Tag Archives: mushrooms

September 4, 2015 · 9:29 am

LEEK AND MUSHROOM SALAD IN THE STYLE OF THE CAMBRIDGE CLUB

Many years ago I did a lot of executive recruiting for my organization in Shreveport, Louisiana. Whenever someone –  especially a recruit– comes to Louisiana, he or she expects to eat well. Shreveport, like most cities in Louisiana, has a number of excellent restaurants specializing in a variety of cuisines, many with a Southern or Creole emphasis.

In my recruiting days, the Cambridge Club was the best of the best. It was actually a private dinner club run by two cousins from Italy, Vincent Campanella  ran the front of the house, and Giuseppe Brucia commanded (my choice of words) the kitchen. They were both trained at a famous Swiss hotel and restaurant school in Lucerne. How they got to Shreveport was anyone’s guess, but nobody cared because the setting, service, and food were so good.

On special occasions like birthdays, anniversaries, and celebrations I would take the family to dinner. They loved to go, first stopping at the front door of a beautiful house that evoked the Cotswolds to be greeted by a doorman who came out of a bright red English telephone booth and then escorted into a candlelit room with attentive waiters and delicious food.

Unfortunately, the Cambridge Club is long gone. Vincent retired years ago and Giuseppe opened his own place with a gigantic kitchen and dining rooms filled with patrons wolfing down huge plates of spaghetti and meatballs. Vincent and Giuseppe sold the Cambridge Club, and after only a few years it folded. That seems to be the story of so many legendary restaurants.

One of our family favorites on the Cambridge Club menu was a mushroom salad topped with a dab of red caviar. We talked Chef Brucia into giving us the recipe, and it was copied into our family recipe file in the teenage hand of our older daughter. Susan’s favorite salad was a leek and mushroom salad, but since our daughter runs from anything that remotely smells or tastes like an Allium, she did not copy that recipe.

What follows is a synthesis of the two recipes, minus the red caviar. But you should feel free to add that if you wish. The only other guidance is that the mushrooms absolutely must be peeled, not washed. That is much easier than it sounds. Just place the sharp point of a paring knife under the edge of the mushroom cap next to the gills, lift up and the thin covering strips away. Continue around the edge of the mushroom until it is completely peeled. That should take much less than a minute.  It is amazing how much more delicate peeled mushrooms become, how thin you can slice them, and how much more receptive they are to fresh lemon juice and the best EVOO (That’s what Sarah, Evan, and their cooks call extra virgin olive oil.)

Rings of leeks
Unpeeled and peeled mushrooms with shavings
Leek and mushroom salad in the style of the Cambridge Club

RECIPE

Leek and Mushroom Salad in the Style of the Cambridge Club

Ingredients

  • white part of 1-2 large leeks
  • 2-3 large white mushrooms per serving
  • mesclun
  • juice of ½ lemon for each serving
  • 3 tablespoons of the best extra virgin olive oil for each serving
  • Parmigiano-Reggiano or Asiago of good quality
  • red caviar (optional)

Method

  1. With a very sharp knife, slice the leeks crosswise as thinly as possible. Rinse in a colander to remove any bits of sand and dirt. Refrigerate in ice water until ready to use.
  2. With a paring knife, peel the mushrooms. Slice crosswise as thinly as possible. Save the peelings for vegetable stock if you wish.
  3. Assemble the salad by placing a nest of mesclun on individual serving plates.  Drain the leeks. Divide the sliced leeks and mushrooms among the plates.
  4. Dress each plate with lemon juice and olive oil. Use salt and pepper if needed
  5. Top with slivers of Parmigiano-Reggiano or Asiago shaved as thinly as possible with a vegetable peeler.
  6. If you are feeling flush, add a dab of red caviar to the top of each serving. Remember, this is purely optional.

 

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August 22, 2015 · 3:52 pm

MUSHROOM PESTO STUFFED ZUCCHINI

This was an experiment that turned out to be tasty but fairly unattractive on the plate. It all came about from another attempt to clear out the refrigerator and use up leftovers.

The zucchini came from the farmers market, again from one of my favorite vendors. We both look forward to having a little conversation in Spanish before my purchases. The conversation is short because of my very limited vocabulary, but we both enjoy it.

Why, you ask, would I ever buy zucchini at the farmers market when the neighbors will soon start bringing over an endless stream of  gargantuan specimens from their garden. Therein lies the answer to your question. The vendor’s zucchini were lined up in rows, uniform in size, perfect size for cooking, and all the same shining green with perfect skin.

I bought enough zucchini to go into a ratatouille with some beautiful eggplants that I got from my other favorite vendor. And, there was enough to stuff a couple for another meal.

Then to the refrigerator and leftovers: pesto from a couple of nights ago, cooked rice, a few leftover crimini mushrooms, a white onion, a sliver of cheddar cheese. I was set. I split the zucchini in half, hollowed them out with a spoon, stuffed them with a mixture of mushrooms, rice, pesto, egg, and some seasonings., topped them with a béchamel enriched with the cheddar cheese, and baked them for a half hour. I should have worked harder to get the water out of the zucchini I added to the stuffing, but otherwise it turned out ok.

