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Salmon with Mousseline of Pike in Pastry

From: Chef Notes- Celebrity Chefs
Recipe By: Andre Soltner

Salmon en Croute
Serves 12

Ingredients:
Feuilletage Rapide (Fast Puff Pastry)
Yield approximately 1 ¼ pounds. Note: This pastry may be kept in the freezer for up to two weeks. If frozen, defrost slowly in the refrigerator for 2-3 hours before using/

1 pound quick dissolving flour (e.g. Wondra)
1 pound unsalted butter (4 sticks) very cold cut onto one inch pieces
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
1 cup ice-cold water
Flour for flouring work surface and pastry (approximately ½ cup)

Sauce Choron (Béarnaise flavored with tomato)
Yield: 1 ½ cup

Note: This sauce may be kept warm in a bain marie of warm water, for up to two hours. It can not be refrigerated and reused. Caution: This recipe uses raw egg yokes, so there is a risk of salmonella contamination. Use only farm-fresh eggs that have been kept refrigerated.

2 tbsp tarragon vinegar
2 tbsp dry white wine
1 tbsp chopped shallots
1 ½ tbsp chopped fresh tarragon (or tarragon that has been preserved in vinegar)
1 ½ tbsp chopped fresh chervil
3 egg yokes
6 oz unsalted butter (1 ½ sticks)
2 tbsp tomato pulp (chopped fine, cooked for two minutes and drained)
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Lemon juice

Salmon with mousseline of pike, in pastry

(Serves 12)
1 pound fillet of pike (sole or tile fish works too) skin removed
3 eggs
1 tsp salt
2 cups heavy cream
1 salmon (approximately 6 pounds) head and tail removed
1 tsp chopped tarragon
1 ½ tsp chopped parsley
2 pounds fast puff pastry (see preparation below)

Preparation:
Feuilletage Rapide (Fast Puff Pastry)

Place all ingredients (except extra flour) in a large bowl and mix together with hands until gathered into a ball. The butter must still be in pieces. (If done with an electric mixer, this only takes a few seconds. Be sure that the butter pieces still remain within the ball.)

Sprinkle work surface with enough flour to prevent sticking. Roll the dough into an 18�x8� rectangle. Sprinkle generously with flour to coat all the butter pieces to prevent sticking to the rolling pin.

Brush excess flour from the dough surface (step 3) and fold the dough in half, then in half again into a 4�x9� rectangle. Lightly flour the top of the pastry. Turn the pastry clockwise a quarter turn so the narrow side is toward you and again roll the pastry out to an 18’x8’ rectangle.

Repeat step 3.

Repeat step 3 again. If dough is too stiff for the second repeat…wait fifteen minutes and then continue.

Fold the dough into thirds and refrigerate for fifteen minutes.

Repeat step 3.

Repeat step 3 again (This will be the fifth you have repeated step three)

Wrap dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before using.

Sauce Choron:
Put the vinegar and wine in a stainless steel or enameled saucepan. Add shallots, ½ tbsp tarragon, ½ tbsp chervil, a pinch of salt, a pinch of pepper. Over high heat reduce by 2/3. Cool to luke warm.

Beat in egg yokes and 1 tbsp water. With saucepan on the edge of a low flame or in a pan of warm water, whisk sauce constantly until sauce begins to thicken.

When sauce has begun to thicken, beat in butter a little at a time, only adding the next piece when the last has been incorporated.

When all the butter is absorbed, add several drops of lemon juice.

Strain the juice through a fine sieve and stir in remaining tarragon and chervil.

Stir in tomato. (Skip this step and you have Sauce Béarnaise)

Salmon with mousseline of pike in pastry:
To prepare the mousseline, put the pike (sole or tilefish) eggs, lemon juice, salt, and pepper into a food processor and process until mixture is smooth, approximately 1 minute. With the processor running slowly add the heavy cream. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 350°.

Place salmon in boiling water for 30 seconds. Put it on a dry cloth and remove the skin. Split the fish lengthwise in two halves and remove all the bones.

Spread ½ of the fish with the chopped tarragon, the chopped parsley and then the mousseline. Place the other half of salmon on top.

Roll out the pastry into a rectangle a little longer than the fish and a little more than twice as wide. Cut it in half lengthwise. Place the fish on one of the rectangle pastries and cover it with the other, Seal the fish inside by pinching the pastry layers together around the edges. Cut the pastry into the shape of a fish, simulating scales by using the metal nozzle of a pastry bag to make indentations in the top pastry.

Bake in the preheated oven for 40 minutes.