Creamy Mushroom Casserole

A Family Favorite every Thanksgiving and Christmas!

A great accompaniment for chicken or turkey.

• 1/3 cup soft butter or margarine
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
• 1 tablespoon grated onion
• 1 tablespoon prepared mustard
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1-1/2 teaspoons flour
• 1 pound washed fresh mushrooms
• 1 cup heavy cream

Slice the mushrooms, stems on, and place a layer on bottom of a 1-1/2-quart greased casserole. Mix together the butter or margarine, parsley, onion, mustard, salt, pep-per, nutmeg and flour. Dot the first layer of sliced mushrooms with half this mixture. Add a second layer of mushrooms and top with the rest of the butter mixture.
Pour the cream over all, then bake uncovered at 350 degrees F for 1 hour.

~From "The Country Innkeepers' Cookbook." A wonderful cookbook here in Bruce's Kitchen.

Crema di Funghi (Mushroom Cream Sauce) via Arthur Schwartz, "Naples at Table"

My son and I had a terrific meal at Naples 45 in New York City this past Monday.

I had a wonderful wild mushroom sauce with pasta.

Inspired, I decided to make one myself. It was delicious!

Schwartz writes:

"I first encountered this rich and silken sauce at Cumpa Cosimo, Netta Bottone's restaurant in Ravello, but a puree of mushrooms like this has become fashionable in the region. Netta calls her sauce a "cream" sauce even though it has no dairy products, but I've eaten other versions that are, indeed, enriched with a little cream. In either case, it is elegantly smooth and appropriate for a fancy dinner party---or just when you want to pamper yourself with something smooth and lush.......Ditali is a good shape for this sauce......farfalle and gemelli....thin spaghetti would not be out of line, either.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup ectra-virgin olive oil
3 large cloves garlic, lightly smashed
1 1/2 pounds white mushrooms, wiped clean and sliced (I used Baby Bella)
3/4 teaspoon salt
Optional: 2 tablespoons Marsala (I used it)
3/4 cup hot pasta cooking water
3 tablespoons freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
Optional: 2--3 tablespoons heavy cream (I used it)
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 heaping tablespoon finely cut parsley (I used a wee bit more)
1 pound pasta (I used fettuccine)

Directions:

1. In a 10-inch skillet, combine the olive oil ad garlic over medium-low heat and, pressing the garlic into the oil a couple of time to release it flavor, cook until the garlic is soft and lightly golden on both sides. Remove and discard the garlic.

2. Increase the heat to medium and add the mushrooms. Cook, tossing almost constantly, until they give off their liquid. Add the salt and Marsala. Raise the heat to high and continue cooking, still mixing almost constantly, until all the liquid has evaporated. Measure out 3/4 cup of the mushrooms and set aside.

3. Place the remaining mushrooms in the jar of a blender. Have the grated cheese, the cream, the pepper, and the parsley ready at hand to finish the sauce.

4. Cook the pasta until al dente in plenty of salted water, and just before draining it, scoop out a cup of the pasta boiling water. Drain the pasta.

5. Pour 3/4 cup of the pasta water in the jar of the blender with the mushrooms and process the mushrooms into a smooth cream. Add the grated cheese. Process another couple of seconds to blend. If the sauce is too think, add a little more pasta cooking water. Finally, whirl in the cream and black pepper. Taste for salt.

6. Toss the pasta with the mushroom cream sauce and the parsley. Garnish each serving with the reserved sliced mushrooms.

7. Serve immediately in heated bowls with extra grated cheese.

Arthur Schwartz

Fuyu Persimmon Salad

We have had this every night for the past four of five nights:

Last night as a side with salmon:

The night before with ravioli:

Ingredients

• 1 shallot, finely diced
• Salt and pepper
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon sherry vinegar
• 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 Fuyu persimmons
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced tender celery stalks and leaves
• 1 head radicchio, leaves torn into 2-inch wide ribbons
• Chunk of Parmesan, for shaving

Preparation

1.

Make the vinaigrette: put diced shallot in a small bowl with a pinch of salt. Add lemon juice and sherry vinegar and leave to macerate for about 5 minutes. Stir in olive oil. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste.

2.

With a sharp paring knife, remove and discard the leafy calyx at the top of each persimmon. Peel persimmons and cut in half vertically. Lay persimmons flat side down and cut into 1/2-inch wedges.

3.

Put persimmon wedges and celery slices in a low, wide salad bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Whisk vinaigrette, then pour over persimmon and celery and toss to coat well. Add radicchio and toss lightly.

4.

With a vegetable peeler, shave about 1 ounce of Parmesan in thin strips over salad.

YIELD

4 to 6 servings 

 

~from The New York Times

Shrimp and Snow Pea Stir Fry

This is an adaption of a recipe from by Jamie Oliver. Serves 2.
This easy and fast shrimp snow pea recipe is very versatile. I served it over Pedon (Italian Five Grains--bought at Costco).

