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The rich flavor and visual appeal of these savory cheese pastries makes is deceptive--they are so easy to make! A rich cream cheese and egg base baked into a pre-made puff pastry shell topped with a little bit of tomato and asparagus tips. They make a great side dish or appetizer. Recipe makes 6 with a little bit of leftovers.
Ready to bake something great? We try to include options to make our recipes adaptable to your personal tastes/needs. A usable substitution is listed for ingredients where we've tried using one.
RECIPE
PETITE CAISSES DU FROMAGE (SAVORY CHEESE IN PUFF PASTRY)
Ingredients
1 box of frozen puff pastry shells (we used these, from Pepperidge Farm)
8 tbs cream cheese (1 8 oz. package) room temperature
1 egg
3-4 cherry or grape tomatoes
6 baby asparagus tips
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
Instructions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Separate the frozen shells and put them on a baking sheet, leaving at least 3-4 inches between. Bake for 15 minutes.
Remove shells from oven and let sit while you prepare the filling.
In a stand mixer, use the whisk attachment to whip the egg. Make sure that your cream cheese is room temperature so it will be soft as it blends. Add the cream cheese and beat until smooth.
Add cayenne pepper.
Using a fork, remove the centers of the pastry shells plus some of the layers of pastry underneath. You want to make as much space as possible for your filling without removing too much of the pastry (or it will leak).
No need to waste that extra dough! You can put the centers/extra dough into the bottom and sides of a small loaf pan. This gives you an "tester" for yourself!
Carefully pour or spoon the egg filling into each of the shells, filling just below the top of the pastry. Pour any extra egg filling into your loaf pan. Bake for 5 minutes so that the filling starts to set.
While baking, carefully slice your tomatoes to form circles not more than 1/4 inch thick. Pick out the 6 best circles for your pastries and use the rest for the loaf pan.
Carefully remove the pastries from oven and top each with a slice of tomato and two asparagus tips to look like a flower. Return to the oven.
Bake for another 5-10 minutes. The shells should start to brown and the filling should be soft but no longer liquid
Remove from oven and let cool on baking sheet for at least 15 minutes. These can be stored in the fridge and then re-heated in the oven before serving.
Enjoy!
PROVENANCE: My godmother, Joanne, made a version of these for us when I was young and honestly, I couldn't believe it was "just" cream cheese and egg. I've re-worked the recipe into my own version with the asparagus and tomato "flowers" on top. She was also a great gardener and I think she would have liked that.
EQUIPMENT: An insulated baking sheet is best. And always use parchment paper.
VARIATIONS: This is definitely a recipe that is adaptable. Keep the cheese and egg ratio--and you can add chopped vegetables or bacon. You can change the spice to a blend like Herbs de Provence or Italian Seasoning. You could even add shredded cheese (gruyere would be really tasty) but know that it would change the texture a bit. And, you don't have to limit yourself to 2 asparagus tips--after filling the shells with the egg mixture, you can "sink" a few into the mixture in addition to adding the top 2 tips later.
"I WANT THAT" LIST: Did you see something you liked in the video? You can find many of the products in our kitchen at Boulevard Baking. Use the code BULLDOG during checkout for a 10% discount (does not apply to coffee or gift cards)!
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