How to Make Puff Pastry Shells – Vol au Venting!

As promised, here’s the video for how to make your own puff pastry shells, or vol au vents, as they'd be called in France, and select U.S. locations. These are fairly simple to make, and once baked the real fun begins, as they can hold so many amazing fillings, both sweet and savory.

The key is making sure your puff pastry dough is very firm, and very cold, preferably still partially frozen, before you start cutting it. You want nice clean cuts, because if you mash the layers of pastry together, your shells will not rise as high, and they can also bake into some strange shapes. Having said that, even though I was filming, and working way too slowly, these still came out pretty well.

Once they’re filled they look great, so it’s not that big of a deal, but in general, the colder the dough, the nicer the final product. Other than being too rough with the dough, the other common mistake is under cooking. Your shells might look beautiful at 15 minutes, but may still be kind of raw inside. As long as the outside is not getting too dark, don’t be afraid to let them bake a bit longer.

Regarding the scraps. You can’t re-roll the trimmed puff pastry and have the shells come out the same, but what you can do is cut it into irregular shapes, egg wash it, and dust with cinnamon and sugar. Once baked to a crispy, golden-brown, you’ll have a great little sweet treat to serve with coffee or tea. I hope you give this easy and fun technique a try very soon. Enjoy!

Pumpkin Time

Yes, it's that time of year already. Time to unpack the sweaters, buy scented candles, and of course, figure out some new and exciting ways to cook with pumpkin. Here’s a collection of some of my favorite seasonal recipes. To read the original post, and get the ingredient amounts, just click on the recipe title, and away you go, Enjoy! 

	Best Pumpkin Pie Ever The name says it all. And, you know you can't just make a claim like that on the Internet, unless it's true.
	Holiday Pumpkin Bread It's like banana bread, only with pumpkin. By the way, and you didn't hear this from me, but this is great served warm with a scoop of ice cream.
	Pumpkin Scones If you think scones are dry, crumbly, and boring, then you've never made these.
	Pumpkin Cheesecake I used to think that there was no way to improve on the classic New York style cheesecake, but this has me reconsidering that notion.
	Pumpkin Pancakes 10 years from now, your family will still be talking about the time you made pumpkin pancakes for breakfast.

Pastrami-Spiced Duck Breast "Reuben" – Prepare to Open Face

I first tasted pastrami-spiced, smoked duck breast about 15 years ago, and ever since I’ve wondered how it would be used in a classic Reuben sandwich. I never got around to actually trying it, but this is close, and I’m going to say, way, way better.

This was one of the more delicious and interesting duck breast preparations I’ve had in a very long time. The pastrami spices are perfect with the duck meat, and the crisp, cheesy rye was a worthy base.  The quick slaw and mustard dressing helped balance the richness, and like I said in the video, the final results were stunning.

The key here, as it is with any duck breast recipe, is to not overcooked meat. I like to go about five or six minutes on the skin side, until nice and crusty, and then turn it over and continue until the breast springs back under your touch. Obviously, the cooking times I mention in the video will depend on how large the breasts are. Mine were about 5 ounces, which I found to be the perfect size for this.

If you’re using a thermometer, you’ll want to shoot for about 135–140 internal temperature. This will give you gorgeous, pink, juicy meat, that will rival the finest steak. If you can get past the idea of eating a sandwich with a fork and knife, I really hope you give this amazing pastrami-spiced duck breast Reuben a try soon.  Enjoy!

Ingredients for two portions:

2 duck breast, boneless, skin-on (mine were 5-oz each)

For the rub:

1 tbsp olive oil or more as needed

1 tbsp ground black pepper

2 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp smoked paprika

1 tsp kosher salt

1/2 tsp dry mustard

pinch cayenne

For the Reuben:

2 slices rye bread

1/4 cup grated Swiss cheese

1 tablespoon reserved duck fat

2 cups chopped Green cabbage

2-3 tablespoons Russian or Thousand Islands dressing

2 tablespoons mustard dressing (see recipe below)

Mustard dressing:

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

1/4 cup sherry vinegar

1/2 cup olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

Next Up: Duck Breast Reuben