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Creamy Scallops Vol au Vent Pinterest

Creamy scallops vol au vent is a crowd pleasing recipe, puff pastry vol au vent and creamy seafood filling can be made a day ahead! A delicious starter to serve at parties or for your holiday menus. 

Vol au vent is a shell or case made of puff pastry, it’s nothing difficult to make but if you can find them ready made at your store, by all means buy them.

This recipe is made with bay scallops and I counted 1 shrimp - size 16/20 - per person. I used bay scallops as their size was handier to fill the pastry shells, if you’re going to use sea scallops, you’ll need to quarter them.

You can make this recipe with any seafood you like or with a mix if you prefer.

Puff pastry dough:

You will need enough puff pastry dough for 8 circles of 4.5 inches diameter. Whether homemade or store bought keep your dough chilled until needed as it is much easier to work with cold but pliable puff pastry.

Cut and assemble your vol au vent and chill them again for a minimum of 15 minutes, that will help them rise levelly while baking.

How to make Vol au Vent pastry:

You can make vol au vent in any shape and size you want, tall or low, bite size or larger, open or with a lid, you can cut them with fluted cookie cutters or plain, etc.

Here I used a heart shaped cookie cutter, its size at the greatest width is 4.5 inches (11 cm), perfect size for a starter, it doesn’t take too much space in the dish and can be filled with the right portion of seafood.

Can I make it in advance?

You can make the pastry shells a day in advance and keep them at room temperature until needed.

You can also cook the seafood and sauce a day ahead and store them in your fridge until needed, re-heat briefly before serving

Don’t fill the vol au vent until the last minute or they will be soft and soaked.

If you looking for recipes for entertaining, please check my "appetizer" and "among friends" categories and if you're looking for awesome cocktail recipes, check the blog of my friend Elaine Benoit at Dishes Delish!

  • 4 servings
  • Medium
  • 2 h 00 including pastry shells

Recipe :

Ingredients:

Seafood:

17 oz. (1 pound) (450 g.) bay scallops

4 shrimps, size 16/20, shelled

7 oz. (200g.) Paris mushrooms, chopped

1 shallot, peeled and chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

Some butter for cooking

Sauce:

2 tbsp. butter

1 tbsp. flour

1/2 cup (120 ml) chicken broth

1/4 cup (60 ml) white wine

1 cup (240 ml) heavy cream

Juice of half lemon

Salt and pepper to taste

Vol au vent shells:

1 or 2 sheets of puff pastry, cold

1 egg yolk

Garnish:

A few red peppercorns

Utensils:

1 cookie cutter 4.5 inches (11 cm)

1 cookie cutter 3.5 inches (9 cm)

Make the pastry shells:

Pre-heat your oven to 400°F (200°C), line a baking sheet with parchment paper and prepare an egg wash with the egg yolk and a few drops of water

Cut 8 circles with the 4.5 inches cookie cutter, put four into the baking sheet, brush them with some egg wash, prick the center with a fork

Mark the center of the four remaining circles with the 3.5 inches cookie cutter, push it down but don’t go all the way through, lay these circles on top of the others into the baking sheet, don’t press, brush with the egg wash, score lightly with the tip of a knife, chill 15 minutes

Into the oven for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden and cooked through

Let cool completely, with the tip of a sharp knife cut off the lid, if necessary remove some of the wet crumbs into the shells, set aside at room temperature until needed, even overnight

Cook the seafood and mushrooms:

Into a large skillet, heat a chunk of butter on medium/high, add the bay scallops and cook them just until they become opaque, set aside into a bowl, collect the juices into another bowl

Into the same skillet, add a chunk of butter if necessary, cook the shrimp just until they turn orange and are cooked through, set aside into a bowl, add the juices to the bowl of scallops juices

Into the same skillet, add a chunk of butter, add the chopped shallot, cook until translucent, add the chopped cremini, add salt and pepper to taste, cook for about 3 to 5 minutes, set aside into another bowl

Make the sauce:

Wipe your skillet with some paper towel, melt 2 tbsp. butter on medium/high, add the flour and cook it for 2 to 3 minutes stirring constantly, add the chicken broth and white wine, cook until reduced to half

Add the heavy cream and seafood juices, also the juice from the bottom of the scallops bowl, bring to boil and cook for about 2 minutes, add the lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste, stir, taste and adjust seasoning if necessary

Assembly:

Add the cremini to the scallops, mix, pour about half or more of the sauce on top, toss to distribute

Fill the vol au vent just before serving, sprinkle a few red peppercorns, top with a shrimp, drizzle more sauce over and around the pastry

Serve with a pretty salad and or/green asparagus if you like

Enjoy!

If you like this recipe, please leave me a comment, rate it, pin it for later or share it, Thanks! It means the world to me!