Mushroom Puffs

Looking for a chic hors d'oeuvres recipe for your upcoming Oscars party? Life Should Be Beautiful again saves the day...

Mushroom Puffs
Makes about 24 puffs.

1/2 tablespoon butter
1/2 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon minced shallot (about 1 small)
1 teaspoon minced garlic (1 or 2 cloves)
1/3 pound button mushrooms, cleaned, trimmed, and finely chopped
2 teaspoons minced fresh thyme or 1 tsp. dried
1/2 tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 pound chilled puff pastry
1 egg
1/4 cup heavy cream

Melt butter with olive oil in a medium frying pan over medium-high heat. Add shallot and garlic and cook 30 seconds, stirring. Add mushrooms and thyme and cook, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms stop giving off liquid and start to brown, about 5 minutes. Add soy sauce and cook just until liquid has evaporated, about 2 minutes. Let cool to room temperature.

Preheat oven to 400°. On a floured work surface and with a floured rolling pin, roll pastry sheet out to a thickness of 1/8 inch. Cut pastry into rounds with a buttered and floured 2-inch biscuit or cookie cutter with fluted edges and arrange rounds 1/2 inches apart on 2 baking sheets.

Press the middle of each round with your finger to make a depression, leaving a 1/4-inch-wide rim. Poke each center once with a fork and top with a scant teaspoon of mushroom filling. Whisk egg and cream together and set aside.

Bake pastries until golden brown and beginning to puff, 8 to 12 minutes. Remove from oven and lower heat to 350°.

With the end of a small funnel, carefully punch down centers of pastries while spooning about 1/2 teaspoon egg-cream mixture through funnel (to help guide the liquid) and into pastry (spoon in more if the pastry will accept it without overflowing). Bake pastries another 10 to 15 minutes, or until deep golden brown.