Ingredients:

• 1 T fresh Ginger, finely diced
• 2 cloves Garlic, finely diced
• 1 Jalapeno, seeded and minced
• Peanut Oil
• 3/4 lb. Lrg Shrimp, shelled & deveined (lightly salted with Sea Salt)
• Large handful Snow Peas ( rinsed in water, cut tip of each and pull out the tough string that runs along its side, and cut each snow pea into 1-2 inch pieces)
• 2 T Soy Sauce
• juice 1/2 Lemon
• 1/2 t Honey
• 1 t Sesame Oil
• Fresh Cilantro

Directions:

1. Heat a pan or wok over high heat. Swirl in some peanut oil and add garlic, ginger, and jalapeno. Saute for a minute or so, then add shrimp and cook for another couple minutes or until shrimp is almost cooked through.
2. Add sugar snaps, soy sauce, lime juice, honey, and sesame oil.  Saute for a bit until everything is hot--a few minutes at most. Serve over Rice or Pedon. Garnish with chopped Cilantro.

Eggplant, Black Bean Vegetable Chili

Easy to make and so delicious!

Ingredients

1 med. eggplant, peeled & cut into 1/4-inch cubes (I used the last one from my garden!)
1 tbsp. coarse (kosher) salt
1/2 c. olive oil
1 med. yellow onion, chopped
1 celery, chopped

1 carrot, chopped
1 red bell pepper, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
1 cubanelle pepper, cut into 1/4-inch pieces (or green/yellow)

1 jalapeno, minced
3 lg. cloves garlic, peeled and coarsely chopped
8 ripe plum tomatoes, cut into 1-inch cubes (or 1 can diced)
1-2 cups of  vegetable broth or chicken (I used homemade chicken stock)
1 c. chopped Italian parsley
1/2 c. chopped fresh basil leaves
3 tbsp. chili powder
1 tbsp. ground cumin
1 tbsp. dried oregano

1 tsp. fennel seeds
1 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper

1/2 tsp. turmeric
Salt to taste
2 c. cooked black beans (or 1 can, rinsed)
1 cup fresh or frozen corn kernels
1/4 c. lemon juice
Sour cream (garnish)
Monterey Jack cheese, grated (garnish)

 

Directions

 

I put the first 9 ingredients into a large casserole and cooked for about 20 minutes over medium heat. I then added the tomatoes, broth and seasonings and cooked for another 30 minutes. And then I added the black beans, corn and lemon juice and cooked for another 20 minutes. 

~Based on a recipe from cooks.com

Brazilian Shrimp Soup

Made this for "Meatless Monday." YUM!!!

Coconut milk's rich flavor will keep you coming back for more of this substantial soup. A true Brazilian version would include slices of okra, but ours is already so satisfyingly thick that we left it out.

 Ingredients:

1. 2 tablespoons cooking oil
2. 1 onion, chopped
3. 1 green bell pepper, chopped (I used a Cubanelle & Jalapeno from my garden.)
4. 3 cloves garlic, minced
5. 3/4 cup long-grain rice
6. 1/4 teaspoon red-pepper flakes
7. 1 3/4 teaspoons salt
8. 1 3/4 cups canned crushed tomatoes in thick puree (from one 15-ounce can) (I used 3 Beefsteak Tomatoes from my garden, seeded and chopped, plus 2 tablespoons tomato puree.)
9. 5 cups water (I used homemade chicken stock.)
10. 1 cup canned unsweetened coconut milk
11. 1 1/2 pounds medium shrimp, shelled and cut in half horizontally
12. 1/4 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper
13. 1 tablespoon lemon juice
14. 1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley or cilantro  

 Directions:

1. In a large pot, heat the oil over moderately low heat. Add the onion, bell pepper, and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables start to soften, about 10 minutes.
2. Add the rice, red-pepper flakes, salt, tomatoes, and water to the pot. Bring to a boil and cook until the rice is almost tender, about 10 minutes.
3. Stir the coconut milk into the soup. Bring back to a simmer and then stir in the shrimp. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until the shrimp are just done, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in the black pepper, lemon juice, and parsley.

Notes Variation Instead of the shrimp, use one pound of boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about three), cut crosswise into quarter-inch strips. Cook for the same amount of time.

Suggested Pairing

The sweet elements here call for a somewhat assertive sweetness in the wine as well. A Vouvray demi-sec, from France's Loire Valley, ought to strike just the right balance.

~~Based on a recipe from Food & Wine

Salmon with Banana--Orange Salsa

Grilled Sockeye Salmon, of course, with this perfect Salsa:

Banana-Orange Salsa

2 ripe bananas, diced
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated orange zest
2 oranges, peeled, segmented and chopped
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 tablespoons lime juice
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander