Vol-au-vent
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a hot oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare the pastry
Roll out the puff pastry to ½ inch thick.
Invert a pie plate on the pastry, press down to mark, and cut out with a sharp knife.
Add two or three thicker rims around the edge like a pie.
Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Bake and serve
Bake in a hot oven at 400°F (200°C) for 45 minutes.
Fill with cream, meats, mushrooms, or oysters, or serve as a dessert with stewed fruits and whipped cream.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Puff pastry
- Its layers of fat and dough puff with steam in the oven, forming the hollow, flaky shell.
The step that matters
Adding the thicker rims. The extra layers around the edge rise more than the base, creating a raised wall that holds the filling. Even thickness across the pastry helps it rise evenly.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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