To cook pastry shells

Thaw 1 sheet of puff pastry dough according to instructions on package. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut puff pastry into 1 inch rounds using a biscuit cutter. Place 1 inch rounds onto a baking sheet that has been sprayed with non-stick spray. Cut an additional one in round, and then use a smaller cutter to cut a ring out of your one inch ring. Lay this hollow ring on top of the first ring. Bake for approximately 15 minutes or until puff pastries are browned.

To steam Asparagus:

Choose thin stalks from the market. If your stalks are greater than 3/8 of an inch thick you may want to peel your asparagus. Place about 1/2 inch of water into a large skillet, and heat on high. Once the water boils, add asparagus, and reduce heat to simmer. Cook asparagus until it is tender (for thin stalks this should take about 15 minutes). (this sounds like an extremely long time to cook thin asparagus. Make sure this is correct.). Remove asparagus, and drain on paper towels. Cut cooked asparagus pieces just smaller than 1 inch.

To make Hollandaise sauce:

Melt the butter in the microwave in a glass dish. Let the butter begin to cool slightly, and skim off any foam, or solids that are on the top of the melted butter. Set up a double boiler, and whisk egg yolks and the water in a separate bowl until they are light and fluffy. Pour whisked egg yolks into the top portion of the double boiler. Whisk eggs continually while eggs are in the double boiler. They will begin to thicken slightly, and this will take 2 to 3 minutes. Begin to drizzle in warm melted butter slowly, and continue to whisk the egg and butter mixture. Once the butter is totally incorporated whisk in lemon juice, hot pepper sauce, and salt and pepper to taste. This sauce must be served within 30 minutes of making. Waiting longer than 30 minutes of making this sauce, you run the risk of this sauce breaking and separating, so be sure to serve this sauce promptly.

To assemble tarts:

Place two or three pieces of cut asparagus on the puff pastry, and spoon on about 2 teaspoons of Hollandaise sauce just before serving. You may wish to garnish with a light sprinkle of Cayenne pepper. These are wonderful finger foods at a party or a Sunday morning brunch.

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