Origami wontons and pretty pastry cookies

"Have you recovered from that terrifying Williams Sonoma shopping ordeal?" the Java Junkie asked with all the sympathy of Cruella de Vil. The Junkie is a former union negotiator, which left her with a keen mind for detail, but very little patience for whining. And yours truly can whine with the best of them. I decided that, at least for the time being, silence would serve me well. "The next baking project requires no special equipment or skills. Unless you don't know how to fold...you do know how to fold, don't you?" My mind raced ahead. What madness does she have planned for me now? Origami wontons? "Yes, in fact folding was one of the few Girl Scout badges I earned just prior to being kicked out for attempting to score a double badge credit in mouthing off", I quipped proudly. "Palmiers," she sighed, trying to ignore my remarks, "are an easy and quick pastry that you can make from ready made frozen puff pastry sheets, cinnamon and sugar. I've even found a video so you can follow along." I began to wonder if she truly did doubt my folding skills. Hmmm, perhaps she had seen me struggling with fitted sheets...

So, without further ado, here's the simple recipe:

1 package Pepperidge Farm puff pastry sheets

3/4 c. sugar

1 T. ground cinnamon

Follow video instructions above and bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes, or until golden brown.

"They're not as pretty and shiny as the ones in the video" I lamented. "Are you sure they don't need an egg wash or something?" "No egg wash. It's the caramelized sugar that makes them shine" she replied. "Would that include organic cane sugar?" I asked. Judging by the long silence, I guessed it wouldn't. "Try using superfine baker's sugar" she explained gently. "The organic stuff is fine, but when you're making a pastry like this, you want a fine, even coating of sugar, and the superfine works best." "Roger" said I, and went off to bake another batch."These are great cookies" I gushed after making a few batches. "They're actually pastries" she replied. "Whatever" I replied, flashing the aforementioned badge at her as I wiped the crumbs from my chin - "it eats like a cookie." "Just because cookies are pastry does not mean that pastries are cookies" said Java cryptically. "In any case, we'll see how you feel about that after you've made them from scratch." Suddenly my respect for her grew even larger. Making puff pastry from scratch takes a massive amount of time and energy, and I was suddenly thankful for Pepperidge Farm. But I'm still convinced that, given enough coffee, my good friend could whip up a hundred origami won ton cranes without blinking an eye.