Creamy mushroom tarts with puff pastry

Garlic, mushrooms and red onions with a hint of thyme feature in this recipe for creamy mushroom tarts. These little tarts make a great addition to any buffet table, or why not serve them as a side dish with your next roast.

📝 Ingredients

• 1 roll (13 oz or 375g) puff-pastry (shop-bought)
• 9 ounce (250g) chestnut mushrooms
• 1 large red onion (finely chopped (approx 1 cup))
• 2 ounce (60g) unsalted butter
• 1 teaspoon crushed garlic (or 1 clove fresh garlic (minced))
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 tablespoon plain flour
• 1/4 cup single cream
• 1/4 cup milk (full-cream or semi-skimmed)
• salt and freshly ground black pepper (to taste (optional))

👨‍🍳 Instructions

1. 1--- Prepare the mushroom filling ---
2. 2Peel the onions and chop them finely. Wipe any black bits off the mushrooms and chop them coarsely.
3. 3Melt the butter in a large frying pan, then add the chopped onions, garlic and thyme and stir over a low heat until the onions start to soften.
4. 4Add the mushrooms, cover the frying pan with a lid, and leave for about 5 minutes on a very low heat until the mushrooms have released their moisture.
5. 5Remove from the heat and stir in the flour, removing as many lumps as possible.
6. 6Now add the cream and milk, return to the heat and stir until the mixture thickens.
7. 7Taste for seasoning, and add salt and black pepper to taste if necessary.
8. 8Remove from the heat and allow to cool while you prepare the pastry cases.
9. 9--- Prepare and fill the pastry cases ---
10. 10Grease a 12-hole muffin pan lightly with butter or spray with cooking oil.
11. 11Unroll the puff pastry. You should have a rectangle approximately 36cm x 24cm. Cut the pastry into 12 equal squares approximately 8cm or 9cm square.
12. 12Place each pastry square in one of the holes of the muffin pan.
13. 13Divide the mushroom mixture equally between the 12 pastry cases and fold the points of the pastry down over the filling. Don't enclose the filling completely. It's fine to leave gaps - this will give the finished tarts a nice rustic look.
14. 14Brush the top of the tarts with beaten egg to help them brown nicely.
15. 15--- Bake ---
16. 16Place the muffin pan in a pre-heated hot oven (200C / 400F) and leave them to bake for about 15 minutes. All ovens are different - my tarts were perfect after 15 minutes. Start to check after 12 minutes and remove from the oven when they are nicely browned.
17. 17Leave the tarts to cool slightly, then remove from the muffin pan and arrange on a serving platter.
18. 18Serve warm.