Vol Au Vent Recipe - Pidy Pastry Cases Review

I was recently given the opportunity to try a couple of items from the Pidy Pastry Cases range. I was sent the Zakouskis and Spoonettes.

Pidy Pastry Cases are a store cupboard item that don't need to be refrigerated or frozen. They're available in bulk and work out very cheaply per item, so they're ideal for catering for parties or get togethers.

 I decided to use my Zakouskis to make a savoury mini vol au vent with a filling I use very often when entertaining, usually in filo pastry parcels.

 

Ingredients

I'm suggesting quantities for 12 cases, but adapt them to taste. If you really like one of the ingredients then increase the quantity.

12 Pidy Zakouskis (mini vol au vent cases)
Spinach, 1 handful fresh or 1 cube frozen, chopped
1/2 Red Onion, chopped finely
1 clove Garlic, crushed
50g Feta Cheese, cut into small cubes
Pinch of Nutmeg
Salt and pepper to season
A little oil

Method

Fry the garlic and red onion in the oil over a low heat until slightly soft.
Add the spinach and heat for a few minutes to remove excess water (or the pastry cases will go soggy). Keep the mixture moving so that it doesn't burn.

Remove from the heat and add the seasonings and finely cubed Feta cheese.
Spoon the mixture into the cases.
Place in a warm oven for 6 minutes to heat through.
Eat.

For the rest of the mini vol au vents I used slightly sweetened whipped double cream, yellow plum and apple.

They worked very well and although the pastry was a little dry, they went well with the sweet and savoury fillings and made a nice bite sized snack or canape. 

The spoons I thought would be best suited to a sweet filling.

As I had the fruit already I added a little chocolate sauce.

I'll be honest, I actually don't think this worked as well as I'd hoped. I should have tried a spoon beforehand as they have a very slightly savoury taste, so I think they'd have been better suited to the vol au vent filling or a nice creamy mushroom filling. If you wanted a sweet, the texture is very much a wafer, and I think that they'd perhaps go very well with a strongly flavoured ice cream or mousse with a nutty, mint or dark chocolate taste.

I was however impressed with the fact that even after 30 minutes wait because I'd been distracted by a child and their emergency, the spoons hadn't gone soft at all and were still incredibly crisp. I didn't like the taste so much as the pastries, but my family ate them all, so they weren't a failure.

Zakouskis are currently available on Amazon for less than £11 for 96 with free postage. Spoonettes are currently available on Amazon at £8 for 24.

Thanks to food PR and marketing agency CLIP Creative and PR for the samples.