Lasagna in a Mushroom

Some time back I got the idea to stuff some big mushrooms with cheese somehow, but never got around to trying it out. Then lately I have been wanting lasagna or some other baked pasta and somehow this dish was born.

My son and I went back and forth on what to call it, and finally settled on:

Lasagna in a Mushroom




For the Sauce

1 tsp Olive Oil
1/4 Cup Minced Onions
1 Clove Garlic, Minced or Pressed
8 Ounces Tomato Sauce
Pinch Each Salt and Pepper
1 tsp Dried Oregano
1/4 tsp Dried Thyme
1/4 tsp Dried Basil


Heat the oil in a small sauce pan over medium-low to medium heat. Add the minced onions and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and spices and cook and stir for about one minute. Stir in the tomato sauce, reduce heat to low, and simmer until the flavors come together, about 20 minutes.

For the Mushrooms

4 Portobella Mushrooms
2 Tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
Pinch Each Salt and Pepper

Preheat your oven to the highest broiler setting and place the top rack about 6 inches from the broiler

Remove the stems and gills from the mushrooms. Combine the balsamic vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Brush over both sides of the mushrooms and set aside to marinate for about 10 minutes. Place the mushrooms 'gill'-side down on a baking sheet and broil until soft and beginning to brown on the edges, about 7-8 minutes. Remove from the oven and flip them over, 'gill'-side up.

For the Stuffing

1 Bunch Spinach, Leaves Only, Washed and Coarsely Chopped (Don't dry them, the water will help cook the spinach)
1 Cup Ricotta Cheese
1/4 Cup Shredded Parmesan Cheese
1 tsp Pepper
1 Tbsp Fresh Basil


Put the spinach leaves in a nonstick skillet over medium low heat, and cook until wilted and all of the moisture has evaporated, about 6 minutes or so. If you can't add the spinach all at once, add more as it wilts down. It will cook down quite a bit.

Combine the ricotta, parmesan, spinach, pepper, and basil in a small bowl.

Remaining Ingredients

4 Thin Slices Cheese, Fontina, Mozzarella, Muenster or other good melting cheese.
Chopped Fresh Basil for Garnish

To Complete the Dish


Lower the oven to 350

Spread 1/4 of the sauce in each mushroom. Top with 1/4 of the ricotta cheese mixture, and one thin slice of your melting cheese. Put the baking sheet back in the oven, and bake the mushrooms until heated through and the cheese has melted, 5-10 minutes. Remove from the oven and garnish with fresh basil. If your cheese is taking too long to melt (or you like it a bit browner), you can use the broiler to melt it, which should only take 1-2 minutes. Garnish with fresh basil.

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French Onion Soup

Continuing with the theme of things that are good to eat when it's cold outside, I bring you French Onion Soup. There really isn't too much to say about this soup. It's yummy and satisfying on a cold day, and with the bread and the cheese in the bowl, it can really be a complete meal with just the addition of a salad, or some garlicky greens.

French Onion Soup

1 Tbsp Olive Oil
2 Tbsp Butter
8 Cups Thinly Sliced Onions
1/2 tsp Sugar
8 Cups Broth (Beef is traditional, but you could use chicken or veggie and still achieve delicious results)
1/2 Cup Dry White Wine
Pinch Dried Thyme
Salt and Pepper
8 Slices French Bread, Toasted
1 1/2 Cups Gruyere or Domestic Swiss Cheese, Grated

Heat the oil in a soup pot or dutch oven over medium heat and add the butter. Once the butter has melted, add the onions and stir to coat with the fat. Cook over low heat for 10 minutes, then add the sugar. Continue cooking over low heat, stirring occasionally, until the onions caramelize and turn a nice brown color. This will take about one hour.






Add the thyme and the wine, and cook for 5 minutes over low heat. Add the broth and simmer, partially covered, 30-45 minutes until the flavors are well blended.







