Mushroom and Teleggio Turnovers

Mushroom, cheese and butter is such a beautiful combination. You cannot go wrong with it. Flavor it as you please. This recipe is yet again from one of my favorite cookbooks— American Masala, by Suvir Saran. Saran is chef and owner of Manhattan's highly acclaimed Indian restaurant, Devi. This book is a compilation of some of his favorite recipes from his home. Thank you Chef, you have brought some great recipes into our home.


I loved the idea of this recipe, because it's simple, can be made ahead in time and frozen for when you're ready to serve it and you can alter the flavoring each time and make it your own. This is his recipe, but I used a mixture of cheeses I had in the refrigerator. Swap the mushrooms for spinach or add spinach too by making it Mushroom, Spinach, and Cheese Turnovers. Have fun! And impress those last minute guests with a homemade treat. 


One of my guests didn't eat eggs, which is why I omitted the egg wash. It tasted great  without it. The egg wash will give it a beautiful glaze.


There is nothing healthy or low-fat about this. The puff pastry does enough caloric damage, so don't bother skimping on the butter. This is party food, so be sure that you keep all the yum in it.


Makes 16 turnovers
Ingredients
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
1 teaspoon finely chopped rosemary
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon ground peppercorns
1 small red onion, finely chopped
2 tablespoons fruity white wine or vermouth
1 1/2 pounds cremini mushrooms, trimmed and sliced
1 teaspoon kosher salt plus a pinch, for the egg wash
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
1 large egg
1 tablespoon water
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
All-purpose flour, for rolling pastry
2 packages frozen puff pastry, thawed
2 ounces Taleggio cheese, cut into 16 small pieces


Method

1. Melt the butter with the rosemary, pepper flakes, and ground peppercorns in a large skillet over medium-high heat, cooking until it's fragrant, about 1 minute.
2. Add the onions, reduce the heat to medium, and cook until browned and sticky, stirring often, 5 to 7 minutes. 
3. Pour in the wine and cook 1 minute longer while scraping the onion and any browned bits off the bottom of the skillet.
4. Add the mushrooms and cook until they release their liquid and that liquid mostly evaporates, stirring occasionally, another 5 to 7 minutes.
5. Reduce the heat to medium-low, add the salt, and cook for an additional 10 minutes, stirring often to prevent burning (reduce heat to low is mushrooms begin to brown too much). 
6. Stir in the thyme, transfer the mushrooms to a bowl to cool, or refrigerate overnight.
7. Preheat the oven to 400F. Whisk the egg, water, cayenne pepper, and salt and set aside.
8. Dust your work surface with flour and place 1 sheet of puff pastry on top (if it came folded in thirds, keep folded). Roll the folded pastry sheet to an approximate 12 x 8-inch rectangle.
9. Starting 1-inch from the left edge, place a heaping 1 1/2 tablespoons of mushrooms in the center of the pastry. Repeat three times, working your way across the pastry, leaving about 1 1/2-inches between mounds and ending about 1-inch from the right edge. Place 1 piece of cheese atop each mound.
10. Using a pastry brush, lightly paint the long edge of pastry closest to you with the egg wash. Paint the left and right edges up to the midpoint of the pastry, and then paint between each of the mounds up to the middle of the pastry. Fold the top half of the pastry down over the bottom half, press the edges together to seal, and press the dough together in between each of the mounds.
11. Trim the edges and cut between each mound so you have 4 turnovers. Press the tines of an upturned fork around the turnovers' edges to crimp.
12. Brush with egg wash and place on a baking sheet. 
13. Proceed with the remaining pastry and filling, making 12 more turnovers. 
14. Bake the turnovers until golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes, rotating midway through cooking. Cool 10 minutes, and serve warm or at room temparature.

Saran's tips: The turnovers can be frozen on a baking sheet until they are hard, about 1 hour, and then transferred to a large resealable plastic bag and kept frozen for 3 months. Let turnovers thaw before baking.