The smoked salmon and broccoli mousse vol-au-vents are delightful finger food appetizers that are easy to prepare at home. They consist of crispy puff pastry shells or baskets that hold a delicate mousse made simply because it’s created with broccoli and spreadable cheese. Blended together, they become a soft cream to fill the puff pastry shells. To complete and give them an elegant and refined look, as well as a pleasantly smoked taste, just add some smoked salmon rosettes. Thus, small savory pastries come to life, perfect for a fish-based menu, a buffet or an appetizer, or occasions like Christmas and New Year’s will be a hit! But don’t worry, with our quantities, you’ll get a good 25 vol-au-vents, making everyone happy!
To make them, we cut out a roll of puff pastry with a 2-inch cutter. On each obtained disc, we stack rings made from the other two discs of puff pastry, obtained by cutting each disc in the center with a smaller cutter. Brush with the egg and bake for 15-18 minutes at 392°F. We make the broccoli mousse by blending the broccoli with the spreadable cheese, and we fill each puff pastry shell with the broccoli mousse and a smoked salmon rosette.
Small and irresistible, these vol-au-vents with broccoli mousse and smoked salmon are the perfect idea to impress everyone with just a few simple moves. We can prepare them up to a day in advance, so we don’t stress too much over appetizers and have all the time to prepare the first courses, the second courses, and the desserts. Try them!
Check also:
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Very economical
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 25 Pieces
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: French
- Seasonality: Fall, Winter, Christmas
Ingredients to Make Smoked Salmon and Broccoli Mousse Vol-au-Vents
- 3 packs puff pastry (rectangular)
- 1 egg
- 12.3 oz broccoli (boiled)
- 7.1 oz smoked salmon
- 7.1 oz spreadable cheese (with herbs)
- extra virgin olive oil
- salt
Tools to Make Smoked Salmon and Broccoli Mousse Vol-au-Vents
- 2 Pastry Cutter
- Parchment Paper
- 1 Baking Tray
- Oven
- Food Processor
How to Make Smoked Salmon and Broccoli Mousse Vol-au-Vents
To prepare the smoked salmon and broccoli mousse vol-au-vents, first make the vol-au-vents: roll out the first rectangular puff pastry sheet and, using a 2-inch cutter, cut out some discs. This way we obtained 25 discs.
Place the discs on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and lightly prick them with a fork.
Cut the second puff pastry sheet with the 2-inch cutter. Cut out the centers with a smaller cutter about 1.5 inches. This way you will get a ring.
Place each ring on top of the full discs. Also cut the last puff pastry sheet first with the 2-inch cutter and then cut out the centers with the smaller 1.5 inch cutter. Place the obtained ring on top of the disc with the other ring. Practically, for each vol-au-vent, you should make three layers: one with a full disc and the other two with rings.
Brush with a beaten egg and bake for 15-18 minutes at 392°F. When they are golden, remove them from the oven and let them cool well on a rack. Once cool, since during baking the puff pastry will rise in the center and we need to create a cavity to fill, gently press the center of each vol-au-vent with a spoon.
Meanwhile, prepare the broccoli mousse: sauté the already boiled broccoli in a pan with a little oil and season them with salt and pepper. Blend them with the herb-flavored spreadable cheese.
Fill each vol-au-vent with the broccoli mousse. You can use a piping bag or simply a spoon.
Cut the salmon into slices and roll them on themselves to create small roses. Decorate each vol-au-vent with the salmon rosettes.
Serve the smoked salmon and broccoli mousse vol-au-vents as an appetizer or aperitif.
Storage and Variations
You can prepare the vol-au-vents already filled even a day earlier. Naturally, they will not be as crispy as just made.
You can prepare the puff pastry shells even a day ahead, storing them in an airtight container.
The excess puff pastry should not be thrown away, but you can reuse it to make simple pizza-flavored crackers by brushing them with tomato sauce, oregano, and grated cheese. Bake them in the oven for 15 minutes at 392°F. Alternatively, you can draw inspiration from the many puff pastry recipes on our site like the puff pastry appetizers.
You can replace the spreadable cheese with other types of creamy cheeses like ricotta, crescenza, mascarpone.
FAQ (Questions and Answers)
What are vol-au-vents?
Literally, the term vol-au-vent means “fly in the wind” in French. These small baskets are made with layered puff pastry perfect for filling.
