the example pictured, we used frozen puff pastry and a variation of this Acorn Squash and Roasted Garlic Strudel filling. Served at Christmas dinner, it definitely made the vegetarians at the table feel like we were getting something special! And yet the technique is simple enough to use for everyday meals, not just holidays.
Here's a good video tutorial from Cuisine at Home: