This past holiday season, I got into the mood for some puff pastry appetizers, so I went on the hunt online for some puff pastry appetizer inspirations.  What I found were a lot of pinwheels and triangles, which I thought were played out and boring, so I took to Pinterest and found some mini-cupcake ideas.  Combining the online recipes, the Italian Sausage Puff Cakes were born!

It took a couple of trials to find the perfect pastry to meat ratio, but after the 2^nd batch, it was perfect.

This recipe is so easy to make, delicious, and great for any party!

Bon apetite!

INGREDIENTS

• 1 lbs of ground Italian sausage, removed from the casing
• 1/2 small onion, diced
• 3 cloves of garlic, chopped finely
• 1 package of Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry (found in the frozen aisle)
• 1 1/2 cup of shredded Gruyere cheese

PREP THE GOODS

• Follow the instruction on the box of the puff pastry
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees

COOKING INSTRUCTIONS

1. Add olive oil into a medium size pan over high heat and brown the onion
2. When the onion is browned, add the Italian sausage, flatten and break up the meat into small pieces so it cooks evenly
3. Let the sausage for a minute then add garlic, stir to mix, and cook for 4 mins (or until golden brown)
4. Add ½ cup of Gruyere cheese and mix into the meat mixture
5. Once the mixture is cooked, let it rest and cool
6. Sprinkle the work area surface (on the counter or on a big cutting board) with a light coat of flour and lay out the puff pastry; lightly flour the rolling pin before rolling out the pastry dough.  Roll out the dough to 1/8 of an inch (start to from the center and roll out so it’s smooth and even)
7. Once the dough is rolled out, cut into 1 inch square, spray the mini muffin tin with oil (PAM spray is my preferred) and place 1 square of puff pastry into the bottom of the pan
8. Add the meat mixture with a teaspoon and top with a pinch of Gruyere, just enough to lightly cover the meat
9. Bake in 400 degree for 10-12 min (I usually set the timer for 10 min and watch closely until it’s golden brown)

A package of puff pastry roughly makes 60-70 pieces, so repeat assembly as needed to the desired amount.

WINE PAIRING SUGGESTION: the nutty flavor from the Gruyere and buttery puff pastry will pair nicely with a buttery and oaky Chardonnay from Sonoma Cutrer or Rombauer

Categories: Appetizer, Cook Book, Pork

Tags: appetizer recipes, italian sausage, puff pastry