5 Ingredients or Fewer

Grandma's Mushroom Puffs

by:
December  7, 2020
4.7
24 Ratings
Grandma's Mushroom Puffs
Photo by James Ransom. Prop Stylist: Megan Hedgpeth. Food Stylist: Sam Seneviratne.
  • Prep time 30 minutes
  • Cook time 40 minutes
  • makes about 50
Author Notes

This bite-size appetizer slash snack has been the star of my family holidays and get-togethers for decades. Like a potato chip or pizza slice, it’s impossible to eat just one. Picture: a shattering bite of puff pastry, leading to a filling that can only be described as cream of mushroom soup-but-not-soup. My grandma scored this recipe from some magazine a few decades ago—but who’s to say which one and which year? If you know, let me know.

Compared to the family recipe card, I increased the yellow onion in size from small to medium (you can also swap in two smalls). I opted for baby bella versus button mushrooms, for their bolder, bigger flavor. And I kept the puff pastry as store-bought because, truly, you can’t beat the convenience, and the taste reminds me, very clearly, of curling up by the fireplace at my grandmother’s house as a child.

A few tips for making these ahead: You can make the mushroom filling and keep it in the fridge for a few days. You can assemble the puffs entirely and either refrigerate for several hours, then bake, or freeze for several weeks, then bake (no need to bring to room temperature in either case but, for the latter, add a few minutes to the bake time). If there are any leftovers, you can freeze the baked puffs for weeks—my family has even stretched this to months and no one complained. —Emma Laperruque

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • 1/4 cup unsalted butter
  • 1 medium (or 2 small) yellow onion, finely diced
  • 12 ounces baby bella mushrooms, finely diced (stems included!)
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 1 (17.3-oz / 490-gram) package puff pastry, thawed but still cold
Directions
  1. Heat the oven to 400°F.
  2. Melt the butter over medium heat, then sauté the mushrooms and onions, stirring occasionally, until all the liquid evaporates, about 8 minutes.
  3. Generously sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add the flour and cook for 30 seconds to 1 minute, stirring constantly, to get rid of the raw flour taste.
  4. Add the cream and simmer, stirring often, until thickened, 1 to 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Let cool to room temperature (spreading on a plate and popping in the fridge or freezer speeds this up).
  5. Roll each puff pastry sheet into a 10-inch square. Cut each into 2x2-inch squares (yielding about 50 total—it’s okay if they’re not perfect). Fill each with 1 teaspoon of the mushroom mixture, then bring the corners together and squeeze shut to create a bundle. Place into a mini muffin pan.
  6. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until golden brown. (Bake for an additional 5 minutes or so if baking from frozen.)
  7. Serve hot, warm, or at room temperature.
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  • Zandra Zonkey
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Emma Laperruque
Emma was the food editor at Food52. She created the award-winning column, Big Little Recipes, and turned it into a cookbook in 2021. These days, she's a senior editor at Bon Appétit, leading digital cooking coverage. Say hello on Instagram at @emmalaperruque.

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43 Reviews

Amy
Amy December 31, 2023
I changed this up a bit - used shallots and a clove of garlic. Instead of cream (and flour) added about 2 ounces of goat cheese. Quite tasty. I think chopped chives would be nice as well.
 
Charlene V.
Charlene V. May 29, 2022
I took some of these out of the freezer to serve guests last night and added a drop or two of white truffle oil to each after they came out of the oven--they were even more delicious and it seemed to "wake them up" after they were frozen for a few months. Yum!
 
Momdotcom41
Momdotcom41 May 29, 2022
I made these and thought they were bland. Next time I made them I added: chopped garlic, fresh thyme, 1 tsp sugar. Before baking I brushed with beaten egg, a bit of water added, and sprinkled everything bagel seasoning on top. They were a huge hit.
 
bekoz
bekoz March 19, 2021
I used tiny shiitakes with a dash of rosemary flavored salt and Madeira wine. Like the “bite” the shitakes gave it, a little meatier perhaps.
 
liliana
liliana March 17, 2021
I would leave out the flour in the mushrooms and cook down the cream to thicken. and certainly, add thyme.
My grandma made this to fill crepes. I sprinkle mine with cheese and pop into the oven to reheator broil.
 
Zandra Z.
Zandra Z. January 15, 2021
thank you Emma, what a delicious Grandma Nostalgia recipe !
I just made these as my Saturday pandemic cooking experiment.
I used regular salt, ground black pepper, garlic powder and added some 'steak spice' mixed in the pan with the mushroom filling.
( a mix of fresh mushrooms I had available)
I also brushed them with some beaten egg before baking.
best wishes to you and your family :)
 
Zandra Z.
Zandra Z. January 15, 2021
thank you Emma, what a delicious Grandma Nostalgia recipe !
I just made these as my Saturday pandemic cooking experiment.
I used regular salt, ground black pepper, garlic powder and added some 'steak spice' mixed in the pan with the mushroom filling.
( a mix of fresh mushrooms I had available)
I also brushed them with some beaten egg before baking.
best wishes to you and your family
 
Heidimarie
Heidimarie January 4, 2021
I love this recipe. Thank you so much for sharing it. Reminds me of holiday baking with my grandmother, too. As written, there is enough filling for 2 packages of Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry so I actually got 100 puffs from one recipe of filling. They also mailed quite well. I sent a container of these to my mother for the holidays. Even after a delayed arrival of 1 week, the puffs warmed in a toaster oven at 350 for about 5 minutes were wonderful. My mother's response: Send more please!
 
OC_Koz
OC_Koz December 25, 2020
These are in the oven as I type and look so good! I had some filling leftover and made the best filled omelet ever- thank you for sharing this recipe. 🥰
 
MacGuffin
MacGuffin December 25, 2020
One of my cousins couldn't be bothered with the puff pastry and baked it on a pizza crust. She said it was delicious.
 
tia
tia December 21, 2020
I made these over the last couple of days and they were good! But they weren't the best thing I've ever had, so I was a little disappointed. It felt like they needed something, but I wasn't sure what.

However, I had a bunch of filling left and it was delicious by itself, so I made kachapuri-ish things using King Arthur's sourdough pretzel dough (yes, this was a franke-recipe). Put the mushroom filling on the dough, added capers and emental, and baked. The capers made it, and now I have a delicious breakfast for the next couple of days. If I make the puffs again, I'll probably add capers. I forget how useful they can be for cutting richness in interesting ways.
 
Karrie W.
Karrie W. December 18, 2020
I really want to make these this year! My Mom's Nutroll is a holiday favorite of mine. the recipe came from Italy and has been passed down.

I do have a question - if I make these ahead of time and pop them in the freezer - do I have to add anytime to the baking? Thanks!
 
Emma L.
Emma L. December 18, 2020
Yes, you can bake directly from frozen! Just add a few minutes to the bake time until they're browned and crispy.
 
jcdan
jcdan December 17, 2020
I made this today and they came out perfectly. I used Pepperidge Farm's sheets and cut them a little bigger than 2x2, mostly because of where the dough was creased. Very good. Now that I've made the original, I can explore and experiment. Like other readers, I appreciated the simplicity of the recipe as well as the multiple new avenues that this can go in the future.
 
Christina
Christina December 16, 2020
Any options tested for omitting the heavy cream?
 
Emma L.
Emma L. December 16, 2020
None that I've personally tried! Imagine there are other creamy liquids (say, full-fat oat milk or coconut milk) that could step in, but you want some sort of liquid to make sure the filling doesn't dry out in the oven.
 
Christina
Christina December 16, 2020
Thanks for the reply! I will try full-fat oat. I also thought veg or mushroom stock might be another option, but you could loose some flavor from cream...
 
Cary E.
Cary E. December 14, 2020
These are awesome. I did come close to eating at least half of the batch once they cooled from the oven. Wife agrees they are one of the best apps she has had
 
anniette
anniette December 11, 2020
Just made these.
They are wonderful!
Used food processor, so my mixture was more like duxelles. Used shallots, added 2 small pinches of Bell's Poultry Seasoning, and a small splosh of dry vermouth right before the cream. Shatteringly good with Trader Joe’s puff paste.
Really like your video demeanor—soft spoken, calm, encouraging. Thank you! A keeper recipe!!
 
Charlene V.
Charlene V. December 11, 2020
I agree with your comment about Emma’s demeanor! I’m thinking of using shallots as well, plus thyme and dry sherry, as I think they are a great combo with mushrooms.
 
Janet
Janet December 11, 2020
I have not tried these, but they are similar to
Craig Claiborne's recipe for mushroom turnovers in the original
New York Times Cookbook. He used a cream cheese dough for the crust; it's delicious but fussy. Puff pastry seems like a great idea.
 
Marye S.
Marye S. December 8, 2020
These look really good. I plan on trying them for Christmas. One of my favorite food memories is the Tarragon Cherry Sauce that my mother would make for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter. It is sweet yet tangy from the tarragon vinegar. Back in the 50s Mother would sometimes serve it in orange shell cups or in half of a hollowed out pineapple. I'm pretty sure this sauce is why my husband married me. We almost always have some in the refrigerator for chicken, ham, pork, or turkey. This year my granddaughter learned to make it over FaceTime.
 
Emma L.
Emma L. December 10, 2020
Thank you for sharing this memory, Marye, it sounds delicious!
 
Marye S.
Marye S. December 11, 2020
It’s an intriguing recipe and I have never found a similar one. I have no idea where Mom got the recipe as the original is handwritten. I would be glad to share it.
Marye
 
Janet
Janet December 11, 2020
Yes, please Marye! Thank you!
 
abbyarnold
abbyarnold December 11, 2020
oh please share, Marye!
 
Jeanne
Jeanne December 14, 2020
Ooo! I'm so curious!
 
LydiaJ
LydiaJ December 8, 2020
Can these puffs be made without onion? Any substitute?
Thanks.
 
Anne B.
Anne B. December 8, 2020
I bet you could try shallots.
 
LydiaJ
LydiaJ December 9, 2020
He just will not eat onions nor shallots. Wish I could come up with a substitute.
 
Emma L.
Emma L. December 10, 2020
Hi LydiaJ! I bet celery or fennel would be nice in place of the onion.
 
Karen M.
Karen M. April 7, 2021
Is it the texture or flavor of onions, shallots, etc.? If it's texture, try using onion powder. If it's flavor, just use what ever seasonings you like...
 
Charlene V.
Charlene V. December 8, 2020
Emma, I look forward to trying these for the holidays, as mushrooms are a favorite at our house! Your comment in the video about a lot of butter and then asking about favorite food memories reminds me of my husband‘s Czechoslovakian aunt. Once I asked her about a recipe for something, and she rattled off all the ingredients and directions and then she said, “At the end, if it still doesn’t taste right, I just throw in another stick of butter!” 😂 We always say that’s our family cooking tradition in a nutshell!
 
Emma L.
Emma L. December 10, 2020
Ha! More butter has never let me down :)
 
MacGuffin
MacGuffin December 8, 2020
Do they pop open in the oven after you squeeze them shut?
 
Emma L.
Emma L. December 10, 2020
Yes!