Earthy mushrooms, smoky pancetta, rich cream, sweet Marsala all combined and shelled within luscious puff pastry - what’s not to like!  This dish was inspired by Hiro Sone and Lissa Doumani’s book Terra, which is the name of their restaurant in Napa Valley.  A few years ago we had dinner at this fabulous restaurant and actually bought their book while we were dining.  If you ever have a chance to dine there - go for it - but the book is always available if you want to take advantage of their great creations and enjoy their beautiful pictures and way of living.

Their recipe actually calls for bacon rather than pancetta, which we prefer.  We also added Marsala to the cream sauce and bought frozen puff pastry shells rather than creating them from the sheets.  A few little changes to meet our palates and cooking time.  In the version in the picture, we used cremini, shitake, oyster and morel mushrooms but you could use any type - I would recommend using at least one type of “wild mushroom”, though so you get that woodsy taste.

Wild Mushroom and Pancetta Vol-au-Vent

Serves 4

4 frozen puff pastry shells
1 egg yolk, beaten

2 Tbls. butter
1 1/4 inch slice pancetta, diced
1 shallot, diced
6 oz. wild mushrooms
1/8 tsp. minced garlic
1 Tbls. fresh thyme
1/4 cup veal stock
1 cup heavy cream
2 Tbls. Marsala

Thyme sprigs and chopped chives for garnish

Cook the puff pastry shells per the instructions, brushing the tops with the egg yolk.  I usually take the little tops off the shells about 3 or 4 minutes before they are finished baking in order for the insides of the shells to completely cook.  You can bake these ahead and when ready to eat, just reheat them in the oven.

Saute the pancetta in the butter in a saute pan until crispy.  Remove the pancetta to another bowl.  In the same saute pan, saute the shallots until soft.  Add the mushrooms and garlic to the sauce pan and cook for another few minutes until soft.  Add the thyme, stock, and cream to the pan and bring to a boil.  Lower the heat to a simmer and cook for another few minutes until the sauce has thickened.  Add the Marsala and cook for another minute or two. 

To serve, place one of the puff pastry shells on a plate, ladle the mushroom mixture over the shell, and garnish with the herbs and top of the shell.