Mushrooms and Mashers

This recipe is a composite of a few recipes I've tried over the years.  The preparation isn't difficult but there are three separate components to this dish, so it's best prepared when you have a little time to spend in the kitchen. This recipe is definitely one of Jeff's favorites!

Mashed potatoes
2 large russet potatoes, peeled and quartered
3/4 cup cream or milk (approximately)
2 T butter
salt/pepper to taste

Portobella caps
2 large portabella caps
2 T soy sauce
2 T olive oil

Vegetable gravy
2 T butter or  veg oil
2 small carrots, peeled and diced
1 stalk celery, diced
1 small onion
1 t garlic, minced
1 1/2 cups veggie broth
2-3 T corn starch
2 T fresh or 1 T dried thyme

Potatoes: Salt water and bring to a boil in a large dutch oven. Drop in potatoes and boil until fork tender, about 20-25 minutes. Drain potatoes and return to pot. Mix in butter, cream or milk, salt and pepper. Use a hand blender with the wire whisk attachments to beat potatoes until smooth. Add more cream/milk if the potatoes are too dry until you achieve desired consistency.

Mushrooms: Wash and dry the portabella caps. Drizzle with 1 T olive oil and sprinkle with a little salt and pepper. Heat remaining olive oil and saute caps over medium heat. Drizzle soy sauce over the caps and let it reduce a bit. Turn caps after about 4 minutes or so. Heat another 3-4 minutes until cooked. Remove from sauce and set aside. Leave the remaining liquid in the pan for the gravy

Vegetable gravy: In the same pan as the mushrooms, heat remaining sauce from mushrooms plus butter or veg oil to medium high. Saute carrots, celery and onion until onion is translucent and veggies are slightly tender. Add garlic and saute about 1 minute. Add vegetable broth and thyme and bring to a boil. Scoop out about a 1/4 cup of broth into a small cup. Add corn starch and mix thoroughly until no lumps remain and mixture is smooth. Add the corn starch mixture to the vegetable mixture and simmer until sauce thickens. If the gravy is still not thick enough, mix up another tablespoon  of corn starch with some of the gravy and add to the pan.

To serve, place one mushroom cap face up on the plate, add a scoop of the mashed potatoes on top of the cap. Top the whole thing with vegetable gravy.

Curried Lentil Soup

I love using lentils. They are one of the few dried beans you don't have to soak overnight before cooking. I got this recipe from a friend and it is super-easy, super-hearty and super-yummy. This recipe makes a big batch but I thought the soup tasted even better the next day. Jeff and I added a few splashes of tobasco before eating ours and it really enhanced the flavor of the broth.

2C. Red Lentils sorted and rinsed

1 qt. veggie stock or broth

1 lg onion finely chopped

4 celery stalks, finely chopped

2 large carrots, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 T curry powder

1 t  cumin

2 T lemon juice

handful of cilantro, chopped

Tobasco sauce (optional)

Brings lentil, stock and 4 cups water to simmer in large pot. Skim away foam that rises. Reduce heat to medium low. Cover and simmer 5 minutes stirring occasionally. Add celery, onion, carrots and garlic. Simmer uncovered for about 20 min. Add curry powder and cumin and cook 20 minutes more, or until lentils are soft. Stir in lemon juice and add salt and pepper to taste. Top with cilantro and Tobasco if desired.

Baked Zucchini Sticks

I found this recipe on Pinterest (my new obsession) and tried it out last weekend. The sticks were a perfect vehicle for the easy Sweet Onion Dipping Sauce (coming soon) I made. There are quite a few steps involved, but if you have the time, these are a much healthier alternative to fried zucchini sticks.

4-5 medium zucchinis
handful of sea salt
1 cup panko bread crumbs (find these near the regular bread crumbs or in the Asian food aisle)
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1 T Italian seasoning
2 eggs

Quarter zucchini lengthwise into 4 long spears. Slice the spears in half to get sticks approximately the size of a fat french fry. Sprinkle the zucchini with salt and place in a colander to drain. The recipe recommends 45 minutes or longer. I probably drained mine for 30 minutes and they were fine. The salt helps extract the extra moisture from the zucchini so they don't turn out soggy so the more water that you can get out of them, the better. While they are draining, you should make the Sweet Onion dip or maybe a marinara sauce for dipping. When you're ready to start breading, preheat your oven to 425. Once drained, rinse the excess salt from the zuchs and pat dry. Spread a piece of parchment paper on a cookie sheet or pizza pan. Make an egg wash by lightly beating 2 eggs. In a separate bowl, mix panko, Parmesan and Italian herbs, sea salt and pepper. Drop each stick into the egg wash until coated then place in the panko mixture. Roll the sticks around in the panko (using your other hand to keep the mixture as dry as possible). Place each stick on the parchment lined sheet. Bake sticks for about 10 minutes and check. If they look golden, flip a few over and make sure the underside is done. The recipe suggests flipping them and baking them for another 10 minutes. I used a perforated pizza pan, so both sides got nice and golden after about 12 minutes with no flipping.

