Portobello Mushroom Sauce with Thyme

 

You may or may not have noticed that I have been doing quite a bit of experimenting with portobello mushrooms of late. I love mushrooms in general, but portobellos have to be one of my favorites. They are so meaty and flavorful, not to mention versatile. In case you missed it, I made Portobello Mushroom Broth, Portobello Mushroom Soup, Portobello Onion Dip, and here is an extremely versatile Portobello Mushroom Sauce with hints of thyme. I have found this sauce is excellent over omelettes, jacket potatoes, beef, and chicken. Honestly, you cannot go wrong. If you want to dress up last night’s meatloaf, this sauce will not only do that, but make it company worthy. If you want to turn that baked potato into a meal for Meatless Monday, put some of the sauce over it. It’s good enough to eat with a spoon (don’t ask me how I know), and certainly one that you should be making. Both company and family will be quite impressed.  Portobello Mushroom Sauce with Thyme

 3 T. olive oil

2 Melissa’s portobello mushrooms, sliced

½ t. onion powder

2 t. fresh thyme leaves*

¼ t. freshly ground black pepper

1 t. Melissa’s minced garlic

1 T. unsalted butter

2 T. flour

14 oz. vegetable stock

1 t. low sodium soy sauce

In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium-high heat, Add mushrooms and sauté for 5-6 minutes.

Add thyme, onion powder, and pepper, and stir to coat. Stir in garlic.

Reduce to medium heat and add butter. When butter has melted sprinkle flour over the mushrooms and stir for one minute.

Add vegetable stock and soy sauce to the skillet, scraping up bits from the bottom. Increase heat to medium-high and bring to a simmer to allow mixture to thicken, 3-4 minutes. Taste for additional seasoning. 

*can substitute ½ t. dry thyme leaves

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Snickerdoodle Cobbler

 

No matter how hot it is, once August hits, I move into “fall mode.” I guess it’s because, where I live anyway, spring pretty much starts in April. By August, my garden plants are dried out and dying, and I am sick of the very sight of them. I’ve found that the gobs and gobs of cucumber and melon vines that I lovingly nurtured and encouraged all summer produced nothing but male blossoms, resulting in no fruit from either, and I’m ready to just chuck it all and move on. That’s why not an August goes by that I don’t make pumpkin spice something or begin to embrace apple dishes. 

I found this recipe online, and the ease of it intrigued me. The recipe was poorly written, the directions largely wrong, so here’s my version. Warm from the oven, topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, this would be a wonderful fall dessert, and certainly company worthy. It also makes a pretty tasty breakfast, or at least that’s what I tell myself. J

Snickerdoodle Cobbler

 

 1 17.5oz. pkg. Snickerdoodle cookie mix

1 stick butter, room temperature

1 large egg, room temperature

1 21-oz. can apple pie filling

3 T. caramel topping

2 t. cinnamon sugar (from enclosed packet)

 

 Preheat oven to 375° F. Spray an 8” x 8” baking dish with PAM; set aside.

 Open the packet of cookie dough mix, remove the cinnamon sugar packet; set aside. In a small bowl beat together cookie mix, butter, and egg until well blended.

Dollop half of the dough by spoonfuls across the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Sprinkle with a teaspoon of cinnamon sugar from the packet. Spread apple pie filling over this bottom layer, and dollop remaining cookie dough in spoonfuls over the top.

Sprinkle with another teaspoon of cinnamon sugar from the enclosed packet, and top with a drizzle of caramel topping.

Bake for 40 to 45 minutes until the top is golden brown, and it is bubbly around the edges.

 Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes before scooping heaping spoonfuls into bowls and topping with generous scoops of vanilla ice cream.

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Hauntingly Good Spirits: New Orleans Cocktails to Die For by Sharon Keating and Christi Keating, Reviewed

  

Considering how anxious I was as a child every year Halloween rolled around, it’s surprising that I now celebrate it with such unbridled gusto. Perhaps that’s because I don’t have to worry about going from house to house, and be pressured to entertain in exchange for a morsel of food, no matter how sweet and delicious that morsel be.

