Homemade tartlets with langoustine and bisque

Recipe for crisp home-baked puff pastry tartlets with a filling of langoustine, asparagus and bisque.

The recipe is starter-sized and makes 4 homemade tartlets.

Course Lunch, Starter

Cuisine Danish

Nøgleord Fish balls, Langoustine, Light lunch, Starter, Tartlets

Total Time 1 5

Servings people

Calories 637kcal

Peel the langoustines and remove the intestinal tract and any grit. Pat them dry and push a toothpick or similar lengthways through 4 of them, – so they hold their shape when fried.
Finely chop the other 4 and set aside.
Peel the white asparagus, then cut both the white and the green asparagus into pieces of about 1 cm - discard the woody ends.
Drain the fish balls and cut them into smaller pieces - roughly the same size as the asparagus pieces.

Cut 4 circles about 8 cm in diameter out of the puff pastry - these are the bases of your tartlets.
Using the same diameter, cut a further 3 layers for each tartlet - so 12 more rounds in total. Cut the centre out of these circles, so you are left with rings about 1/2 cm wide.
It is easiest to use 2 rolls of puff pastry. Alternatively, use a single roll, re-roll the offcuts and cut rings from these until you have all the rings you need.
Brush the bases with egg yolk and stack 3 rings on top of each. Brush the whole tartlet with egg yolk again, and gently prick the base of the tartlet with a fork.
Bake the tartlets in a preheated conventional oven (top and bottom heat) at 200°C for about 15-20 minutes - or until golden and crisp.

Heat a saucepan and fry the asparagus pieces in a little oil for 2-3 minutes. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper.
Set them aside on a plate.
In the same pan, sweat the onion until soft and translucent.
Pour in the white wine and let it reduce well, then add the langoustine bisque and cream.
Let the sauce reduce well until it is nicely creamy, then add the fish balls and let them heat through for 3-4 minutes.
Finally, stir in the chopped langoustines, dill and asparagus, and season to taste with salt, freshly ground pepper and freshly squeezed lemon juice.
Meanwhile, heat a little oil in a frying pan and sear the 4 skewered langoustine tails over a good high heat until they take on colour - start with the back (rounded side) down.
Turn off the heat, turn them over and leave them to finish in the pan for a further 1/2-1 minute, then set them aside on a plate.

Fill the tartlets generously with the filling and bisque, and top with a seared langoustine and mixed herbs.
Season with freshly ground pepper before serving.