Print This Recipe

Knishes

These pastries can be made bite sized or large enough to have for dinner. But however you make, you will want more of this beautiful earthy combination of bulgur wheat and mushrooms garnished with fresh herbs and wrapped in puff pastry dough. We tweaked the recipe to our taste. Since we made this on a weekday, we did not have the time to make the pastry with sour cream as Marlena says in her recipe. We instead used puff pastry sheets. This tasted so good, that when we had two on the plate to take pictures and by the time the plate returned to the kitchen, there was only one! You know who the culprit is

Mushrooms and bulgur wheat for sure are made for each other. The caramelized onions and mushrooms folded in with fresh herbs and bulgur wheat is a match made in heaven. It is a whole dish and we can rave about it for hours together. As kids, we have had vegetable puffs (read loaded with potatoes). Around 4 pm, bakeries nears schools will bake them fresh and woo you to come there dragging your parents asking for just one puff and end up buying some pastries as well. Good marketing technique eh?

Here is our version of Marlena Spieler’s Knishes

Uncooked bulgur wheat – ¼ cup cooked in ¾ cup water, strained.

Butter – 1 tsp

Vegetable oil – 1 tsp

Onion – ½ cup, finely chopped

Garlic – 1 tsp

Button mushrooms – 6, finely chopped (large)

Cayenne – 1 tsp, optional

Cilantro – ½ cup, finely chopped

Italian Parsley – ½ cup, finely chopped

Salt & pepper to taste

Thawed Puff pastry – 1 sheet

To make the filling

• Heat a sauté pan with the oil and butter mixture.
• When the oil is hot, stir in the onions , sauté on medium low heat until they turn golden brown
• Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds,
• Add the mushrooms and cook for roughly 10- 15 minutes until the water the mushroom releases is completely absorbed and it turns a little brown
• Add the cooked bulgur wheat and allow the flavors to blend together for about 2-3 minutes
• Season with salt, pepper and cayenne. Sauté well so that it is all well incorporated.
• Add the chopped herbs and stir well. Allow this mixture to cool.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees
• Roll out the puff pastry just a little bit  on a floured surface and cut into the desired shape and size you like
• Place the filling the in the centre, brush edges with water and fold up and pinch together to seal.
• Brush with egg mixture if you like or bake in the oven for roughly 8-10 minutes until they turn golden brown.
• Serve warm.

Variations:

• You can try different variations of herbs like rosemary , dill or a combination of herbs
• Of if you want to reduce the use of puff pastry, place the filling in lightly buttered ramekins, cover the ramekins with the puff pastry sheet and bake.
• For a potluck, place the filling in a tart/quiche pan, cover with puff pastry sheet and bake.

Go over and see what Mel & Eileen have cooked today.