To serve, ladle the soup into oven-proof bowls, add a slice of toasted bread to each bowl, and sprinkle with grated cheese. Place under the broiler until the cheese is melted and just beginning to brown, about 3-5 minutes. For easier movement in and out of the oven, you can place the individual bowls on a baking sheet and put the baking sheet in the oven.

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Crispy Kale Chips

I learned how to make these kale chips last year after seeing many recipes for them online. It is one of those recipes that is almost too simple to call a recipe. These kale chips are so interesting. Delicious, salty and crispy. A great starter to a meal, or addition to any snack spread. Hrm....the Superbowl is coming up.

This is a basic recipe with salt as the only seasoning, and it is quite good, but feel free to experiment with other flavor combinations. I have made them with chili powder and cumin for a Mexican feel, or you could use curry powder, or just spice them up a bit more by adding a pinch of cayenne....

Crispy Kale Chips

1 Bunch Kale
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
2 tsp Salt


Preheat Oven to 350

Clean and dry the kale. Cut away any course stems, and cut the leaves into roughly 3-inch pieces. Toss the kale with the olive oil and salt. Spray a baking sheet with non-stick spray. Place the kale on the baking sheet in an even layer. Bake for about 10 minutes, turn with a spatula or tongs and bake 10 minutes more, until crisp and beginning to brown on the edges. Remove from the oven to a plate or platter. Or, if you are uncouth like me, eat straight off the baking sheet while the fried chicken cooks.

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Fried Chicken - Guest Post

This is a guest post from my DH who made fabulous fried chicken tonight. Thank-you sweetie for a delicious meal and a wonderful post!

Once upon a time, the show 'Good Eats' used to be accessible. When Alton Brown started producing the it, he covered true classics of Americana cuisine that were accessible to the average cook. Over the years 'Good Eats' inspired me to try to try cooking Standing Rib Roast, Steak Au Poivre and brewing my own beer. As 'Good Eats' passed into the third season, the show began to wander further away from simple, accessible fare in the interest of novelty. While I rarely cook anything from 'Good Eats' today, the first two years of the Alton's geeky, instructional show were some of the most influential for me as a cook.

This Fried Chicken recipe came during the first two years of the show and it has always been a tasty treat. It fits right into my personal 'butter zone' of cooking in that you can start it, leave it alone for several hours (leaving you free to watch the NFL playoffs or run a few daily quests in WOW) and still have something tasty to eat.

Here is the recipe that Alton used for his Fried Chicken show:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/fried-chicken-recipe/index.html

Some notes:

* If you take the advice of 'seasoning liberally' keep in mind that the seasoning mix is mostly salt. The Fried Chicken I made tonight was tasty, but was too salty. I recommend using half as much salt as he calls for.

* I used smoked paprika instead of the Hungarian paprika. It was the bomb.

* You don't have to use shortening as the fry oil, but it actually makes a difference. The oil is so neutral that it allows the spices and the flavor of the chicken to shine through.


Melting shortening. Hmmm.













Seasoning. The buttermilk makes a wonderful binder for flavor.















Mmmmm. Fried food.















It's dark on the top. No, it's not burned. That's flavor.















Ta dah!

Meat Sauce for Pasta

We've been having winter this week. Which for us means lots of rain, wind, cold, and more rain. This is another meal that's great for this kind of weather. Pretty simple comfort food for a cold, rainy night.

Meat Sauce for Pasta

2 tsp Olive Oil
1 Large Onion, Diced
1 Pound Ground Turkey
2 Cloves Garlic, Minced or Pressed
Salt and Pepper
2 tsp Dried Basil
1 tsp Dried Oregano
1/2 tsp Dried Thyme
1 28-Ounce Can Tomato Sauce
12 Ounces Button Mushrooms, Sliced
Carrot and/or Zucchini, Finely Grated (If you need to sneak veggies into your family)
Parmesan Cheese (Optional for Garnish)

