Prepare a puff paste with one pound of fine, dry flour and one pound of good butter, proceeding as for No. 146; give it six and a half turns, and when the paste is made, lay it on a floured baking tin, and set on top of it a model of tin or heavy cardboard having the exact dimensions desired for the vol-au-vent, cut the paste all around this with a small, heated knife, following the outlines of the model, but keeping the knife slightly inclined outward. As soon as the vol-au-vent is cut, turn it with one stroke upside down on to another dampened round baking sheet, being careful not to injure its shape; groove the edges lightly with the back of a knife as represented in in the plate (Fig. 112); egg the surfaces over, and trace a ring, using the tip of a small knife an inch and a half from the edge, then in the center of this ring trace four or five light incisions to form lozenges. Bake the vol-au-vent in a hot oven for thirty minutes or more according to its size, opening the oven as little as possible. When the paste is dry and a fine color, take it out, open it by lifting up the center cover, and empty it of all the uncooked paste within, lay the vol-au-vent on to a dish, and keep it warm in the heater, not allowing the crust to get cold before using it.

Small vol-au-vent crusts may be prepared the same way, using a three and a half inch pastry cutter to cut them with.

Fig. 112.

(181). Small Vol-Au-Vent Crust In Two Pieces (Petites Croutes De Vol-Au-Vent En Deux Pieces)

Roll out with the rolling pin on a floured table, one pound of six-turn puff paste (No. 146), one quarter of an inch to three-eighths in thickness, let it rest for fifteen minutes, then cut from its surface six channeled or plain round pieces three and a half inches in diameter; as soon as this is done, remove the centers with a smooth pastry cutter two and a half inches in diameter; dipping it each time into hot water so as to make a clean cut, but it must be wiped dry before using. Cut up the clippings of paste, roll them to an eighth of an inch thick, and from this piece cut six round channeled or plain round under crusts three and a half inches in diameter, range these at regular distances on a wet baking sheet, moisten the edges of the paste with a brush, and lay on top of each one, one of the prepared rings, taking them up delicately so as not to break them, and press lightly on them to fasten the edges together; egg the surfaces of the rings, and let them rest for ten minutes, then push the baking sheet into a well heated, but moderate oven to bake from twenty to twenty-five minutes; after removing, detach them from the tin, press the center of the paste down with the finger, and keep them warm for garnishing.

Small vol-au-vents may be prepared the same way making them of one piece only.