Sparks from the Kitchen

So a while ago Cooking Light Magazine had a section about appetizers using puff pastry sheets and they were great!! They have onion, potato, bell pepper etc…but I wanted something original and different this time. I came up with this basically by putting many of my favorite flavors onto a bite of puff pastry. The tangy, nutty cheeses, the carmelized shallots and scallions and the crispy pancetta create many flavor and texture levels. I brought these to my Mom’s Labor Day party and they were great!!

Puff Pastry Bites with Asiago, Parmesan, Shallots, Scallions and Pancetta

Ingredients:

• 1 sheet puff pastry, thawed
• 1/3 lb pancetta, cut the short way across into 1/3 inch strips
• 2 shallots, sliced thin
• 2 scallions, white and bright green parts only, sliced thin
• 3 cloves garlic, finely diced
• 1/2 cup finely grated parmesan (do not use pre-shredded)
• 1/2 cup finely grated asiago
• flour for dusting

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 400. Cover a large cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside. On a large board dusted with flour roll out puff pastry sheet to a square. Cut across the sheet 5 times from top to bottom and then 5 times from right to left to make 25 small squares. Place squares on the cookie sheet and put in the fridge while you prepare the other ingredients.
2. In a large skillet cook the pancetta over medium heat until crispy. Reduce heat to low-med and remove the pancetta with a spider to keep the fat in the pan (or a slotted spoon but keep as much fat in the pan as possible) and set aside on paper towels. Add the shallot, garlic and scallion to the pan and cook, stirring frequently, until carmelized. Set aside. Add the 2 cheeses to a plate and mix to combine.
3. Remove cookie sheet from fridge and prick each square with a fork so that the pastry doesn’t puff too much in the oven.  Cook in the oven for 10 minutes (the pastry should not be completely cooked at this point). On each square spred a small amount of the cheese mix, top with a bit of the scallion/shallot mix and then top with a bit of pancetta. There should be an even amount of all on each square.
4. Return the squares to the oven and bake for another 5-7 minutes or until corners of pastry are golden.
5. Remove and serve warm or at room temp.

Sparksfromthekitchen.com original.