Sir Nicholas’s Deathday Party: Fungus Tarts

ingredients:

• 1 sheet store bought puff pastry, thawed
• 4 sprigs fresh thyme
• 3 cloves garlic, smashed
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 5 oz white button mushrooms
• 5 oz king trumpet mushrooms
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp butter, unsalted

garnish

• chive blossoms or chives
• truffle oil

equipment

• round cookie cutters, 1 3/4″ and 1″
• 1/2 sheet cooling rack

directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400F.  Line a 1/2 sheet pan with parchment.
2. The puff pastry should be thawed but still cold.  It will be difficult to punch out shapes if the pastry gets too warm. Lightly dust your work surface with flour and start to punch out rounds with your largest round cookie cutter ( I used 1 3/4″). It might also be helpful to dip your cookie cutter into a bit of flour to prevent sticking. With your smaller cutter ( I used 1″),  punch the center of each round just before it pierces the bottom of the pastry.  You do not want to punch through pastry. It is helpful to feel with your fingers on the bottom to see how close you are.
3. Place the rounds onto the prepared sheet pan. Lightly grease the bottom of the cooling rack and place it on top of the rounds. This will help keep the pastries in it’s perfect shape as it bakes.  If your cooling rack sits too low on the sheet pan, ball up some aluminum foil for each corner to help lift the cooling rack up. Make sure to keep the rack as level as possible. Bake the tarts 15-20 minutes or until golden brown.  Immediately lift the cooling rack off.  At this point you can either remove the center pieces of pastry with culinary tweezers or a pairing knife or simply just push down.  It is easier to do this hot to prevent the edges from breaking. Set aside to cool.
4. Chop the mushrooms into small very pieces. You want a small enough dice to fit into the tarts. Heat a large sauté pan over high heat and add the oil, butter, garlic, thyme, and mushrooms.  Cook until golden brown.  Season with salt and pepper.
5. Fill each tart with the cooked mushrooms.  Garnish with chive blossoms and two drops of truffle oil on each tart.

Notes:

• You can easily make these tarts ahead of time.  Simply warm them back up in the oven at 375F for 5 minutes and garnish.