Heat olive oil in a large saute pan over medium-low heat. Add the onions and cook until beginning to caramelize, about 10 minutes. Add the ground turkey and cook, breaking up with a spatula or wooden spoon until no longer pink. If your turkey is very fatty, spoon off some of the excess fat at this point. You want about 1 Tbsp of fat left in the pan with the turkey and onions. Add the garlic and salt and pepper to taste, cook, stirring, for about one minute. Add in the dried herbs, and stir to coat the meat and onion mixture. Add the tomato sauce and the sliced mushrooms. At this point, you can add in finely grated summer squash and/or carrots if it's summer and you have an abundance. Your family will never know. Unless, of course, they happen to walk into the kitchen and find you grating a zucchini over the sauce pot. Then they will know. Then they will strongly deny the fact that you have been grating zucchini into the pasta sauce for years. But that may be a topic for another entry...Bring to a simmer, cover, and cook, stirring occasionally, for at least 3o minutes; the longer the better. Serve over the pasta of your choice. Garnish with parmesan cheese as desired.

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Tortilla Soup

I got this recipe from the Eating Well website, and it is one of the easiest soups I have ever made. It comes together amazingly quick and is yummy and healthy to boot. What more could you ask for?







Tortilla Soup

8 Corn Tortillas
2 tsp Canola Oil
3 Anaheim or Poblano Peppers (To Yield 1 1/2 Cups Diced)
1 Medium Onion, Diced
1 tsp Ground Cumin
1 Pound Boneless, Skinless Chicken Thighs, Cut Into 1-Inch Pieces
4 Cups Chicken Broth
1 14-Ounce Can Diced Tomatoes with Green Chilies
1/2 Cup Shredded Cheese (Cheddar, Jack, Pepper Jack or a Mexican Blend)
1/4 Cup Cilantro, Chopped

Preheat the oven to 400

Slice the tortillas into thin strips and arrange on a baking sheet. Spray with cooking spray and bake until lightly browned and crispy, 12-15 minutes.

Heat the canola oil in your soup pot over medium heat. Add the peppers and onion, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion begins to soften, 6-8 minutes. Add the cumin, and cook, stirring for one minute. Add the chicken pieces and brown for about 5 minutes, then stir in the tomatoes with their juice, and the chicken broth. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer until the chicken is cooked through, about 15 minutes. Ladle into bowls and garnish with the tortilla strips, cheese and cilantro. !Buen Probecho!

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Dal

I love Indian cuisine (as if there were a cuisine I didn't love), but until very recently it has been nearly impossible to get because there just weren't many Indian restaurants around. Thankfully, that is changing, but in the meantime I have had to learn to go it on my own. To that end I have learned to make a few Indian dishes, and this is one of them. This is a pretty basic, hearty vegetarian curry recipe, perfect for a cold wintry evening. Or a summer one if you're in the mood. Anyway, make this dish soon!


Dal

1 Tbsp Canola Oil
1 Large Onion, Diced
2 Cloves Garlic, Minced or Crushed
2 tsp Fresh Ginger (I like the stuff in the jar)
2 tsp Ground Coriander
1 tsp Ground Cumin
2-3 tsp Curry Powder
1/2 tsp Ground Cinnamon
1/2 tsp Chili Powder
1/4 tsp Cayenne Pepper (or to taste)
1 Potato, Cut into Bite-Sized Pieces (about 2 cups)
3/4 Cup Red Lentils
1- 14 Ounce Can Diced Tomatoes, including juice
1- 14 Ounce Can Coconut Milk
2 Cups Veggie or Chicken Broth
1 tsp Garam Masala
1 tsp Salt
1 tsp Brown Sugar
1 Cup Green Peas (Frozen is fine, no need to thaw)
2 Tbsp Chopped Fresh Cilantro

Heat the oil in a large sauce pot over medium heat. Cook the onions for about 10 minutes then add the garlic, ginger, and dried spices and cook, stirring, for about one minute. Add the potato and lentils and stir to coat with the spices. Add the tomatoes with their juice, coconut milk, broth, garam masala, salt and sugar. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer and cover and cook until the lentils and potatoes are very soft, about 30 minutes. Add the peas, and simmer, uncovered, about 5 minutes until the peas are hot. Stir in the cilantro and serve with rice and/or naan.


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