Mushroom Croustades Recipes

Steps:

• In a food processor combine the flour, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Pulse to combine. Add the butter and pulse until the butter is finely chopped and the mixture resembles a coarse meal. In a small bowl combine the lemon juice and mascarpone. Add the mascarpone mixture to the food processor and pulse a few times. Add the ice water and run the machine just until the mixture is moist and crumbly, but does not form a ball. Do not over mix. Turn the dough out onto a sheet of plastic wrap. Press into a disk, cover, and refrigerate for 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Cook the pancetta in a small saute pan over medium heat until golden and crisp, about 4 minutes. Add the herbs and stir. Transfer the pancetta, herbs, and the pan juices to a medium bowl. Add the leftover vegetables, grated cheeses, the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, and pepper. Toss to combine and set aside.
• Place the chilled dough on parchment paper. Roll the dough out into a 12-inch wide circle about 1/4-inch thick. Spread the vegetables out in the center of the dough leaving a 2-inch border. Sprinkle the vegetable mixture with Parmesan. Fold the border up and over the vegetables forming a crust. Using a pastry brush, brush some of the egg over the crust. Transfer the parchment paper and crostata to a baking sheet. Bake until the crust is golden, about 25 minutes. Slice and serve.

Steps:

• For Croustade:
• Use a rolling pin to flatten each bread slice. Cut 3" (18 small) or 4" (12 large) rounds and gently fit into small or large muffin tins.
• Bake for 10 - 15 minutes at 425 or until golden and crisp. Cool on wire racks.
• Filling:.
• Melt butter in a large skillet and saute green onions for several minutes without browning.
• Stir in the mushrooms and mix well. Cook 10 - 15 minutes, stirring occasionally until moisture has evaporated.
• Remove from heat, sprinkle with flour and stir to coat the mushrooms.
• Gradually add the cream and return to heat.
• Bring to a boil, stirring constantly and then reduce heat and simmer for a few minutes until thick.
• Stir in all the other ingredients.
• Transfer filling to a bowl, cover it and refrigerate until ready to use.
• To Serve:.
• Place croustade on cookie sheet and fill each croustade with mushroom filling so that it is slightly mounded.
• Sprinkle lightly with parmesan cheese and dot with butter.
• Bake at 350 for 10 minutes and then turn to broil and brown the tops lightly.
• Serve hot.

Steps:

• Bread Cup: Preheat oven to 400°F Cut a 2-3 inch round from each bread slice. Gently fit bread rounds into each mold of a mini-mufin pan to form a cup. Bake 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool and set aside.
• Filling: In a heavy skillet, saute shallots in butter for 1 minute. Stir in mushrooms and simmer, uncovered until all liquid has evaporated; about 10 minutes.
• Remove from heat and stir flour into mushrooms. Pour cream over and return to heat.
• Stirring constantly, bring to boil and cook another minute or so while mixture becomes very thick. Remove from heat and stir in remaining ingredients.
• Let cool, then cover and refrigerate until cool.
• Bake: Preheat oven to 350°F Fill cups with mixture and sprinkle with minced parsley and parmesan cheese of desired. Bake 10 minutes on ungreased baking sheet.
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• NOTE: Appetizers can be made in advance and then frozen for future use. Follow the Bread cup and Filling directions above. Freeze the filled cups in the mini-muffin pan. Once frozen, you can place them in plastic bags for easier storage. When you remove them from the freezer, allow to thaw completely before baking them.

Steps:

• Cut the baguette in 1/4-inch slices. In a large saute pan over high heat, saute the chopped mushrooms in butter in small batches so as not to overcrowd the pan. Cook until the mushrooms begin to brown and release their juices. Add the shallots and garlic toward the end of the cooking process, then deglaze with white wine. Add parsley, season with salt and freshly ground pepper. Serve on top of the slices of the baguette, or in a bowl on the table.

Steps:

• First, make the croustades: generously butter small muffin tins, then cut a 3-inch round from each slice of bread and carefully fit into the muffin tins.
• Bake in preheated 400F oven for 10 minutes, or until rims are lightly browned; remove from tins and cool (may be frozen at this point).
• Now make filling.
• In a skillet, melt butter, then saute onions and mushrooms; stir and cook until all the moisture is evaporated.
• Sprinkle with flour, then stir thoroughly.
• Add cream, stirring constantly until it boils.
• Add wine, reduce heat, and simmer a few minutes longer.
• Remove from heat; stir in salt, cayenne, parsley and green onion.
• Transfer to a bowl; cover and refrigerate until needed.
• To serve, preheat oven to 350F; spoon mushroom filling into croustades; lightly sprinkle with parmesan and place on cookie sheet.
• Heat in oven for 10 minutes, then put briefly under the broiler.

