Going boldly with pastry

Published 9:30 pm Wednesday, January 7, 2026

I have made a lot of big decisions lately, and now that there is no turning back, it feels a little overwhelming … a sure bet is still a gamble, after all, and the stakes are so very high. I have suffered the disappointment of disillusionment, the bitter taste of soured dreams, and the sting of self-sabotage. The hard lessons I taught myself instilled caution and convinced me that it’s best I don’t expect too much, especially from myself. For many years I floated, passive in my life, and let the current take me wherever I may go. I drifted through storms and over treasures and never made a move to steer, content to just observe, free of responsibility for my destination and the opportunities I might have sailed past while I looked up at the stars.

I took a big risk before and paid a painful price for my naivete. This time is different, I tell myself — I did the research, I took my time, but the nagging doubt remains and I am plagued by desperate premonitions and anticipatory regret. What if it all goes wrong? What if I don’t meet my expectations? What if I fail again to make my dreams come true? It all feels so serious, so dire, so grave.

I need to lighten up, I think, and take some silly risks. It’s time for some low-stakes gambling to return the joy to boldness. My mother-in-law had some accidental phyllo that needed to be used, so I thought of trying an old technique on new media just to see how it would look. In the end, I was unimpressed by my unattractive treat, but I had learned enough to do it right next time and make my vision a reality.

This twisted pastry is complex and unexpected and a perfect place to practice boldness. I experimented with unconventional flavor combinations just to see if they’d agree, and I was not disappointed with the flavor. I encourage you to do your own gambling and try out some new combinations. Sweet or savory, salty or spicy, everything tastes great layered between crispy, buttery phyllo. For mine, I used a combination of currant jelly, spiced walnuts, brown sugar and Nutella.

Ingredients:

1 box phyllo, thawed

2 sticks butter, melted and cooled

1 cup finely chopped walnuts

1 cup brown sugar

¼ teaspoon ground cloves

½ cup Nutella spread

Directions:

Unroll your thawed phyllo and cover with a damp paper towel. This will prevent the pastry from drying out while you work.

Quickly combine the walnuts, brown sugar and cloves in a small bowl and set aside.

Warm your Nutella spread in the microwave for a few seconds at a time, stirring as you go, until the paste is loose and pours and spreads easily. Set aside.

Prepare a baking sheet with greased parchment — the sugar layer will cause the twist to stick to the pan, so grease liberally or use a silicone mat.

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Lay a sheet of phyllo flat on a cutting board and brush thoroughly with melted butter.

Layer another two sheets on top, brushing each with butter.

Start alternating layers of jelly, sugared nuts, and very thinly spread Nutella in between layers of phyllo. Skip the butter on the layers with jelly and Nutella but be sure to brush butter on the sugared nut layers.

Continue making layers until you run out of filling, then top it with three layers of buttered phyllo.

Turn the whole thing so a long side is facing you and roll the pastry up into a log.

Take a sharp knife and, starting ½ inch from the top, slice the entire pastry lengthwise in half.

Twist the two halves around each other and press together at both ends to secure. You might consider wrapping the pastry into a wreath (something I wished I had done when I saw the result) or leave it as a twisted loaf.

Bake for 30-40 minutes until the pastry is browned and flaky.

Cool completely before slicing and serve with tea.