Vol au Vents

These I usually reserve only for Christmas Eve.  I used to eat these all through my life in England at my aunt Rita’s house in Kent.  She used to make these for special occasions like Christmas, family bbq’s, parties etc.  They are too simple to make but look incredibly beautiful and taste lovely.

To make life a whole lot easier, I suggest you buy the frozen puff pastry shells.

Egg Mayonnaise Vol au Vents

Cook the puff pastry shells as directed on the pack.  I usually give them an egg wash before going in the oven to make them look more appealing.

I cook 6 eggs, mash with 1 heaped tablespoon of mayonnaise, salt, freshly ground pepper and 1 tsp of pickled relish.  Pack that into the cooked and cooled shells.

English Prawn Cocktail Vol au Vents

Cook the puff pastry shells as directed on the pack.  I usually give them an egg wash before going in the oven to make them look more appealing.

Fry one pack of frozen and defrosted, large raw shrimp in 1 tablespoon of unsalted butter.  Sprinkle them with a bit of salt and freshly ground black pepper.  Put to side to cool.

In a separate bowl, mix 1 heaped tablespoon of mayonnaise with about 1 teaspoon of tomato ketchup.  Add a little freshly ground black pepper and a couple of squeezes of fresh lemon juice.  Cut the shrimp/prawns into small chunks when cool and add to the cocktail sauce mixture and pile into cool shells.

Chicken and Mushroom Vol au Vents

Bake a chicken breast in foil in oven until done and chop into small pieces.  Fry a punnet of mushroom slices in butter and add a little salt and freshly ground black pepper.  Add a small tin of mushroom soup, and chop some fresh parsley, couple of small shakes of onion powder and garlic powder.  Add in chopped chicken breast.  Cool and add to the cooled pastry shells.