Steps:

• Croustades: with a pastry brush, coat the inside of two miniature muffin pans (24 total muffins) with the melted butter.
• With a plain or fluted 2 1/2" cutter, cut rounds from the 24 slices of bread; carefully fit them into the muffin tins, pushing the center of the bread into the well and gently molding them around the bottom of the tin Push the tops of the bread rounds into petal shapes; each bread round should form a little cup Bake the croustades at 400° for 10-12 minutes or until they brown slightly on the rims, then remove them from the tins and let them cool.
• Duxelles: In a heavy 10-inch skillet, slowly melt the butter; add the shallots, stir them and cook over moderate heat for about 4 minutes.
• Add the mushrooms and stir thoroughly to coat them with butter In a few minutes, they will begin to give up a good deal of moisture Stir them from time to time and continue to cook until all the moisture has evaporated, about 10-15 minutes; remove pan from heat; cool slightly.
• Sprinkle the flour over the mushrooms and stir until not a trace of flour is visible; pour in the cream.
• Put pan back on heat and stir constantly while bringing to a boil; simmer 5 minutes Remove from heat; add salt, parsley, chives and lemon juice.
• Cool filling.
• Use a small spoon or a decorating bag to fill the croustades, mounding the filling slightly; sprinkle each one with a little bit of parmesan cheese.
• Before serving, heat the croustades at 350° for about 10 minutes.

Steps:

• For the filling:.
• Trim the mushroom stems close to the caps. Put the mushrooms, shallots and garlic in a food processor and pulse until finely chopped but not puréed; scrape the bowl as needed. Transfer the chopped mushrooms to the center of a clean dishtowel. Gather up the sides of the towel and twist, keeping the mushrooms well contained in the cloth, bonbon style. With one hand, hold the ball of mushrooms over the sink; with the other hand, twist the gathered cloth, squeezing out as much liquid as possible.
• Heat the 2 tablespoons of butter and oil in a 10-inch skillet or sauté pan over medium heat. Add the mushrooms, cover, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms are very soft and fragrant, 3 to 5 minutes. Don't let them brown. Uncover and cook until the pan is mostly dry, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the parsley; season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper to taste. The filling can be refrigerated for up to a week or frozen for up to two weeks. If frozen, thaw overnight in the refrigerator and, if necessary, cook gently in an uncovered skillet to evaporate any juices that may have developed in the freezer.
• For the croustades:.
• Sear the filets: Season the filets mignons generously on all sides with salt. Heat the1 Tbs. butter and 1 Tbs. oil in a 10-inch skillet or sauté pan over medium-high heat until very hot and sizzling.
• Put three of the filets in the pan and sear on one side until well browned, 1 to 2 minutes. Turn and brown the other side. Then quickly sear along the sides, using tongs to turn, about another 1 minute per side. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towels. Repeat with the remaining filets. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
• To assemble: Mash the Boursin with a fork in a small bowl until spreadable.
• Remove at least 24 sheets of phyllo from the package and cut them into 10-inch squares. Cover them with -plastic wrap and a damp dishtowel while you work to keep them from drying out. Lay a single phyllo sheet on a clean, dry surface. With a pastry brush, lightly paint an even coat of the melted butter over the entire surface of the square. Sprinkle with about 1/2 teaspoons of the chives. Set a second sheet at a 90-degree angle over the first. Brush butter over it as well and sprinkle with another 1/2 teaspoons chives.
• Make four layers, omitting the chives from the last layer, with the corners of the phyllo pointing in different directions, starlike. Blot one filet dry with a paper towel, set it in the center of the star, and sprinkle it with salt. Spread about 2 Tbs. of the Boursin on the filet and top that with 2 generous Tbs. of the mushroom filling.
• Pick a starting point and work your way around the filet, gathering the edges of the phyllo star together, beggar's purse style. Lightly pinch together the gathered phyllo close to the surface of the meat to hold it in place. Pull the corners open slightly as if making a paper flower. Brush the whole exposed surface lightly with more butter, being sure that the bottom is buttered as well. Transfer to a heavy baking sheet. Repeat this "packaging'" for the remaining filets. If you're working ahead, chill the filets uncovered on the baking sheet until ready to bake, up to 8 hours.
• To bake: Take the croustades out of the refrigerator about 20 minutes before you're ready to bake them. Position an oven rack in the lower third of the oven and heat the oven to 400°F Bake the croustades, rotating the baking sheet after 10 minutes to ensure evening browning, until an instant-read thermometer inserted through the side of each packet and into the center of the filet reads 130°F for medium rare, 17 to 22 minute Serve immediately.
• From Fine Cooking 69, pp. 44-49.
• January 1, 2005.