Love is in the air.  And by love, I mean the smell of baked goods (And, really, that's essentially the same thing).

I always have a hard time coming up with something special for my husband for Valentine's Day.  He's hard to pick for at the best of times, but for a holiday that's meant to focus on romance, he becomes almost impossible.  He's just not a particularly sentimental guy. 

But a few days ago, it came to me.  The perfect offering that could communicate my love, devotion and recognition of his importance.  Something that would harken back to the very beginnings of our relationship and narrate the years and closeness that followed.  Something that would surely bring tears of joy, adoration and gratitude to his eyes and maybe even inspire those "special feelings."  That's right.  I settled on baked goods.

Okay, so it's not the most romantic gift in the world.  But it is one of his favorite things.  And with a little extra effort (and a great deal of googling), I could make it something truly special. 

For the past few months, I've been seeing these gorgeous apple rose pastries on pinterest and I've wanted to try them out.  What could be more appropriate than roses at Valentine's day?

After playing around a bit with a few variations, the final product turned out beautifully.  In addition, they were far easier than I expected.  Though I used a gourmet apple-cinnamon jelly this time, I would love to try ricotta or caramel at some point or add in a layer of almonds and raisins.  Ah, the layers of love. 

Rose Apple Pastry

2 Large Red Apples
2 Sheets Puff Pastry, thawed
3 Tbsp. Apple Cinnamon Jelly
3 Cups + 2 Tbsp Water
1 Lemon (or 3 Tbsp lemon juice)
Nutmeg

1.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees
2.  Core apple and cut in half length wise (in the direction of the core).  Cut apple halves into very thin slices (the thinner the better).  Try to leave as much red skin showing as possible.


3. Put apples in a microwave safe bowl with 3 cups of water and the juice from the lemon.  Microwave for 2-3 minutes, or until apples are just tender. Set aside.


 4. On a floured surface, cut puff pastry into long strips, approximately 4-5" wide.



5.  Place Jelly and 2 Tbsp water in microwave safe bowl and heat for 1 minute. Whisk with a fork until incorporated. 

 
6.  Spread jelly in thin layer across strips of pastry.  Sprinkle lightly with nutmeg.


7.  Overlap apple slices along the top of one of the strips of dough, allowing the curves of each slice to extend past the dough. 


8.  Fold pastry up, covering the bottoms of the apple slices.  Begin to roll the dough and apples into a tight spiral. 


9.  When your rose spiral is formed, carefully transfer it into a greased and floured muffin tin.  Repeat with remaining roses.


10.  Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until dough begins to turn golden.  Allow to cool for 5 minutes before removing from muffin tin.  

Sprinkle with powdered sugar, drizzle with caramel or serve with homemade whipped cream.  Or get crazy, and do all three.  It just might be love.