Because I now enjoy celebrating Halloween so much (and the spooky season, in general) I get great pleasure in reading books that help me do that. This recently released volume, Hauntingly Good Spirits: New Orleans Cocktails to Die For by Sharon Keating and Christi Keating is a wonderfully macabre tribute to the drinks culture of New Orleans, and those who make it happen. Here you will find beautifully photographed, unique cocktail recipes, all of which are Gothic, spooky, and hauntingly delicious. The book is divided into five sections:

Reverence and Revelry

Tomb Time

Ghosts & Haunted Libations

Vampire Bars with Killer Cocktails

Voodoo & Witchcraft

Each is fascinating in its own right, and where you will find cocktails like Axeman’s Ball, Ghostly Embrace, Corpse Reviver, and many more. This book has struck me as being as much about exploring New Orleans, as it was about making the cocktails. It did get me quite eager to experiment before the spooky month of October arrives, not to mention lay in a good supply of ingredients. I’d be lying if I said I haven’t tried a good number of these cocktails already. I’d also be lying if I said I didn’t have a good time doing it.Anyone interested in libations, the macabre, New Orleans, or serving something special on a dark and stormy night needs this cookbook. I highly recommend!

Many thanks to NetGalley, the authors, and Wellfleet Press for providing me with a digital advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

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Key West Coconut Cornbread

 

I am not easily offended, ergo, the word “moist” does not bother me. I find that it is a necessary word to use when describing things such as cake, for example. There are plenty of synonyms: clammy, cloudy, damp, dank, dewy, drenched, drippy, dripping, drizzly, misty, muggy, oozy, saturated, but I ask you, would you want a cake described by any of the words listed previously? I don’t think so. Therefore, moist it is.

Personally, I find many other words far less tolerable than moist, yogurt is one I don’t particularly care for, phlegm is yet another. In the case of the latter, not only do I not like the sound of it, but the spelling is off-putting as well. Why am I mentioning this? I’ll tell you why, because this cornbread is moist, and deliciously so.

The recipe comes from Baking of the American South, scheduled for release next month (watch for my review), by way of the 1949 Key West Cookbook, published by The Ladies’ Annex of the Civil Improvement Society. This recipe is a keeper, my friends. You must try this cornbread. It is not overly coconut-y, nor is it too sweet. It is just a lovely combination of ingredients that creates a cornbread so tasty and deliciously moist that you won’t even need butter.Key West Coconut Cornbread

1 c. finely ground yellow cornmeal
¾ c. flour
¼ c. sugar
1 T. baking powder
½ t. salt
¼ t. baking soda
2 eggs
1¼ c. coconut milk
5 T. unsalted butter
½ c. sweetened shredded coconut

Heat the oven to 400° F with a rack in the middle.

In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and baking soda, soda. Add the eggs and coconut milk, stirring with a fork just to break up the eggs.

Place the butter in a 10-inch cast-iron skillet. Add melt over medium-low heat, 1-2 minutes. Pour the butter into the batter, and stir with the fork just until combined. Scatter the coconut over the bottom of the skillet. Pour the batter over the coconut and place the skillet in the oven.

Bake until the cornbread is golden brown and the top springs back when lightly touched, 22 to 27 minutes.

Remove the skillet from the oven, let the cornbread rest in the skillet for five minutes, then run a knife around the edge, flip out onto a cutting board, and serve.

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Portobello Onion Dip

 

I am a big fan of portobello mushrooms, and, as a consequence, I’m always trying to find new ways in which to use them. Last month you saw my Portobello Mushroom Broth as well as my creamy Portobello Mushroom Soup. This month, I’m offering up a wonderful appetizer, snack, or starter in this portobello mushroom dip. It is complex and sophisticated, but easy to make, and because it gets better with age, it is definitely make ahead. Serve with chips, crackers, or crudités, just try not to eat it with a spoon, because once you start, there’s no stopping. It is that good.

Portobello Onion Dip

1 T. olive oil

2 T. butter

2 lg. Melissa’s portobello mushrooms, minced

½ large Melissa’s sweet onion, minced

½ t. Melissa’s minced garlic

¼ t. kosher salt

A sprig of Melissa’s fresh thyme*

4 oz. cream cheese, room temperature

½ c. sour cream

1½ T. dry onion dip mix

Freshly ground black pepper

 Melt oil and butter together in a 10” skillet over medium heat. Add the minced mushrooms and onion, and cook, stirring occasionally until the water has been released. Stir in garlic, salt, and thyme. Continue cooking until the mixture has reduced and the water has evaporated. Set aside to cool. Discard the thyme sprig.

