Banana, Chocolate and Rum Pastry Puffs

Ingredients

• 1 sheet frozen puff pastry shell
• thawed
• 1 egg
• beaten
• 1-1/2 tsp. butter
• 1-1/2 tbsp. sugar
• 1-1/2 tsp. dark rum
• 1/2 tsp. rum flavored extract)
• 1-1/2 tsp. water
• 1 md. banana
• sliced
• 1 tbsp. semisweet chocolate chips
• 1/8 tsp. ground cinnamon

Instructions

1. Heat oven to 400F.
2. Have a cookie sheet ready.
3. Filling: Melt butter in a medium skillet over medium heat.
4. Add sugar, rum, water and cinnamon and stir until sugar dissolves and mixture is syrupy, about 2 minutes.
5. Stir in banana slices and cook, stirring occasionally, until bananas are coated with syrup and start to lose their shape.
6. Scrape into a small bowl, mash slightly with a fork and cool about5 minutes.
7. Stir in chocolate chips.
8. Unfold pastry on a lightly floured surface.
9. With a rolling pin, roll into a 12-inch square.
10. With a pizza wheel or a knife, cut crosswise into six 2-inch wide strips, then lengthwise into eight 1-1/2 strips.
11. You'll have 48 2x1-1/2-inch rectangles.
12. Spread a teaspoon of filling down the center of half the rectangles, leaving a 1/4-inch border all around.
13. Moisten border with water.
14. Make a row of three 1/2-inch crosswise slits down the middle of the remaining rectangles.
15. Place on the ones with the filling, lining up the edges with the bottom rectangles.
16. Press tines of a fork around edges to seal in filling.
17. Brush top of pastries lightly with egg.
18. Using a spatula, transfer to an ungreased cookie sheet.
19. Bake 15 minutes or until pastry is puffed and golden brown.
20. Serve warm or at room temperature.