TIP: I had some of these left over the next day. I popped them in the toaster oven for 10 minutes on 350 and they came out nice and crunchy!

Black Bean & Egg Stacker

On my recent visit to Charlotte, I had brunch with Court and some friends at a great local restaurant. One of the girls ordered this fabulous dish with black bean patties and I definitely had order envy after it arrived on the table. Although I haven't perfected my homemade black bean patties yet, I made a successful version of this dish when the fam was in town for New Year's.

2 black bean patties (I used frozen this time)
2 eggs
salsa verde (homemade or store bought)
feta crumbles
cilantro, chopped
sour cream or plan greek yogurt
fresh jalepenos, sliced

Heat a skillet or griddle to medium high heat. Lightly spray the black bean patties with cooking oil (I prefer olive) and grill until cooked through and sizzling (approximately 7 minutes on each side). Season with salt and pepper and set aside. Fry two eggs to desired doneness and season with salt and pepper. Stack black bean patty with egg, salsa verde, feta, and cilantro. Serve with sour cream and sliced jalepenos on the side.

Quick Borracho Beans

"Real" borracho beans require soaking dried beans overnight and boiling for hours in an aromatic stock. These easy beans take only a few minutes and give you a simliar flavor when you're in a hurry.

1 can pinto beans - drained and rinsed
1/2 T Vegetable oil
1 clove garlic - minced
1 1/2 cups vegetable broth
1/2 of a beer (I used Shiner)
1 bay leaf
salt/pepper
chopped tomatoes/jalepenos/cilantro (optional)

Heat oil in a saucepan. Add garlic and bay leaf, cook for a  minute until fragrant. Add beans and salt and pepper and cook for another minute or so. Add broth and beer. Bring to a boil. Add tomatoes, jalepenos and cilantro if using. Reduce heat and let simmer for at least 10 minutes, stirring regularly. These beans can continue to simmer until you have the rest of dinner ready to go. Serve hot.

Tip: These beans get even more yummy after sitting in the fridge overnight. Make a big batch and keep the extras for leftovers.

Fish tacos

The brocolli slaw in these tacos gives them a delicious crunch. Top them with your favorite salsa and enjoy!

2 filets mild fish (I've used tilapia and catfish)
1 pkg brocolli slaw (I found it in the produce section by the regular cole slaw)
1/4 cup cole slaw dressing or mayonaisse
1 handful fresh cilantro
cayenne pepper
cumin
salt & pepper
fresh jalepeno, seeded and veined and sliced
4 tortillas (corn or flour)
salsa

Season your fish with salt, pepper and cumin. Spray a large skillet with pam or grease with veg oil. Heat to medium high heat and pan fry the filets unil done, about 4 minutes on each side. Remove from heat. Slice into chunks. Meanwhile, mix dressing, cilantro, cumin, cayenne, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Add slaw and toss until the slaw is just coated. Add more dressing if desired. Heat tortillas. Layer tortillas with fish, slaw, fresh jalepenos. Top with salsa and serve.

Spinach, Asparagus and Mushroom Pasta

Yes - I do take requests! Mom has asked me to post this pasta dish because Dad keeps requesting it. So here you go parents. This one is a variation of Vanessa's Favorite Pasta made with spinach, asparagus and mushrooms. Enjoy!

Pasta (I think spaghetti or penne works best)
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 onion - diced
2 cloves garlic - minced
1 cup asparagus - diced
3 cups spinach - torn
1 cup mushrooms - sliced
Fresh basil, parsely or oregano
Parmesan cheese
Lemon
Almonds or pine nuts - toasted

Cook pasta al dente according to directions and drain. Meanwhile, in a separate pan, heat oil and saute onion and garlic until translucent. Add asparagus. Saute until bright green and slightly tender - not mushy - about 5 minutes. Add mushrooms. Saute another 2 mintues or so until mushrooms are cooked. Season veggies with salt and pepper.  Add the veggie and oil mixture to your pasta. Add spinach, fresh herbs and lemon juice. Toss the whole thing together. Serve topped with parmesean cheese and toasted almonds or pine nuts.

Cheater's tip: If you only have dried herbs, add them in with the hot oil while you cook your veggies. That will soften them up and intensify the flavor.