Wild Mushroom Toast

 

I remember, back in the day, my mother used to tell my dad that she married him for better or for worse, but not for lunch. Dad would occasionally come home for lunch, leaving my mother quite perplexed. She really found lunches, on the whole, to be rather boring. I feel the same. We tend to get locked into doing what we are used to for lunch rather than trying something new. This recipe makes a wonderful lunch. It’s perfect for Meatless Monday or any day of the week, and will be enjoyed by carnivores and vegetarians alike. You can make the mixture a day ahead, or even earlier in the day, spread it onto the bread, and heat it. Hearty, woodsy, and flavorful.

Wild Mushroom Toast

1 1/2-oz. pkg. Melissa’s dried porcini mushrooms
2 T. olive oil
1 lb. crimini mushrooms, cleaned
1 T. Melissa’s minced garlic
1 T. finely chopped Melissa’s shallots
1 T. cognac
1 T. butter
½ t. kosher salt
1/8 t. freshly ground black pepper
1/8 t. dried rosemary
1/8 t. dried thyme
¼ c. chopped flat leaf parsley
¼ c. grated Parmesan
4 slices rustic bread*

Preheat oven to 450°F.

Soak dried mushrooms in a bowl of hot water to re-hydrate while you slice the crimini mushrooms 1/4” thick. Rinse re-hydrated mushrooms and squeeze to dry.

Over medium high heat, heat a 12” ovenproof skillet until very hot. Add olive oil and fresh mushrooms, and cook, stirring frequently, until mushrooms release their liquid, about 10 minutes; stir in garlic. Add the shallots, cognac, butter, salt, pepper, rosemary, and thyme. Transfer the skillet to the oven and roast, for 15 minutes. Serve warm on garlic bread sprinkled with Parmesan.

*I used split ciabatta rolls.

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Wild Mushroom Sauce

I love steak season, don’t you?  Firing up the grill, sitting at the patio table under the umbrella, sipping a cocktail while listening to it sizzle on the grill.  To take your summer masterpiece from delicious to over-the-top sensational, here is a wild mushroom sauce that will impress even your snootiest guests.  Earthy and exotic, I could eat this with a spoon!

Wild Mushroom Sauce

Adapted from Allrecipes.com

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/4 cup finely chopped shallots

2 ounces portobello mushrooms, sliced

2 ounces crimini mushrooms, sliced

2 ounces shiitake mushrooms, sliced

2 ounces morel mushrooms, sliced

2 ounces Melissa’s chanterelle mushrooms, sliced

1/2 cup red wine

1 tablespoon Williams-Sonoma beef demi-glace

½ cup water

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Sauté shallots briefly, then stir in all of the mushrooms. Sauté until tender and translucent, about 3 minutes. Pour in red wine, and simmer for 3 minutes. Stir in demi-glace and water, and simmer for 6 minutes, or until sauce has thickened.  Season with salt and pepper, as desired.

Wild Mushroom Potato Gratin

As I’ve said before, side dishes can be troublesome, but build up your recipe repertoire with impressive sides and you will dazzle your family and guests.  I’m still cooking for my dad, but happily, my mother has joined him having recently returned home from rehab.  I made this potato recipe along with the pork chops I’ll show you tomorrow, plated them, and served them with a side of broccoli and received high praise.  My mother, who has a bit of difficulty getting to the phone, called me to tell me how good the meal was, “Oh, those POTATOES!” she raved.  (This from a woman who can take them or leave them.)  Thin layers of russet potatoes, sandwiched between a single layer of wild mushrooms, and topped with creamy Fontina and nutty Gruyère make this a dish worth remembering.  I made these one day and served them the next, so while I wouldn’t encourage making them ahead, it can be done, and they are delicious.

Wild Mushroom Potato Gratin

Adapted from a recipe on Epicurious.com

1 .5 oz. package Melissa’s dried porcini mushrooms
5 large, fresh crimini mushrooms, trimmed and sliced 1/4 inch thick

8 oz. warm water

1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 lb. russet potatoes
3/4 cups heavy cream
3/4 cups whole milk
3/4 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
½ cup grated Gruyère

½ cup grated Fontina

Preheat oven to 400°F.  Line a 9” x 9” square pan with two sheets of parchment, allowing each piece to hang over the edge of the pan by about two inches.  Spray parchment with Pam.  Set aside.

Hydrate the mushrooms in the warm water for 1 hour.  Line a fine mesh sieve with two layers of cheesecloth and strain the rehydrated mushrooms, reserving liquid.* Rough chop the porcinis.

Melt butter in a medium sauté pan.  Cook criminis with salt and pepper to taste over moderate heat, stirring, until liquid mushrooms give off is evaporated and mushrooms are tender, about 6 minutes, then toss in the porcinis and cook 1-2 minutes more. Add ½ teaspoon of the garlic and continue to cook, stirring for one minute more.  Set aside.

Peel potatoes and cut crosswise into 1/8-inch-thick slices (preferably with an adjustable-blade slicer). Bring potatoes, cream, milk, salt, white pepper, nutmeg, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon garlic to a boil in a 4- to 6-quart heavy pot, stirring once or twice, then remove from heat.

Transfer half of potatoes to parchment-lined pan with a slotted spoon, spreading evenly. Spread mushrooms evenly over potatoes, then top with remaining potatoes. Pour cooking liquid over potatoes and sprinkle with cheeses.

Bake gratin until top is golden brown and potatoes are tender, 45 to 50 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes to set.  Using the edges of the parchment paper, carefully lift potatoes from pan and move to a cutting board.  

With a 3” round, metal biscuit cutter, cut out rounds.  Top each with a sprig of thyme.

 If you prefer not to cut rounds, then just bake the potatoes in the casserole dish of your choice.

*You will not need the liquid for this recipe, but you will need it for the delicious and simple recipe I’ll be sharing for pork chops tomorrow.  But whether you decide to make the pork chops or not, never discard the wonderful liquid that is obtained through the hydration of dried mushrooms.  Put it in the fridge for 1-2 days if you don’t have an immediate need, or label it and freeze it.  It is a wonderful vegetarian substitute for beef stock, enhances soups and stews, and does wonderful things to gravies.

This post is linked to:

Seasonal Sunday

Meatless Monday

On the Menu Monday

Metamorphosis Monday

Wow Us Wednesday

Tutorial Tips & Tidbits

Polpettone alla Toscana - It's not your mother's meatloaf!

When you hear the word "meatloaf," you may think of a loaf-shaped mixture of ground meat and spices, topped with tomato sauce and baked in the center of a moderate oven until done.  This used to be my youthful impression as well.  Truth be told, I didn't care for meatloaf very much.  In fact, once, when typing a recipe for one, I made a typo and spelled it “meatload” and thought that word summed it up rather perfectly.

Once I got on my own and started doing my own cooking, however, I made a wide variety of meatloaf recipes simply because, back then, ground beef was cheap, and a meatloaf was quick and easy.  I came to realize that meatloaf didn't have to contain that bitter tomato sauce topping or even be baked in the oven.  It can be beefy and woodsy, and simmered on top of the stove in a pan of white wine and exotic mushrooms, and be so good that company requests it when you invite them for dinner.

This is without a doubt, the best meatloaf I've ever eaten.  I found the recipe on a faded sheet of paper in one of my husband's cookbooks when we got married.  He has no idea as to the source and, in fact, had never made the recipe himself, but now it is our favorite and, if you try it, it will become yours too.

Do not let the lengthy list of ingredients deter you.  I actually make the meatloaf portion the day before I intend to serve it, finding it much better this way, as the flavors tend to mingle.  I make the loaf, roll it in breadcrumbs, wrap it in plastic wrap, and put it in the fridge.  I can also tell you that it freezes beautifully as once I made it to serve ladies at a luncheon I was having, but we had a snowstorm, so I put the plastic-wrapped loaf into a freezer bag and froze it until I was finally able to use it, two months later. It came out just as delicious as if I'd made it fresh.

Polpettone alla Toscana

MEAT LOAF BRAISED IN WHITE WINE WITH DRIED WILD MUSHROOMS

For 4 to 5 persons

1 ounce dried wild mushrooms

1 lb. lean beef, ground

A 2-by-2" square piece good-quality white bread, crust removed

1 tablespoon milk

1 tablespoon finely chopped yellow onion

1-1/4 teaspoons salt

Freshly ground pepper, about 6 twists of the mill

2 tablespoons chopped prosciutto, or Pancetta, or mortadella, or if you really can't obtain any of these, unsmoked ham*

1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 teaspoon finely chopped garlic

1 egg yolk

3/4 cup fine, dry, unflavored bread crumbs, spread on a platter or waxed paper**

1 tablespoon butter

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1/3 cup dry white wine

2 tablespoons tomato paste

Put the dried mushrooms in a small bowl or large tumbler with 1 cup of lukewarm water.  Let them soak at least 20 minutes.

Put the chopped meat in a bowl, loosening it up with a fork.

Put the bread and milk in a small pan.  Over medium heat, mash it with a fork until it is creamy.***  Add it to the meat in the bowl, along with the chopped onion, salt, pepper, chopped prosciutto, grated cheese, and chopped garlic.  Mix gently but thoroughly by hand until all the ingredients have been incorporated into the neat.  Add the egg yolk, mixing it into the other ingredients.  Shape the meat into a single, firmly packed ball.  Place the ball of meat on any flat surface, a cutting block or large platter, and roll it into a compact salami-like loaf about 2-1/2 inches thick.  Tap it with the palm of your hand to drive out any air bubbles.  Roll the loaf in the breadcrumbs until it is evenly coated.

