Those who love desserts will know that 'mille feuilles' is French for 'a thousand leaves', so called as it's usually made with sweet stuff sandwiched between layers of puff pastry. My recipe here is a savoury version,
and for me it's a keeper. I made two individual servings, but for any more than that it would be better to make one long piece and carve with a very sharp knife to serve.
Each ingredient can be prepared in advance, but otherwise, once the pastry is thawed, the whole thing could be done from start to serving in about an hour. The extra in the picture is smashed roasted baby potatoes - the potatoes are simmered for about 5 minutes, then drained and crushed a little (e.g. with the end of a rolling pin) before placing in an oiled tin and putting in the oven about 15 minutes before the pastry goes in.
To toast flaked almonds, warm a small pan and dry fry them for 3-4 mins, stirring often to prevent burning.
Mushroom, Leek & Goat Cheese Mille Feuilles - serves 2 but easily increased.
The pastry should be thawed in the fridge for a few hours. The oven needs to be at just under 200C; suggest turning it on once the filling ingredients are individually prepared and before rolling out the pastry. Line a baking sheet with parchment.
Ingredients
About 130g frozen puff pastry, thawed (if from a frozen rolled sheet, cut a piece about 12cm long)
few drops of milk
1 tbsp oil
1 small leek, trimmed and finely sliced
80g mushrooms (approx 4 medium) trimmed and finely sliced
40g soft goat cheese (about 4cm from a log), sliced into four
1 good tbsp fresh thyme leaves (or parsley/coriander)
2 tbsp toasted flaked almonds (optional)
freshly ground black pepper
Method
1 If using part of a sheet of pastry, open out the strip and roll out gently to be just a little longer and wider.
Cut evenly crossways into six pieces.
If using a block, roll out thinly to a strip around 24 cm x 12cm, then halve lengthwise and cut each strip
crossways into three pieces. Place on the baking sheet and brush lightly with milk.
2 Put the pastry pieces in to bake for 15 minutes. When they're puffed and golden, remove from the oven
but don't turn it off yet.
3 Meanwhile, heat the oil in a medium pan and saute the leek for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Then add
the mushrooms and thyme and saute for a further 5 mins. Add the goat cheese, almonds and a good
pinch of pepper and mix well.
4 To build the mille feuilles, press down lightly on four of the cooked pieces, keeping the other two as they
are for the tops. Divide half of the filling between two of the flattened pastry pieces and cover them with
the other two. Spread the remaining filling over these and top them with the remaining two, pressing down
gently but without breaking the puffiness.
5 Return to the oven for 5 minutes to heat through.
And there you have it. Substitutions can be made for the filling, e.g. onions for the leek, cream cheese for goats, chopped walnuts or hazels instead of almonds. For glamour, the mushrooms could have a splash of sherry, brandy or vermouth in which to simmer until the liquid is reduced. Shredded spinach could be added to the pan with the mushrooms. A hot vegetable of choice would be right for this, and a light wine would do justice, perhaps a dry white.
I'm thinking this would make a good vegetarian main for Christmas lunch, with preps done earlier, though it needs attention for the last 20 minutes. The ingredients could also be transported easily if the cook should be working in someone else's kitchen!
Once @EtheltheGoat had thrown down her #capricornchallenge, resistance was futile. I signed up and received an amazing hamper of vegetarian goodies including, of course, Capricorn goat's cheese. The task was to create a dish using at least some of the hamper contents, but adding any other ingredients that fitted.
My mind began buzzing straight away, and here's the result. These quantities make two pockets. Preparation should take 25-30 minutes - unless you indulge in pastry artwork for decoration (as I did, an extra few minutes), and baking 20-25 minutes. Economy tip: the oven won't need to go on until the pastry is prepared; it will be hot by the time the pockets are ready to go in.
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by rselph
via flickr.com |
Goat Cheese, Mango & Red Onion Pockets with a Sharp Pear Pool
Ingredients
275g puff pastry, thawed if originally frozen
70g Capricorn goat cheese
3 tbsp red onion chutney
Flesh of about one-third of a mango, finely chopped
1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves (or half tbsp dried)
Half tsp ground black pepper
A little beaten egg
1 fresh pear, peeled, cored and coarsely chopped
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
Half tsp sugar
The oven will need to be quite hot, around 180C, shelf in the middle.
Here's what mine looked like, prepped and ready to go. I've placed a portrait of Ethel on each, with olive for eyes and nose, and a thin strip parallel to the plain side of the pocket - to look like a pocket.
Method
1 Roll out the pastry to a 26cm square and trim edges. Cut in half down the middle to
make 2 rectangles and place them on parchment on a baking sheet.
2 With any scraps of pastry, roll if necessary and cut out shapes (mine are goats).
3 Crumble the goat cheese into a medium bowl. Add the onion chutney, mango, thyme
and pepper and mix gently but thoroughly.
4 Spread half the mixture evenly onto one half of each strip of pastry, leaving a 15mm
margin around the edges. Brush all 8 edges with a little of the beaten egg.
5 Fold the plain side of each strip carefully over its filling, matching the edges and
pressing down all round to seal. Flute the edges decoratively, e.g. with a knife or the
handle end of a teaspoon. Brush all over with egg. If attaching any pastry
decorations, press them down and brush them with egg too.
6 Bake for 20-25 minutes until browned, checking towards the end that they're not
overdone.
7 Meanwhile, put the pear and sugar in a small pan with 3 tbsp water and simmer gently
for 5-10 minutes until the pear is soft. Stir in the vinegar and whizz until smooth. Add
a little more water if the mixture wouldn't yet drip from a spoon. Serve in a pool
beside the pockets.
And here's what one cooked pocket looked like, set on a medium-sized plate.
These are quite substantial, so a potato accompaniment is not necessary, but a couple of colourful vegetables would complete the dish. Examples would be tenderstem broccoli, grilled tomatoes, buttered chantenay carrots, roasted red peppers, sugar snap peas.
And I have to say, the meal was bleatingly lovely!
