Makes: About 6
Time: About 45 minutes, plus time to chill
The perfect all-purpose pastry shells for any filling, sweet or savory, with hollow centers, tall sides that let you see every layer, and little lids that you can use to top off the finished dish or eat separately as a cook’s treat. Although these look elegant, assembling them is pretty simple, and you can make them as big or small as you like. The variation offers a shortcut. See page 492 for a list of filling ideas or try using these as the crust for cooked savory fillings.
1. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough into a rectangle about ⅓ inch thick. Fill a bowl with a shallow layer of oil, then dip a 3-inch round cookie cutter in the oil and let the excess drip off. Cut as many circles as you can from the dough (you should have about 6), pressing the cutter straight down to make the cleanest cut possible. Dip a 2-inch round cookie cutter in the oil and use it to punch out the center of each circle. These rings will be the sides of your cups; reserve and refrigerate the centers to use as “lids” for your cups, if you like. Arrange the rings on the prepared baking sheet and refrigerate.
2. Knead all remaining scraps of dough into one ball; no need to be super-gentle as you normally would with puff pastry, but don’t let the dough get overly warm either—refrigerate the dough if it starts to warm up or look or feel greasy. Lightly flour your surface once again and roll the dough to less than ¼-inch thickness. Dip the 3-inch cutter in a bit more oil and cut as many circles as you have rings of dough; these are the bases of your cups. Prick these circles all over with a fork.
3. Combine the egg with 1 tablespoon water and beat vigorously until it’s very smooth. Brush this all over the bases, then top each base with a ring (keep the tops refrigerated, if you’re using them). Very carefully and lightly brush the egg wash over the tops of the rings, taking care not to let it dribble down the sides. Refrigerate for at least an hour and up to a few days, covered. Or wrap tightly and freeze for no more than a few weeks.
4. Heat the oven to 400°F. Bake the pastries until they’re puffed tall and a nice golden brown; this should take 20 to 25 minutes (a few minutes longer if you’re baking the pastry directly from the freezer) but check after 15. If the pastries start to get dark before they’ve really puffed, tent them with foil. Bake the small circles, too, if you’re using them. Cool the pastries completely, then fill them shortly before serving. These are best the day they’re made, but you can make them ahead and store the unfilled cups in an airtight container for a day or two.
MUFFIN-PAN PUFF PASTRY CUPS These come together in a fraction of the time: Heat the oven to 400°F and grease the cups of a muffin pan. Roll the dough to ¼-inch thickness and cut it into 3-inch squares, then press each square into a muffin cup, folding the corners up the sides, and prick all over with a fork to keep the pastry from puffing up while it bakes. Brush with the egg wash and bake until golden, about 20 minutes.