Curry Seafood Tartelettes
It’s busy at work these days and if my posts seem rushed and/or don’t make any sense it’s mainly because i start to blog when the rest of my fellow New-Yorkers go to sleep. You should see me in the morning. I’m a danger to myself. Yes, it’s a busy time of the year for chefs and the only perks for working such long hours is the calories we burn. The more we burn, the more we can eat. That’s the good news, my friends.
Since i like keeping the score i decided that i deserve some kind of tasty allowance for every hour of overtime spent on my two feet. Today it was a seafood tartelette. As a matter of fact I went a little overboard and had two of these suckers as a snack. What can i say, i can’t resist anything doughy and custardy, sweet or savory. I think i’m gonna hold-off on the writing of that “Zen” diet cookbook for now.
I was flipping through the pages of Michel Roux “Pastry” cookbook the other day and came across the picture of inspiring little curried seafood tartelettes. So i thought to myself: “Hey zenchef, you can do this too!” . So i improvised a little bit on the recipe and played with a variety of seafood and i thought it came out nicely.
Serve one with salad for a light lunch… or two without salad as a heavy snack.
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Curry Seafood Tartelettes
- adapted from Michel Roux “Pastry”
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- Serves 6
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For the pate brisee:
- 1 3/4 cups (250g) all-purpose flour
- 2/3 cup (150g) butter, cut into pieces
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 pinch of sugar
- 1 medium egg
- 1 tablespoon cold milk
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For the curry seafood tartelette:
- 24 mussels, cleaned
- 12 cockles, cleaned
- 1/2 cup dry white wine
- 1 shallot, chopped
- 12 bay scallops, cleaned (or use regular scallops)
- 6 shrimp, cleaned
- seaweed (optional)
- 1 tablespoon curry powder
- 5 tablespoons heavy cream
- 1 medium egg
- 1 medium egg yolk
- salt & pepper, to taste
- Heap the flour on a counter and make a well. Put the butter, salt, sugar, and egg. Using your fingers, mix those ingredients together.
- Draw in the flour, working the dough delicately until it has a grainy texture. Add the milk and incorporate until the dough begins to hold together.
- Work the dough until smooth. Roll it into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap, and chill until ready to use.
- Roll-out the dough and line 6 individual tart pans. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 15 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 350’F. Prick the pastry shell bases. Line the shells with aluminum foil and fill with dry beans or pie weight. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove the beans and foil. Bake for another 10 minutes. Set aside.
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For the curry seafood tartelettes:
- Put the mussels, cockles, wine, and shallot in a large pan, cover tightly, and cook over high heat for 2 or 3 minutes until the mussels have opened (remove as they open). Take them out of their shell. Set aside.
- Split the shrimp in half and cook lightly in the clam juice. Remove and reserve the shrimp and add the curry powder. Bring to a boil. Strain and reserve the liquid. You should have 4-5 tablespoons.
- In a bowl, mix the cream, egg, egg yolk and reserved curry juice. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Arrange the mussels, cockles, bay scallops and shrimp evenly on the baked shells. Top with seaweed (if using) and pour the curry mixture over the seafood in the tart shells. Bake for 20 minutes or until set. Serve with a salad warm or at room temperature. Enjoy!
For the pate brisee:
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