Who doesn’t love French onion soup? Well, what if you could get those flavors in an easy handheld pastry? These French Onion Pastry Swirls are just that! Spirals of crescent roll dough surround a filling of Gruyère cheese and caramelized onions. A perfect snack or appetizer, no bowl or spoon needed!
Caramelize the Onions
Caramelizing onions takes some time and patience, but trust me that it’s worth it!
In a large saucepan, heat butter and olive oil over medium heat until the butter is melted. Then, turn the heat to low and add sliced onions and salt. Cook over low, stirring occasionally, until the onions have turned a deep golden color (see the image below). This can take up to 1 hour and the onions will significantly reduce in volume. Take care not to let the onions burn. If they are getting too hot, briefly remove from the heat or stir in 1 Tbsp of the deglazing liquid.
For your deglazing liquid you can use broth or wine. Beef broth is the most traditional for French onion soup, but feel free to use what you prefer or what you have on hand. I used chicken bone broth.
Add your choice of deglazing liquid and thyme to the onions and stir, scraping up any cooked pieces stuck to the bottom of the pan. Continue to cook on low until there is no noticeable liquid. Transfer to a bowl and set aside to slightly cool.
Assemble the Pastries
On a clean work surface, unroll the sheet of crescent roll dough. If you can only find the perforated dough, that will work, too. Just pinch together the perforations to have a solid sheet of dough.
Sprinkle shredded Gruyère cheese evenly over the dough, reserving about 2-3 tablespoons of cheese for later. Spread your caramelized onions evenly over the shredded cheese.
Slice the dough into 12 strips of even width. A pizza cutter works great for this step.
Roll each strip of dough into a spiral or pinwheel like a cinnamon roll. Place each spiral cut side up in the well of a muffin pan, pressing down slightly so the spiral does not overflow the well (left image below). I did not find a need to grease the muffin pan since the crescent roll dough is plenty buttery.
Sprinkle with the remaining shredded cheese and top with black pepper to taste (right image below).
Bake the Pastries
Bake at 375°F for 13-15 minutes crescent roll dough is golden brown and the cheese has melted. Allow the pastries to cool in the pan for 5-10 minutes before removing.
These pastries are best served fresh, but can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
French Onion Pastry Swirls
Crescent roll dough swirled around Gruyère cheese and caramelized onions.
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 2 large yellow onions, thinly sliced
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 Tbsp thyme, preferably fresh
- 2-3 Tbsp broth or wine
- 1 sheet of crescent roll dough (see notes)
- 4 oz Gruyère cheese, shredded
- Black pepper, optional to taste
Instructions
- In a large saucepan, heat the butter and olive oil over medium heat until the butter is melted.
- Turn the heat to low and add the sliced onions and salt. Cook over low, stirring occasionally, until the onions have turned a deep golden color. This can take up to 1 hour and the onions will significantly decrease in volume. Take care not to let the onions burn. If they are getting too hot, briefly remove from the heat or stir in 1 Tbsp of the deglazing liquid.
- Add your deglazing liquid (broth or wine) and thyme to the onions and stir, scraping up any cooked pieces stuck to the bottom of the pan. Continue to cook on low until there is no noticeable liquid. Transfer to a bowl and set aside to slightly cool.
- Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- On a clean work surface, unroll the sheet of crescent roll dough. Sprinkle the shredded cheese evenly over the dough, reserving about 2-3 tablespoons of cheese for later. Spread your caramelized onions evenly over the shredded cheese.
- Slice the dough into 12 strips of even width. A pizza cutter works great for this step.
- Roll each strip of dough into a spiral or pinwheel (like a cinnamon roll). Place each spiral cut side up in the well of a muffin pan, pressing down slightly so the spiral does not overflow the well. I did not find a need to grease the muffin pan.
- Sprinkle with the remaining shredded cheese and top with black pepper to taste.
- Bake for 13-15 minutes until the crescent roll dough is golden brown and the cheese has melted. Allow the pastries to cool in the pan for 5-10 minutes before removing.
Notes
- Storage Instructions: These pastries are best served fresh, but can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- Crescent Roll Dough: If you can find a sheet of crescent roll dough, you can use perforated dough. Just pinch together the perforations to create a solid sheet of dough.
Crescent roll dough swirled around Gruyère cheese and caramelized onions.