Creamy chicken mushroom puff pastry appetizer. An old family favorite.

This is one of my favorite treats that has been in my family for generations. It was served as an appetizer for family meals. It's my family's version of a German recipe, the closest I can come to translating the name to English would be "konigin pastetchen."

They are a chicken mushroom cream sauce served in a puff pastry served with a slice of lemon. I hope my formatting isn't too bad.

Ingredients

2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts, roughly 1-1/4 pounds total
2 cups half-&-half
1/2 package (4oz) of regular white mushrooms (I use half of the 8oz package from Publix)
6 tbsp real butter
4 tbsp flour
1/8 cup of chicken broth
1 egg
tarragon
salt
pepper
1 fresh lemon
Fondor seasoning (sometmes hard to find, a chicken flavored bullion cube works as a substitute)
1 package frozen "ready-to-bake" puff pastry shells (I use the Pepperidge Farm ones)

Prepare Filling

1. Clean chicken breasts and dice into about 1/2 inch cubes.
2. Mince mushrooms into small pieces
3. Melt 2 tbsp butter in a pan on medium heat.
4. When butter starts to sizzle, add chicken, and a pinch of salt and pepper.
5. Once the chicken looks cooked on the outside, toss in the minced shrooms and mix.
6. Continue on medium heat until chicken is fully cooked.
7. Add 4 tbsp of butter and stir until it's melted.
8. Add 4 tbsp of flour, 1 tbsp at a time, mixing in between.
9. Once flour is added and well mixed in, remove from heat and whisk in 1 cup half-&-half
10. Once the half-&-half is mixed in well, return to heat and add another cup of half-&-half
11. Mix in about 1/8 cup of chicken broth, 1/2 tsp of tarragon, and about 1/2 tsp of Fondor (or half of a chicken

bullion cube)

Let this mixture simmer for a while. It should have the consistency of a thick gravy. If it's too thick, you can

add a bit more broth, if it's too thin, cook it for a bit longer.

Bake and fill shells

1. preheat oven to 425
2. Make an egg wash by beating 1 egg in a bowl and whisking in 1 tbsp of water
3. Lay out the frozen pastry shells on an ungreased baking sheet.
4. Lightly brush the tops of the pastry shells with the egg wash. (only the tops)
5. Bake them in the oven for 18-20 minutes, or until they are golden brown.

(If your pastry shells are a different brand, just follow the instructions for the ones you have. I do recommend doing the egg wash, though. It gives them such a nice golden crust)

1. When pastry shells are done, remove them from the oven and let them sit for about 5 min.
2. Remove tops, and fill the shells with the creamy chicken filling.
3. Garnish with parsley.

4. Serve with a thin lemon slice on top to squeeze over them right before eating.

5. Enjoy!

bon appetit