 In a medium mixing bowl, beat together cream cheese and sour cream until well blended. Stir in the mushroom mixture, onion soup mix, and a few gratings of freshly ground black pepper.

 Cover and refrigerate for a minimum of four hours, or more ideally overnight. Serve with chips, crackers, or crudités.

 *¼ t. dried thyme leaves can be substituted for fresh

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Spicy Cheesy Beer Bread

 

Gardens. What can you do? I was telling a friend the other day that both my cucumber vines and melon vines are loaded with blossoms. I was quite proud of this until I noticed over the weekend when I was watering that they are all male.  MALE!!! I don’t have a female blossom on either of these plants. This means that for all of my watering, fertilizing, coddling, etc., I may not end up with a single cucumber or melon. Male blossoms do not produce offspring. It works the same way in humans, but I digress.

Photo credit: Missouri Botanical Garden

  On the other hand, I have a bumper crop of jalapeños, and because I do, I’m always looking for new ways in which to use them. I made shrimp boil foil packs for dinner the other day (cut the recipe in half, made two, had them two nights in a row and it was wonderful to not have to cook those two days ). They called for some sort of bread and because I used a little bit of beer in the foil packs, I thought I would use the remaining beer to make beer bread. I wanted to do something different with my beer bread recipe so decided to add more cheese, more seasoning, and jalapeños. It was fantastic! It would be a wonderful assortment with soup, stew, chili, any type of salad, or a Mexican meal. It’s easy to put together, you just stir and dump. This is a must try.

Spicy Cheesy Beer Bread

 3 c. flour

2½ T. sugar

1 T. baking powder

1 t. kosher salt

¼ t. Old Bay Seasoning

1½ c. shredded sharp cheddar cheese

1 jalapeño, minced

12 oz. beer

3 T. melted butter

GARLIC BUTTER TOPPING:

2½ T. melted butter

1 t. dried parsley

½ t. garlic powder

 Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a 9"x5" loaf pan with PAM; set aside.

 In a large mixing bowl place flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and Old Bay; stir to combine. Fold in the shredded cheese and jalapeño. Make a little well in the center and gently pour in the beer, stirring to thoroughly combine.

Measure half of the melted butter into the bottom of the prepared loaf pan. Use a pastry brush to spread it up the sides and distribute evenly on the bottom. Transfer batter to pan, spreading it out into an even layer.

 Pour the remaining half of the melted butter over the top of the batter, brushing it around so it evenly coats the top.

Bake for 45-50 minutes, until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center tests clean.

Whisk together garlic butter topping ingredients and pour over the top of the hot bread as soon as it comes out of the oven.

Allow bread to cool in the pan for 10 minutes, and then turn out onto a wire rack to finish cooling.

This bread does not keep well, so you’d be wise to eat it within two days. It freezes quite well, however, and makes excellent toast.

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Asparagus and Pea Casserole

  

This is a retro recipe, as it is a casserole from the 70s. It is one my mother used to make, and everyone quite enjoyed it. Because it’s from the 70s, it contains the trifecta of things that are bad for you: canned vegetables, condensed soup, and Velveeta cheese. Despite this, it’s tasty, freezes and reheats beautifully, and makes a nice addition to any buffet. And, let’s face facts, with all of the mercury in fish, the toxins in the air, the poisons sprayed on fresh vegetables to act as a retardant, it’s not the condensed soup or the Velveeta cheese that is going to take you out. So just sit back, relax, and enjoy.

Asparagus and Pea Casserole

1 15-oz. can Del Monte asparagus, well drained

1 15-oz. can Le Sueur Very Young Small Sweet Peas, well drained

1 8-oz. can sliced water chestnuts, well drained 

1 10.5-oz. can cream of mushroom soup

½ soup can of milk

  About ½ loaf bread,* crust removed, cut into thirds

Velveeta cheese

 4 T. butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350° F.

 Spray a 9” x 13” casserole with PAM. Layer asparagus, peas, and water chestnuts. Sprinkle with salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste. Whisk together soup and milk, and spread over vegetables. Cover with 1/4” thick slices of Velveeta cheese. Dip cut bread pieces into melted butter and place on top of cheese. Bake uncovered for 30-35 minutes or until bread is nicely toasted.

I used Aldi’s Seedtastic bread because that’s what I had on hand, but I think the bread of choice here is good old Wonder bread.

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