Mushroom Turnovers

One of the great things about my job is all the fun people I work with. For example, we have a group of us who participate in Murder Mystery programs written by a dear friend and fellow librarian, Ted. I had my first taste of acting in one of these programs three years ago when I played the part of a self absorbed jazz singer named Toni Deff. (get it, tone deaf, hahaha). I never thought I could pull it off but once the program started, I was hooked. I've since played another roll as a gardener called Petunia Budd and I filled on once as a wealthy yacht owner named Marina Swagg. And in May I will be in Ted's newest program as a widowed ranch owner. I can't say much as we haven't even practiced for this one yet alone performed it.

Collectively, Ted refers to the lot of us as the Murder Overdue crew. And last night about 15 of us got together and had a great time. And to help out, I made mushroom turnovers. I found the recipe in Southern Living and changed it a little to make it slightly healthier. I don't think it affected the flavor at all as I got many compliments on them. A bit time consuming to put together but the end result was worth it. The only thing I would do differently next time is to better seal them. Seems most of them opened up at the seams so I referred to them as the exploding mushroom turnovers.

Mushroom Turnovers

1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, softened
2¼ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup butter, softened
2 tbsp butter
1 cup chopped onion
1 lb mushrooms, chopped
¼ tsp thyme
¼ tsp salt
½ tsp pepper
2 tbsp all-purpose flour
¼ cup low fat sour cream
3 tbsp sherry

Combine first 3 ingredients. Shape dough into a ball; cover and chill 1 hour.

Melt 2 tbsp butter in a large skillet over medium heat; add onion, and sauté 12 minutes or until onion is golden. Stir in chopped mushrooms and sauté 3-6 minutes or until liquid begins to decrease. Stir in thyme, salt, and pepper. Sprinkle 2 tbsp flour evenly over mushroom mixture. Stir in sour cream and sherry. Remove from heat, and set aside.

Pat or roll chilled dough to 1/8” thickness on a lightly floured surface; cut with a 3” round cutter.

Spoon 1 tsp mushroom mixture on half of each dough circle, fold dough over filling. Press edges together with a fork to seal. Place turnovers on an ungreased baking sheet.

Bake at 400° for 15 to 20 minutes or until edges are lightly browned.

Note: To make ahead, place uncooked turnovers in a single layer on baking sheets, and freeze. Transfer frozen turnovers to large zip-top plastic freezer bags, seal and freeze up to 1 month. Place frozen turnovers on ungreased baking sheets. Bake as directed.

Yield: Makes 3 dozen appetizer servings