Shelly's Recipe

CRAWFISH OR SHRIMP PUFFS

Category: Seafood

12 frozen puff pastry shells
3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) butter or margarine
1 tbsp tomato sauce
1/3 cup chopped celery
1/4 cup chopped bell pepper
2/3 cup chopped onions
1 tbsp minced garlic
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp ground cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp coarsely ground black pepper
1 lb cooked crawfish tails or medium shrimp, deveined
2 tsp cornstarch
1-1/3 cup water
1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp fresh chopped parsley
2 cup grated processed cheese
1/4 cup sliced almonds, crushed

Bake pastry shells according to package directions and set aside.

Melt butter in a heavy Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add tomato sauce, celery, bell pepper, onion and garlic; saute, stirring frequently, until vegetables are tender. Stir in salt, cayenne and black pepper. Add crawfish tails, reduce heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes.

In a small mixing bowl, add cornstarch and make a paste with a small amount of the water; gradually whisk in the remaining water. Add this solution to the crawfish and continue cooking for an additional five minutes or until thickened. Add 1/4 cup of the chopped parsley, mix well, and then remove from heat.

Fill baked pastry shells equally with the crawfish filling. Top each puff with grated processed cheese then with crushed sliced almonds. Bake filled shells at 350 for a few minutes to melt cheese. Remove from oven and sprinkle a small amount of the remaining 2 tbsp of fresh parsley over each puff. Serve immediately. Yields 6 servings.