Mini Croustades Fillings Recipes

LITTLE CROUSTADES FILLED WITH GRAVADLAX AND SOURED CREAM

Steps:

• Begin by placing the slices of bread on a flat surface and rolling them with a rolling pin to make them as thin as possible. Next stamp out rounds using a 2¼ inch (5.5 cm) plain cutter. Melt the butter in a small pan containing the garlic and a seasoning of salt and freshly milled black pepper. Now brush the little bread rounds on both sides with melted butter and then press them into the tins firmly. Bake them for about 15-20 minutes or until crisp and brown. Cool them on a wire rack and store them in an airtight tin for up to 2 weeks. To fill them for serving, simply pile the finely chopped gravadlax into each one and top with a little of the sauce that comes with it. Add a blob of soured cream and a dash of cayenne pepper.

JAM-FILLED CROUSTADES

Steps:

• Dough: In a small bowl, sprinkle yeast over milk; stir until dissolved. Let sit until foamy, about 5 minutes. Stir in vanilla seeds. In the bowl of a mixer fitted with the dough-hook attachment, mix together 4 1/2 cups flour, sugar, salt, and 1/2 stick butter on low speed until butter is incorporated and mixture resembles coarse meal, 3 to 4 minutes. Add yeast mixture; mix until dough just comes together. Add eggs and yolk; mix until just combined, 2 to 3 minutes (do not overmix).
• Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface, making sure to include any loose bits left at bottom of bowl. Gently knead to form a smooth ball, about 30 seconds. Wrap tightly in plastic; refrigerate at least 2 hours and up to overnight.
• In the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together remaining 3 1/2 sticks butter and 2 tablespoons flour. Shape mixture into a 12-by-10-inch rectangle on a piece of plastic wrap. Refrigerate 15 minutes or up to 1 day. On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to an 18-by-10-inch rectangle, a little over 1/4 inch thick, keeping the corners as square as possible. Remove any excess flour with a dry pastry brush. Remove butter mixture from refrigerator and let stand at room temperature until it is the same consistency as the dough. With a short side facing you, place butter mixture over two-thirds of the dough. Fold the unbuttered third over as you would a business letter, followed by the remaining third. This seals in the butter.
• Roll out dough again to an 18-by-10-inch rectangle, then fold into thirds as described above; refrigerate 1 hour. This completes the first of three turns. Repeat rolling and folding process two more times, refrigerating at least 1 hour between turns. To help you remember how many turns have been completed, mark the dough after each one: make one mark for the first turn, two for the second, and three for the third.
• Wrap tightly in plastic and refrigerate at least 4 hours and up to overnight. Dough can also be frozen, tightly wrapped in plastic, up to 2 weeks (thaw in refrigerator overnight before using).
• On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to a 20-by-16-inch rectangle, trimming edges if necessary. Using a ruler, cut into twenty 4-inch squares and transfer to one of three parchment-lined baking sheets, leaving an even amount of space between squares until you have two sheets with 7 squares each, and one sheet with 6 squares.
• Working with one square at a time, fold in half to form a triangle. Using a sharp pizza wheel, make a cut parallel to one of the short sides of the triangle, about 1/4 inch from the edge, stopping about 1/8 inch from the opposite short side. Make a second cut parallel to the opposite short side, about 1/4 inch from the edge, stopping about 1/8 inch from the first line. (Make sure lines do not meet.) Unfold triangle back into a square and brush egg wash along edges. Fold outer cut corners over to opposite inside corners. Press borders down to seal. Repeat with remaining squares. Loosely cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm spot until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.
• Filling: Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Fill center of each square with 1 tablespoon jam, then lightly brush dough with egg wash. Bake, rotating sheets from top to bottom halfway through, until deep golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool completely. Pastries are best served the same day.

MINI BRIE TARTS

Steps:

• Bake shells according to package directions. Let cool.
• Divide cheese in 12 pieces of equal size. Place in cooked shells.
• Bake in a 350°F oven for 15 minutes until cheese is melted.
• Top each tart with 1 Tsp of red pepper jelly.
• Serve and enjoy!
• Tip:.
• You might prefer to remove the rind off the cheese.
• Shells can be baked and stored in the freezer for up to 1 week.
• Cranberry sauce is a good substitute for red pepper jelly.
• Ready to serve miniature croustades found at the Supermarket are ideal containers for these tarts and a wide range of other fillings. No baking required before filling.

MUSHROOM CROUSTADES

Steps:

• For Croustade:
• Use a rolling pin to flatten each bread slice. Cut 3" (18 small) or 4" (12 large) rounds and gently fit into small or large muffin tins.
• Bake for 10 - 15 minutes at 425 or until golden and crisp. Cool on wire racks.
• Filling:.
• Melt butter in a large skillet and saute green onions for several minutes without browning.
• Stir in the mushrooms and mix well. Cook 10 - 15 minutes, stirring occasionally until moisture has evaporated.
• Remove from heat, sprinkle with flour and stir to coat the mushrooms.
• Gradually add the cream and return to heat.
• Bring to a boil, stirring constantly and then reduce heat and simmer for a few minutes until thick.
• Stir in all the other ingredients.
• Transfer filling to a bowl, cover it and refrigerate until ready to use.
• To Serve:.
• Place croustade on cookie sheet and fill each croustade with mushroom filling so that it is slightly mounded.
• Sprinkle lightly with parmesan cheese and dot with butter.
• Bake at 350 for 10 minutes and then turn to broil and brown the tops lightly.
• Serve hot.