Cooking for my Dad: Mushroom Strudel with Roasted Grape Tomatoes

This was an experiment in low-sodium cooking that turned out well. The enhanced flavour of the roasted grape tomatoes acted as a garnish for the mushroom strudel.


Ingredients:
- 1 package of frozen puff pastry (397 grams)
- 8 ounces of sliced mushrooms
- 1 teaspoon of fresh thyme leaves
- 1 and 1/2 cups of grape tomatoes
- olive oil
- balsamic vinegar
- salt and pepper to taste

Defrost a package of frozen puff pastry. Generally the package will contain 2 squares of pastry. Use one for this recipe and leave the second half of the pastry to make a sweet fruit/jam strudel.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Saute the mushrooms in a small amount of olive oil until they are nicely browned. Sprinkle with a sparse amount of salt and (more)ground pepper. Mix in about a teaspoon of fresh thyme leaves. Turn off the heat and let the mushrooms cool .

Roll out one half of the pastry on a floured board to form a 12'x9'rectangle (30 cm.x 22 cm.). Spread the mushrooms down the middle third of the pastry. Bring the pastry up on either side of the mushrooms to cover the filling. Pinch both ends of the pastry 'package' to ensure that the mushrooms do not spill out. Use a sharp knife to score the top of the pastry; this will allow steam to escape while baking. Place the strudel on a baking sheet and into the oven for 25 minutes or until the pastry is puffed and golden.

For lunch, I served this in about 3 inch slices and topped them with the roasted tomatoes. If serving as an appetizer, the serving size can be decreased.

To roast the tomatoes:

Roast the tomatoes while browning the mushrooms. Cut 1 and 1/2 cups of grape tomatoes in half and place on a baking sheet. Drizzle with about a teaspoon of olive oil and about the same amount of balsamic vinegar. Sprinkle sparingly with salt. Mix the tomatoes in the oil and vinegar with your hands then spread them out on the pan. Roast in a 400 degree F. oven until they are limp, at least a little dehydrated, and somewhat caramelized. Watch them carefully; if they burn, the tomatoes will be bitter. Remove from the oven and place in a bowl, keeping them warm until use.