Plain, Delicious

For the last three days of my Petits Fours rotation we were dedicated to savory bites. Plain looking, compared to the sweet ones, but very tasty. We made a big batch of gougères (Pâte à Choux dough with cheese, minced red pepper, and a pinch of cayenne - basically fancy cheese puffs). I think these are a great snack just eaten plain, but Chef wanted us to fatten them up, so we filled half of them with whipped cream cheese, sour cream, smoked salmon and dill, and the other half with cream cheese whipped with minced jalapeno, New Mexican chili powder and cilantro. The squares are mini-tarts on a base of Pâte Brisée with the same filling I made last quarter in my Tart rotation: red onion, mushroom, thyme, with balsamic vinegar reduction.

Next week I'm on to a new rotation: Rustic Desserts, which also includes making ice cream and sorbet.