Vol-au-Vent Régence
This recipe is a French classic from the earlier part of the 20th century. It features in the books of legendary chef, Auguste Escoffier, and was a regular on the menus of the lavish French restaurants of the United States at the same time. The original contained foie gras and chicken. But, I have created a version that is still rich, but vegetarian. And, it is definitely time that Vol-au-Vent made a comeback.
Vol-au-Vent Régence Recipe​
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(Serves About 4)
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Ingredients​
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For the Vol-au-Vent Rings:
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4 x 12 x 10 in sheets of Frozen Puff Pastry (Thawed)
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2 Eggs (Beaten)
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2 Tablespoons Whole Milk
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1 round cookie cutter around 3 inches
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1 round cookie cutter around 2 inches
For the Filling:
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¼ Bottle of White Wine (Chardonnay will work)
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2 Shallots (Minced)
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3 Cloves Garlic (Minced)
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1 Stick Unsalted Butter
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2 Cups Assorted Wild Mushrooms
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½ Cup Whole Milk
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½ Cup Heavy Cream
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2 Tablespoons All-Purpose Flour
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¼ Cup Italian Parsley (Fine Chop)
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1 Teaspoon Kosher Salt
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1 Teaspoon Ground Black Pepper
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¼ Teaspoon Grated Nutmeg
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Instructions
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​For the Rings:
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Using the 3-inch cookie cutter, cut 8 rings from the puff pastry. Lay the cut out puff pastry rings on a sheet tray lined with parchment paper. Four of these cut out puff pastry rings will form the base of your vol-au-vents, and four of the cut out puff pastry will form the sides and lid of your vol-au-vents.
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For the tops of the vol-au-vents, take four of the cut out puff pastry rings. Using the 2-inch cookie cutter, cut another smaller circle in the middle of the 3-inch cut out puff pastry rings. The outer ring will form the pastry that will rise from the base, while the smaller inner ring will form the lid.
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Lay the outer ring on top of the base layer, and then place the lid section in the middle.
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Brush the vol-au-vent with a mixture of the egg and milk.
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Bake for 20 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. This can be done in advance.
For the Filling:
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Take half of the butter and place in a pan on a gentle heat and allow to melt to a foam. When the butter has melted, add the shallots. Season the shallots with a little salt and pepper.
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Cook the shallots for 2 minutes and then add the garlic.
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Cook the garlic for 2 minutes and then add the wild mushrooms.
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Combine well and then add the white wine.
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Cook gently for 5 minutes until the wine evaporates, and the mushrooms have cooked down to a darker color.
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Toss in most of the parsley, leaving just a little for garnish.
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In a separate pan, melt the rest of the butter to a foam. Once the butter is foaming and melted, add the all-purpose flour and combine well with the butter. Cook until the flour/butter mixture begins to smell almost like an apple pie crust.
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Slowly add the milk, whisking in as it combines with the butter/flour mix over a gentle heat. Whisk as it combines to make sure there are no lumps.
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Once it has combined, add the heavy cream and allow to cook on a very gentle heat.
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Once it has thickened, season the sauce with a little grated nutmeg.
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Add the cooked mushrooms to the cream sauce, and allow to rest.
To Serve:
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When ready to serve, warm up the vol-au-vents in a low heat in the oven.
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Remove the lids from the vol-au-vents and keep for garnish.
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Warm through the mushroom filling and, when both the vol-au-vents and filling are warm, spoon the filling into the vol-au-vent, allowing some to fall over onto the plate.
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Garnish with parsley and the lid.
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