Guest Post: Mushroom bourguignon vol au vents by eat. live. travel. write.
We’ve got a guest in our kitchen today! We’re excited to welcome back Mardi of eat. live. travel. write. who’s sharing a classic comfort dish with a twist. Impress friends and family with these elegant bites!
I’m thrilled to be back in the Mushrooms Canada kitchen today, visiting from eat. live. travel. write. In the deep dark days of winter, I love a good stew but sometimes comfort food can be heavy. I’ve lightened up a classic comfort food dish (Beef Bourguignon) with mushrooms and instead of serving it as a stew, I’ve filled delicate vol au vent shells with the mixture, making for an elegant winter party hors d’oeuvre or a light lunch or dinner, paired with a green salad. If you can’t find vol au vent shells, I’ve written a handy tutorial using store-bought puff pastry that will become a “go to” once you realize how easy it is!
Mushroom bourguignon vol au vents
Makes 12 hors d’oeuvres (2 ½“/6.5 cm squares)
Ingredients
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
1 large shallot, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
300g mixed mushrooms, thinly sliced
1 carrot, finely diced
½ teaspoon dried thyme
¼ cup vegetable stock (I used mushroom)
½ cup red wine
2 tablespoons tomato paste
12 vol au vent shells (store-bought or make your own!)
Method
Heat the butter and olive oil in a heavy pan over high heat.
Reduce the heat to medium, add the shallot and garlic and sauté until just starting to soften.
Add the carrots and thyme to the pan and sauté for approximately 5 minutes until carrots are just beginning to soften.
Add the mushrooms to the pan and sauté until they brown slightly and start to release their juices.
Combine the stock and wine, then add to the mushroom mixture.
Increase the heat to high and bring to a boil.
Reduce heat to medium and simmer for about 20 minutes until a lot of the liquid has evaporated.
Meanwhile, pre-heat oven to 325˚F.
Add the tomato paste and cook about 10 minutes longer until the mixture begins to thicken slightly.
Place the vol au vent shells on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Divide the mushroom mixture evenly among the shells and bake until the shells are warmed through – about 15 minutes.
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Mardi Michels is a full-time French teacher to elementary school-aged boys and the author of eat. live. travel. write – a blog focusing on culinary adventures near and far. She has lived and worked as a teacher in Australia, Hong Kong, England, France and now calls Toronto home. As part of her job, she runs a cooking class twice a week for 7-13 year-old boys, Les Petits Chefs and Cooking Basics. She’s also a cook, baker, traveller, photographer, writer, Food Bloggers of Canada co-founder, Food Revolution Day Ambassador for Toronto and in her spare time (!) teaches French pastry classes (focussing on macarons) around Toronto.
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