I first tasted this from a Cuban bakery/cafe. Portos always has a long line at their stores, and for a good reason – everything tastes so good. Their cheese roll is a must try! However I personally like the one with guava and cheese. Guava cuts through the creaminess of the cheese filling but complements it perfectly!

This treat is super easy to make using premade puff pastry! (And I added a variation that is even easier at the end of this post!) Feel free to substitute home made puff pastry if you have time. I keep a box or two of these in the freezer most of the times so I can make pastries at a moment’s notice.

Guava paste is readily available at Latin/Hispanic groceries. If you cannot find any, try the link below.

Ingredients:

2 sheets frozen puff pastry dough (17.25 oz package), thawed

9 oz cream cheese, room temperature

1 tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon orange water, optional

9 oz guava paste, cut in pieces

1 teaspoon lemon or orange juice

1 egg, beaten with 1 tablespoon water

Procedure:

Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper as the guava paste is STICKY.

In a bowl, beat cream cheese, sugar, lemon juice, and orange water if using. Make sure it is well mixed.

In another bowl, beat together guava paste, lemon or orange juice until smooth. You can also use a hand blender, or a blender.

Roll one puff pastry to a 12 inch square. Cut into 9 pieces. Place 1 tablespoon cream cheese mixture and 1 tablespoon guava mixture in the middle. Brush edges with beaten egg and fold to form a triangle, rectangle, or square. Use a fork to seal the edges. Place on prepared baking sheets.

Repeat with remaining sheet of puff pastry. Brush pastry tops with egg wash. Sprinkle with sugar if desired.

Preheat oven to 400F. Refrigerate pastries for about 30 minutes while the oven preheats.

Bake for 20-25 minutes at 400F, rotating pans after 10 minutes.

THE EASIEST WAY: This will make good enough pastries but the cheese and guava paste will not be gooey. If you have extra time, zap the guava paste in a microwaveable bowl for a few seconds, until softened, and stir well. Stir the room temperature cream cheese until soft too.

You’ll only need:

1 package puff pastry, thawed

1 bar guava paste

1 bar cream cheese, at room temperature

Unfold puff pastry, roll into 12 inch squares and cut into 18 squares total.

Cut guava paste into 1/4 inch pieces, slightly smaller than the puff pastry squares. Do the same with the cream cheese.

Place a piece of guava paste on top of HALF of the puff pastry, then place a small piece of cream cheese over the guava paste.

Place the remaining puff pastry over the filled ones and seal edges using a fork.

Preheat oven to 400F. Refrigerate pastries while oven preheats.

Bake 20-25 minutes, rotating pans halfway through.

For the Goya guava paste used in this recipe, click on this link if you cannot find it locally.