Salmon pastries

These pastries are perfect if you are entertaining / cooking for a crowd or as a starter. Hot smoked salmon is different to smoked salmon, in that it has a ‘cooked’ texture with a smoky flavour. Hot smoked salmon is generally found in the same area of the supermarket where you find smoked salmon. Even people that are not huge seafood fans seem to enjoy these pastries. The pastries freeze well, and are handy to have on standby.

Lemon myrtle leaf is an Australian native spice. If you don’t have it to hand, you can skip this ingredient and add grated lemon zest instead. Ground lemon myrtle leaf is available from Herbie’s Spices. You can order Herbie’s Spices online, or they are stocked in many delis and gourmet food stores.

To assemble these pastries I use an 8cm empanada mould, which cuts circles in the pastry on one side, then lets me produce the little pastry turnover parcels with the other side. If you don’t have access to an empanada mould, use a round cutter or egg ring to cut the pastry discs and your hands to assemble.

Salmon Pastries

* This recipe was inspired by a Trout & Leek Pie with Sorrel Hollandaise recipe by Antony Worrall Thompson that appears in Great British Menu Series 1. I have modified and adapted it over the years to come up with the below reincarnation.

Ingredients

• 2 x 150g fillet hot smoked salmon [different to normal smoked salmon]
• 1 x 1.6kg frozen puff pastry 10 sheets [you may not need all of the pastry, but it is better to have it available than run out]

Leek filling

• 25g unsalted butter
• 1 leek, white & pale green parts only, thinly sliced
• 1 garlic clove, crushed or finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons lemon thyme leaves [if you can’t find lemon thyme use normal thyme]
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon vegetable stock [I like the Vegeta brand]
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1 anchovy, finely chopped
• 250g cream cheese
• 1 lemon, juiced
• 1 teaspoon ground lemon myrtle leaf

Quick Thyme Lemon Hollandaise Sauce

• 2 large free range egg yolks
• juice and zest of a lemon
• 250g unsalted butter, softened
• 1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper
• 2 tablespoons lemon thyme [or thyme]

Method

1. First make the filling. Melt the butter in a saucepan, add the leeks, garlic, anchovy, bay leaf & stock powder and water, cook over a gentle heat for 15 – 20 mins or until all the liquid has evaporated and the leeks are soft and tender. Allow to cool.
2. Remove the bay leaf from the leek mixture, then mix in the cream cheese, lemon juice, ground lemon myrtle leaf and thyme.
3. Flake the salmon flesh, discarding the skin [check to make sure all the bones are removed], and add to the leek mixture and stir to combine.
4. If cooking soon, preheat the oven to 200°C.
5. Cut pastry into discs on a work surface – I aim to get 9 discs per sheet of pastry.
6. Arrange a teaspoon of the leek filling in the middle of your disc – be careful not to overfill or you won’t be able to seal your pastry and it may explode during the cooking process.
7. Fold over and seal the edges. Prick each pasty with a fork or skewer to allow steam to escape. These freeze really well at this stage.
8. If cooking now, bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown & crusty – can be cooked straight from frozen but may take a little longer.
9. Meanwhile, make the hollandaise. Add the egg yolk, cayenne pepper, thyme, lemon juice & zest to a food processor or a bowl. Gently melt the butter, and add to the running food processor in a steady stream with the other sauce ingredients already inside or whisk the melted butter into the other sauce ingredients. Keep mixing until the sauce thickens. Keep sauce warm until ready to serve.
10. Serve the pastries with the hollandaise sauce.

What is your favourite seafood recipe? Has this post inspired any new ideas?