Going to a party tonight? Bring these! Creamy Mushroom Marsala Bites

I made this recipe up because I love chicken Marsala and wanted to get the same flavors in an appetizer-but without the chicken.  I have entered this recipe into a contest on http://www.mixingbowl.com and if you want to go and vote for my recipe, please go right ahead.  You can vote daily until the end of the year.  You do have to be a Mixing Bowl member so if you feel like signing up to a great recipe site, go right ahead!  I highly recommend the site as a great resource for all types of recipes.

*if you don’t have shallots in the house, use onions or leeks, no proscuitto in the house, use bacon or finely chopped ham.  If no cottage cheese, use sour cream.  If no heavy cream, use half and half or whatever you have.  If you don’t have the pastry shells, make crostini with a little olive oil and salt and serve the mushroom mix on top–put them under the broiler for a few minutes and you are all set!

Servings:         6

Prep time:       20 minutes

Cook time:      5 minutes

Total time:       30 minutes

Ingredients:

4 tablespoons salted butter
2 tablespoons finely chopped shallots
2 oz. proscuitto, finely chopped
4 oz sliced button mushrooms, roughly chopped
4 oz. sliced baby Portobello mushrooms, roughly chopped
30 mini phyllo shells
1/3 cup Marsala wine
¼ cup heavy cream
1/3 cup cottage cheese
2 tablespoons fresh chives, finely chopped, plus more for garnish (optional)
Salt & pepper to taste

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large skillet over medium high heat, melt butter. Add shallots and saute until translucent, about 2-3 minutes. Add chopped proscuitto and brown slightly, about 3-5 minutes stirring occasionally. Add chopped mushrooms and toss with butter mixture. Reduce heat to medium and cook until mixture is nearly dry, about 10-12 minutes.

In the meantime, place phyllo shells on a baking sheet and bake 3-5 minutes until crisp. Remove from oven set aside.

Add the Marsala to the mushrooms, stir and cook again until pan is again dry. Add heavy cream and cottage cheese and cook again until sauce is thickened, stirring occasionally. Remove mixture from heat and stir in chopped chives. Season with salt and pepper to taste

Fill shells with a scant tablespoon of mushroom mixture. Top with a fresh chive segment if desired and serve immediately. Mixture also keeps tightly covered in the refrigerator for a week. Simply fill phyllo with mushroom mixture and bake in a 350 degree oven for 10-15 minutes until heated through. Enjoy!

And here is the direct link so you can vote if you want to:

http://www.mixingbowl.com/message/recipe/view.castle?g=1222768&m=7966710