Pastry Puffs With Caviar Recipes

PASTRY PUFFS WITH CAVIAR

Steps:

• Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 425°F. Butter a large baking sheet.
• Bring water, butter, and salt to a boil in a 1 1/2- to 2 1/2-quart heavy saucepan over high heat, stirring. Reduce heat to moderate. Add flour all at once and cook, beating with a wooden spoon until mixture pulls away from side of pan, about 45 seconds. Remove from heat and cool slightly, then add 2 raw eggs 1 at a time, beating well with wooden spoon after each addition.
• Transfer mixture to pastry bag and pipe 24 mounds (about 1 inch wide by 1 inch high) onto baking sheet, spacing them about 1 inch apart. With a finger dipped in water, lightly tap down points on mounds to make tops round. Bake profiteroles until puffed and golden, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from oven and pierce each profiterole once with a wooden pick. Turn off oven and return profiteroles to oven, letting them stand in residual heat 5 minutes more. Transfer to a rack to cool completely.
• Horizontally cut off top third of each profiterole with a serrated knife and discard tops. Force boiled egg through a medium-mesh sieve into a small bowl and stir in parsley. Spoon a rounded 1/4 teaspoon caviar into each profiterole and sprinkle with a bit of egg mixture.

CAVIAR AND CRèME FRAîCHE TARTLETS

Steps:

• Arrange tart shells on a serving platter. Spoon crème fraîche into a small resealable plastic bag and snip a 1/4" opening in the corner. Pipe about 1/2 tablespoon crème fraîche onto one side of tart shells and spoon 1/2 teaspoon caviar onto the other side. Garnish with chives and serve immediately.

CAVIAR PUFF PASTRY STARS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
• On a floured surface, roll out puff pastry 1/8 inch thick and with a 3 inch star-shaped cutter, cut out 16 pastry stars.
• Transfer to lightly greased baking sheets, brush tops with egg wash, being careful not to let it drip down sides.
• Bake in middle of oven for 12-15 minutes, or until puffed and golden.
• Let cool and split, leaving the bottoms cut-side-up and tops cut-side-down.
• Just before serving, spoon about 1 tsp sour cream onto each star, divide caviar among stars and sprinkle with chives.

CAVIAR PUFF-PASTRY STARS

Steps:

• On a floured surface roll out the puff pastry 1/8 inch thick and with a 3-inch star-shaped cutter cut out 8 pastry stars. Transfer the stars to a lightly greased baking sheet, brush the tops with the egg wash, being careful not to let the wash drip down the sides, and bake the stars in the middle of a preheated 400°F. oven 12 to 15 minutes, or until they are puffed and golden. Transfer the stars to a rack and let them cool completely. With a sharp small knife carefully split the stars in half horizontally to form a total of 16 stars, leaving the bottoms cut sides up and the tops cut sides down. Just before serving, spoon about 1 teaspoon of the sour cream onto each star, divide the caviar among the stars, and sprinkle the hors d'oeuvres with the chives.

LOBSTER MOUSSE PUFF PASTRY BOUCHEES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
• In a food processor, puree the lobster meat with the salt and paprika. With the motor running, add the cream in a steady stream and blend until the mixture is smooth, then add the tarragon.
• Place the pastry shells on a lightly greased baking sheet, brush the tops with the egg wash, being careful not to let the wash drip down the sides, and bake in the middle of the preheated oven until they are just beginning to color, about 7 minutes. Transfer the shells to a rack and let them cool completely.
• Pipe or spoon the lobster mousse into the puff pastry shells and bake in the oven until the mousse is set and the shells are golden brown, about 4 to 5 minutes.
• Serve immediately topped with a slices of lobster and a dollop of caviar, if using.