Bite-Sized Elegance: Impress Guests with Gourmet Delights

Chef Paul Wieder’s Gourmet Creations

Chef Paul Wieder, known for his culinary masterpieces, brings a unique touch to every dish he creates. His creations are small in size but grand in flavor, and he dedicates himself fully to crafting these exquisite bites. The ingredients used are of the highest quality, such as beef jelly served on a tartare with pickled porcini mushrooms and a quail egg, or wafer-thin slices of Chianina beef tongue arranged over small pieces of calf's head. These dishes are not only visually appealing but also offer a rich taste experience.

Wieder, who is 28 years old, works at the 's Paul restaurant in Traunkirchen-Mitterndorf, Upper Austria. He has developed a simpler version of beef tartare that allows for various creative variations. This dish can be made with or without anchovies and capers, and he prefers fresh chives for their sharpness and easier digestion instead of onions. Adding an egg yolk, salt, pepper, and Dijon mustard completes the dish.

A bit of chili can add a spicy kick, while soy sauce provides a zesty note. During the summer, Wieder suggests adding a few fresh tomatoes for a touch of sweetness. Tartare is suitable for any season, provided you're not vegetarian. However, he also offers a tip for those who prefer plant-based meals.

Stuffed Vegetable Tartelettes

Among Wieder's favorite mini vegetable dishes are stuffed vegetable tartelettes. These bite-sized tarts are made using shortcrust pastry, which is traditionally prepared and then processed cold. He recommends pre-baking the tarts for about 10 minutes, then filling them and baking for another ten minutes at around 160 degrees Celsius. For six tarts, you need 300 milliliters of cream and three eggs.

Tartelette baking tins are essential for success and can be easily purchased online or in specialty shops. Despite seasonal limitations in spring, Wieder recommends using wild garlic to fill the finger food, which is served as a mousse. Wild garlic can be frozen easily, but alternatives like spinach, herbs, or other seasonal vegetables are also viable options.

Blossoms atop Tartelettes

Pieces of pickled asparagus, which have turned red due to beetroot, along with floral decorations on top of the tartelettes make for a beautiful finishing touch. Nasturtium or borage flowers add color, with nasturtium flowers offering a pleasant sharpness and borage flowers having a cucumber-like taste. These little treats are even more impressive when presented on a natural stone or a piece of wood, making each bite a delightful experience.

Another tasty option is a red quinoa salad with oranges, beef tomatoes, and a buttermilk dressing. This dish can be served as a standalone meal or paired with bite-size tartelettes.

From Savoury to Sweet

Transitioning from savory to sweet, we arrive at La Sonett in Gmunden on Lake Traunsee. Here, Michael Klein, a former head pastry chef at the Hotel Sacher in Vienna, has created a mix of patisserie and café. Klein, 33, originally from Brandenburg, learned the confectionery trade in Münster and earned his master's degree in Berlin. After gathering ideas during his travels across Europe, he now blends alpine accents with French notes.

One of his signature creations is the golden brown, yellow Salzkammergut Tart, which combines natural milk from Gmunden with rock salt from nearby Bad Ischl. His menu also features a small shortbread tartlet shell with caramel and a hint of salt. The process involves caramelizing sugar with a little water, boiling cream, and folding it in with cold butter, a pinch of salt, and mixing everything with a wooden spoon. About 50 grams of the mixture is placed into the pastry tartelette and topped with crunchy sweet hazelnuts, coarse salt flakes, milk cream, roasted milk powder, and caramel cream.

"Flower Power" and Cake

Another exquisite creation by Klein is called "Flower Power." The filling consists of caramelized sugar and Tasmanian mountain pepper mixed with a bit of water. This is deglazed with orange juice and bound with pectin. Gelling sugar can be used as an alternative. After boiling with pectin, the base is ready. Pieces of Moro blood oranges are added, stirred, and left to set overnight.

To finish, a white chocolate mousse with orange zest is placed over the compote in the pastry shell. Klein praises the unusual Australian ingredient: "Tasmanian mountain pepper is citrussy and adds an incredible freshness," though it is the most expensive pepper available. Cheaper alternatives include Szechuan pepper or regular pepper mixed with lemon zest.

An Austrian by choice, Klein loves his job, reflected in his many culinary-themed tattoos. He reveals a hidden secret: "I have a cake on my stomach with a decorative crown on it. It says: ‘Life is sweet’ underneath." The life of a pâtissier, he says, is indeed sweet.