Drain the mushrooms, reserving the water in which they have soaked.  (Remember that they should have soaked at least 20 minutes.)  Strain the dark liquid through a fine sieve lined with paper towels and set aside.  Rinse the mushrooms in several changes of clean, cold water.  Chop them roughly and set aside.

Choose a heavy-bottomed, preferably oval casserole, just large enough for the meat.  Over medium heat, heat all the butter and oil.  When the butter foam subsides, add the meat loaf and brown it well on all sides, handling the meat carefully at all times lest the loaf break up.

 When the meat has been evenly browned, add the wine and raise the heat to medium high.  Boil the wine briskly until it is reduced by half.  Turn the loaf carefully once or twice.

Turn the heat down to medium low and add the chopped mushrooms. Warm up the strained mushroom liquid in a small pan and stir the tomato paste into it.  When the tomato paste is thoroughly diluted, add to the meat.  Cover and cook at a steady simmer, turning and basting the meat once or twice.  After 30 minutes, set the cover slightly askew and cook for another 30 minutes, turning the meat at least once.

Transfer the meat loaf to a cutting board and allow to settle before cutting into slices about 1/2 inch thick.  Meanwhile, if the sauce in the pot is a little too thin, boil it rapidly, uncovered over high heat until it is sufficiently concentrated.  Spoon a little bit of sauce over the bottom of warm serving platter, arrange the meatloaf slices in the platter, partly overlapping, then pour the rest of the sauce over the meat.

* In a pinch I've used both deli ham and, no kidding, salami.  You would never know the difference in the end product.

** I use Progresso brand Italian breadcrumbs.

***I've found 1 tablespoon of milk is not enough so I slowly pour milk into the pan with the bread and just mash and stir until I get the creamy consistency I want.

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Facing Phyllo Fear - Wild Mushroom Bites

When I made the very few New Year's resolutions that I did, I also resolved to tackle them during the first month of the year so I could coast the rest of the time.  Here's another to check off my list - working with phyllo dough. Yes, I know a lot of people use it routinely, but I've always found those gnat-wing-thin sheets to be daunting.  Frankly, now having worked with it, I still can't say I find it any less daunting, but having successfully made close to 40 appetizers this afternoon I will say that I wouldn't hesitate to work with it again, and the results were wildly successful (if you'll pardon the pun).

This recipe is an adaptation of one I cut out from Colonial Homes magazine back in 1995 (yes, I've been in denial for that long).

It's very easy to put together and once I got the hang of the flag-style folding of the dough I got to be pretty fast.  I could not, however, work fast enough to prevent the dough from drying out.  Nor could I work fast enough to keep the dull ache in my lower back from turning into a searing pain crawling up between my shoulder blades from standing at the counter at a perfect 45-degree angle for what turned out to be close to an hour.  (Next time, I'll sit down, or enlist help.)  And I couldn't help but think while I was first carefully folding each piece into a perfect triangle, then later into rather reckless triangles, and watching them grow from the size of a bite-size snack to that of a sandwich to that of a small Buick in an effort to use up filling that never seemed to deplete, that perhaps this recipe was a bit advanced for a rookie like me.  On the other hand, just think how great I'll do when I select something MUCH simpler next time!

Wild Mushroom Bites

2 tablespoons butter

1/2 pound portobello and/or shiitake mushrooms, chopped

About 5 ounces regular white mushrooms, chopped

1/2 cup chopped green onions (3 to 4)

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons dry white wine

1 tablespoon flour

1/4 teaspoon dries thyme

12 sheets (about 13 x 9 inches) phyllo dough

5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Rough chop mushrooms and scallions.

In a 10-inch skillet heat 2 tablespoons butter over medium-high heat.  Add mushrooms, green onions, and salt. 

Stirring frequently, cook 5 minutes or until mushroom liquid is released.

In small bowl, stir wine and flour together until smooth; gradually stir into cooked mushrooms. Cook until mixture is thickened and smooth, stirring constantly.  Cool mixture to room temperature or refrigerate.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Grease a large cookie sheet.  Unwrap phyllo dough, unroll, and remove 12 sheets. Place dough on dry countertop; cut phyllo sheets lengthwise into four 13-inch by 2-1/4 inch strips; cover with waxed paper and a damp towel.

For each triangle, place 1 strip phyllo on work surface and brush lightly with melted butter.  (Keep remaining sheets under waxed paper covered with a damp towel.)

Place 1 teaspoon mushroom filling on one end of strip.

Fold end of strip over filling at a 45-degree angle.

Aligning end of pastry with edge; continue folding, keeping edges even, to make a triangular package; brush with butter.  Repeat with remaining strips, butter, and filling.

Place triangles on greased cookie sheet.

Bake 12 to 15 minutes or until golden brown.  Serve hot.

Makes about 48 hors d'oeuvres.

The dough that I couldn't use before it dried out. 

Obviously my husband and I couldn't eat all of these, as tasty as they were, so I opted to try freezing them.  I'll let you know how that works out.

Adapted from a recipe in Colonial Holmes magazine, December 1995.