Puff pastry baskets with potato cream, an easy and quick Christmas appetizer. Here we go, the holidays are coming and with them the hunt for the perfect appetizer—easy and quick! As you already know, I always say: it takes very little to succeed at the table and what matters is the quality of the ingredients used. And do you know what never misses in my fridge and pantry to help me achieve that? A good roll of puff pastry, some grating cheese and a few potatoes! So, for example, I made these original puff pastry appetizers, simple puff pastry baskets filled with potato cream with Grana Padano, perfect also for the Christmas holidays. A very simple but extraordinary recipe that will bring flavor and cheer to the table!
Come on, but first I remind you that if you want to stay updated on my recipes, you can follow my Facebook page (here) and my Instagram profile (here).
Also check out:
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Affordable
- Preparation time: 40 Minutes
- Portions: 12
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients
- 1 roll puff pastry (rectangular)
- 1 egg (for glazing)
- 3 tablespoons milk (to mix with the egg)
- to taste poppy seeds (or sesame)
- 1 lb 2 oz potatoes (cooked, still warm)
- 1/2 cup milk
- to taste salt
- 4 oz Grana Padano (grated)
- to taste white pepper
- 2 tbsp butter
- to taste chives
- to taste pink peppercorns (whole)
- 2 oz Grana Padano PDO
Tools
- Pastry wheel
- Baking pan
- Oven for muffins
- Oven
- Pastry brush
- Piping bag
- Star tips
Steps
Cook the potatoes: you can boil them for 35-40 minutes in boiling water and, in any case, until a fork goes through easily, or steam them for 20 minutes in a microwave steamer, as I did.
Peel the potatoes and mash them with a ricer or a potato masher, collect them in a bowl and add the grated Grana Padano, the butter, the chives, the pepper and a pinch of salt to adjust the flavor. Then add the milk little by little until you obtain a velvety, creamy but firm mixture. It should be pipeable with a piping bag.
Unroll the puff pastry and, using a fluted pastry wheel, cut 12 small squares. Butter the muffin molds and place one square inside each cavity. Beat the egg with 3 tablespoons of milk and brush each square, then sprinkle with a few sesame or poppy seeds. Bake in a preheated oven at 356°F for 15-20 minutes or until lightly golden—enough for the pastry to cook but not too dark.
Remove the baskets from the oven and let them cool completely before unmolding. Fill a piping bag with the potato mixture and pass them briefly under the grill in the oven at 392°F, just below the broiler, for 5 minutes or until they acquire a light golden color.
Remove from the oven and garnish with Grana Padano chips and pink peppercorn grains.
To make the Grana Padano chips: heat a non-stick frying pan very well, pour an ample handful of grated cheese into it. Let the cheese melt and begin to take color, then turn off the heat, wait one minute and then gently lift the formed sheet with a silicone spatula. Break it and use it to garnish the baskets.
Serve immediately.
The Grana Padano baskets should be served immediately, still hot and crisp. If you need to organize in advance, you can prepare the baskets and the cream a few hours ahead. Assemble them and reheat them in the oven shortly before serving.
From here you can return to the HOME and discover the new recipes!
