To create a scenic and tasty opening appetizer, here is a captivating and super original idea, some delightful and varied puff pastry baskets filled! The idea came to me during the Christmas holidays, so, inspired by the moment, I decided to make puff pastry appetizers with a delicate salmon and dill leaf mousse and an equally inviting number of vol-au-vent filled with a mortadella and pistachio mousse, alternating them on the table to my and my guests’ full satisfaction! You can have fun making vol-au-vent at home, maybe with your kids or friends, as I did, or find them conveniently ready in the best supermarkets and specialty stores. Crispy and warm, they will be your crowning glory!
If you love focusing on appetizers for your Christmas dinner or lunch, try these other scenic proposals:
- Difficulty: Medium
- Cost: Medium
- Preparation time: 15 Minutes
- Cooking time: 15 Minutes
- Portions: 10 Pieces
- Cuisine: French
- Seasonality: Christmas, Fall, Winter, and Spring
Ingredients
- 2 rolls puff pastry (of 230 g)
- 1 egg
- 2 tablespoons milk
- 4.6 oz smoked salmon
- 2.8 oz cream cheese
- to taste dill
- 1 pinch salt
- to taste pepper
Tools
⚠ THIS RECIPE CONTAINS ONE OR MORE AFFILIATE LINKS. The products I recommend are the same ones I use in my recipes; purchasing them through my blog helps support me and my work, while it won’t cost you anything extra!
- 2 Pastry cutter
- 1 Fork
- 1 Brush
- 1 Knife
- 1 Mixer
- 1 Piping bag
- 1 Baking tray
- 1 Baking paper
Preparation
Unroll the 2 rectangles of puff pastry and, using a pastry cutter or cookie cutters, cut out many discs of 2.4 inches Ø, trying as much as possible to avoid pastry leftovers. Pierce the center of 10 of these discs with the prongs of a fork to prevent them from puffing up during baking. On the remaining discs, make a central hole using a smaller pastry cutter of about 1.2-1.6 inches Ø to create many rings.
Brush them with the beaten egg and milk and stack 2 rings on each of them, but if desired, you can stack up to 4, depending on how tall you want them*, taking care to always brush with the beaten egg even on the edges. This operation not only serves to fix the rings together but also enables their characteristic golden coloring. You can use the remaining puff pastry to cut out other small decorations. This will make 10.
Bake in a hot oven at 392°F for about 15 minutes or until puffed and golden on the surface. Remove the vol-au-vents and let them cool completely outside the oven. Meanwhile, prepare the mousse for the filling, placing in a mixer the salmon cut into strips, reserving some for decoration, the cream cheese, and dill.
Start blending in repeated bursts, then salt and pepper to taste. You should obtain a smooth and homogeneous cream.
Transfer the mousse into a piping bag with a star nozzle and fill your vol-au-vents.
Decorate with salmon fillets and dill and serve. And voilà… the vol-au-vent with salmon and dill mousse are ready to be enjoyed!
Enjoy from La Cucina di FeFè!
Storage
👉 The vol-au-vent with salmon and dill mousse can be stored in the fridge for 1-2 days in suitable refrigeration containers, preferably glass.
Advice, notes, variations, and suggestions
🟣If time is short, you can speed up the preparation by buying ready-to-bake vol-au-vent and proceed only to prepare the mortadella and pistachio mousse.
