"Sheryl Rosen" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...
Quoted message said:I have been invited to a Christmas party this weekend and have been asked
to
Quoted message said:bring some type of appetizer.
Thing is, I'm on a budget. A VERY tight budget.
And they know I can cook! So it has to be an appetizer worthy of my "reputation".
I don't care for brie, so baked brie is out. Someone else is bringing the hot artichoke dip, which
was what I thought
of
Quoted message said:right away. Oh well.
I want something that has to be served warm, so it smells really yummy.
I'm thinking something with bacon.......
I'm out of ideas.
Anyone?
This is a very nice and mostly do-ahead recipe from "Winning Styles Cookbook (Recipes from James
Beard Foundation Award Winning Chefs)". The recipe as written is a little bit *off* and we tweaked
it a bit. All of the components can be made up to 2 - 3 days ahead of time then assembled and baked
at the last moment. The recipe says this makes 24 servings but it made about twice that amount.
Warm Mushroom Goat Cheese [censored] Puff Pastry Rounds:
1/2 lb puff pastry, rolled 1/8 inch thick [we used purchased puff pastry dough and we used about 3/4
lb as there was more topping than could top the specified amount] Goat Cheese Mixture:
2/2 lb Montrachet [mild] goat cheese 6 tbl grated fresh reggiano parmesan cheese [we used slightly
more] "1/2 cup heavy cream or low fat milk" [that's what the recipe said. The devil's in the
details but how does heavy cream readily equate to low fat milk? We used 2 % milk as it's what we
had on hand. The mixture was slightly less thick than I would have liked but still yummy. I'd redo
it with cream next time. The additional parmesan was added to thicken the mixture because of using
low fat milk. I think that, even using cream, I'd add more parmesan the next time I make this.
This was being served at an office staff Christmas party and we were afraid some of the guests
might balk at the whole "goat cheese" thing (silly fools). The parmesan mellowed the goat cheese a
bit] Salt & pepper to taste Wild Mushroom Ragout: 2 tbl butter or EV olive oil [we used butter] 1
lb mixed mushrooms, [censored], oyster, crimini, lightly chopped [we used stemmed [censored] with a wee
bit of dried porcini reconstituted in hot water and dry sherry. When the porcini were
reconstituted we added the strained juice to the ragout] 2 cloves garlic, minced [we added 1 large
shallot, minced, and sautéed both separately in butter]
3/4 cup parsley, finely chopped [we used Italian flat leaf and minced it] Salt & pepper to taste
[addition - we drizzled white truffle oil over the top of the baked appetizer but, on a budget,
this step is easily omitted].
For the puff pastry rounds Preheat the oven to 350F. Using a 1 1/2 inch round biscuit cutter [we
thought this too small so used a 2 incher] cut the puff pastry into rounds. Place the rounds onto a
parchment lined sheet pan [we used a silpat lined sheet pan]. Place another sheet of parchment paper
on top [we used the paper wrapping the purchased, thawed, puff pastry dough]. Place a second sheet
pan on top of the parchment paper [this is done to inhibit the puff pastry from rising - if your
sheet pans are not substantial you might want to weigh the sheet with pie weights or beans]. Bake
for 25 to 30 minutes. The baked rounds should be 1/4 inch thick, and crisp and flaky when snapped in
half. Cool and store in a dry air-tight container.
For the Goat Cheese Mixture: Combine the goat cheese, Reggiano parmesan and cream and mix until just
combined. Season with salt and pepper to taste and refrigerate [covered] until needed.
For the Wild Mushroom Ragout: Melt the butter (or EVOO) in a sauté pan and add the fresh mushrooms.
Sauté the mushrooms until they give off all of their juices [at this point we added the chopped
reconstituted porcini and the strained juices and sautéed until these juices were evaporated]. Salt
lightly and cook until juices concentrate [about a minute or two]. Stir in garlic and parsley and
cook for 30 seconds [we cooked over medium heat - the directions didn't specify heat and we sautéed
the garlic and not requested shallot over medium heat until tender/translucent. I thought 30 seconds
for raw minced garlic wasn't enough time in the sauté pan YMMV]. Season with salt & pepper.
To Finish & Serve: Spread each puff pasty round with "1 tablespoon" of the goat cheese mixture [this
is just plain nuts! These rounds can't hold 1 tbl. - we topped with about 1 to 1 1/2 tsp]. Press a
tablespoon-sized portion of the mushroom ragout [we used slightly less] on top of the goat cheese.
Place the sheets on a [silpat or parchment paper lined] sheet pan and bake at 350F until cheese
melts, about 5 minutes.
We drizzled a drop of truffle oil over the rounds just before serving. Very, very good!
Just a thought.
Kate