Zucchini
Sauced and ready for the oven
Ready to eat

RECIPE

Mushroom Pesto Stuffed Zucchini

Ingredients

  • 2 medium zucchini, split in half lengthwise
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • ½ small white onion, chopped finely
  • 2 medium crimini mushrooms, chopped finely
  • 1 teaspoon Pernod
  • salt and pepper
  • ½ cup pesto
  • ½ cup cooked rice
  • 1 egg
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1 ounce cheddar cheese, grated
  • salt and pepper

Method

  1. With a spoon or small paring knife, remove the flesh from the zucchini, leaving about a ¼ inch rim and being careful not to pierce the skin.
  2. Chop the zucchini flesh finely. Squeeze out as much excess water as you can using your hands or a fine sieve and spoon. Set aside.
  3. Heat the olive oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the chopped onions and sauté lightly until the onions are translucent but not browned. Stir in the mushrooms and chopped zucchini flesh. Stir frequently until the mushrooms are lightly browned and the mixture has given up its liquid and nearly completely evaporated. Add the Pernod and stir for just a few seconds until it has evaporated.
  4. Transfer the mixture to a small bowl. Stir in the pesto, rice, and egg until well combined.
  5. Fill the hollowed zucchini with the mixture and arrange in a well-greased ovenproof dish.
  6. Meanwhile prepare the sauce by melting the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour and stir for a minute or so to remove raw flavor. Stir in the milk and continue to heat until the mixture comes to a slow boil and has thickened. Stir frequently to prevent burning on the bottom. Sit in the grated cheese. Remove from the heat and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper.
  7. Pour the sauce over the zucchini and bake in the middle of an oven preheated to 350°F for 30 minutes or until the zucchini are tender and the sauce is melted and lightly browned. Serve while still warm.

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June 20, 2015 · 8:30 am

GARLIC SCAPE FRITTATA

The season has come – and probably gone – for garlic scapes at the farmers market. This is the time of year when the garlic growers trim the tops of their green garlic plants to force growth into the maturing bulbs. The tops have a wonderful curl as well as a pale head that will mature into tiny little garlics if you don’t cut it off. The head and the pointed stem above it are often woody, but the curly shoots below are tender with  a mild flavor of garlic. I usually chop them up and make them into a green garlic soup that seems perfect for a springtime lunch on the patio.

This year, I decided to try something different. I made a frittata of un-chopped scapes along with other ingredients from the farmers market including feta cheese from The Old Windmill Dairy. Along the way, I added some leftover spaghetti.

Garlic scapes

RECIPE

Garlic Scape Frittata

Ingredients

  • butter
  • about 1 pound garlic scapes (2 generous handfuls)
  • 4 large mushrooms, sliced
  • 4 snacking-sized sweet peppers, seeded and sliced
  • 3 cups cooked spaghetti
  • 8 ounces feta cheese, crumbled
  • 4 large eggs
  • 2 cups cream or 1 cup cream and 1 cup whole milk
  • nutmeg
  • salt and pepper

Method

  1. Generously butter a 9-inch pie plate and set aside
  2. Wash the scapes; remove the heads and tops. Cut the remaining stalks into pieces that will fit easily into the pie plate
  3. Arrange half of the scapes, sliced mushrooms, and sliced peppers in the bottom of the buttered pie plate.
  4. Arrange half of the spaghetti on the vegetable bed and top with half of the crumbled feta.
  5. Top with the remaining spaghetti, and then the remaining scapes, mushrooms, peppers and feta cheese
  6. In a medium bowl, beat the eggs until well mixed. Combine with the cream or cream and milk seasoned with grated nutmeg, salt, and pepper.
  7. Pour the egg mixture over the assembled pie.
  8. Bake in the middle of an oven preheated to 350°F for 45 minutes or until the mixture is set and the top is lightly browned
  9. Cut into wedges and serve while still warm.

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June 1, 2015 · 8:07 am

FARMERS MARKET IN SANTA FE

After a chilly and wet few weeks, the spring growing season in the Santa Fe area has finally taken off, and the farmers market has moved outside from the pavilion where it is located during the winter. For the past couple of weeks, the offerings have been largely restricted to greens, eggs, bedding plants, and a few radishes. Today, the bounty of the season is beginning to come in, and I felt a little like the proverbial kid in the candy store. I arrived  early in the morning, just as the sun was slipping above the roofs, and before the vendors had finished setting up their booths. I took the opportunity to stroll around to look at the offerings and to watch the vendors before they got too busy. I saw one of my old farmers market friends, a woman about my age who had moved from Ruston, Louisiana. Over the years we have traded Louisiana stories. She specializes in garlic. She doesn’t have scapes yet, but I will definitely get some green garlic to make soup.

Farmers Market at the Santa Fe Railyard
Vendors arriving just as the sun comes over the roof
Getting the booth ready with the sign
Growing food with altitude
A colorful array of fresh vegetables
Early shoppers

The stall at the head of the aisle had every salad green imaginable on display. When the crowds come, they always have a long line of eager customers. During my stroll, the farmer across the aisle came over to announce that there were new rules that prohibited more than four customers in line at any one time. Everyone had a good laugh. There were baked goods galore, and they all looked delicious. But I was on a mission and also a diet, so I was able to resist them. Inside the pavilion, the usual dairies were selling all sorts of varieties of cow and goat cheese. Nearby, the mushroom lady was filling baskets with shiitakes and oysters.

Onions
Flatbread
Eggs of many colors
Bounty
Mushrooms by the mushroom lady
French breakfast radishes
Seedlings
A colorful array of fresh vegetables

As the stalls opened for business, I made my purchases. Honestly, I had to resist some impulse buys. I always wind up buying more than I can cook, so I tried to be judicious. When I got home, I unpacked my bag to see what I had purchased and what I needed to plan on making during the next week

A bag of good food

A bag of good food

There was feta cheese from the Old Mill Dairy, along with shiitake and oyster mushrooms from the mushroom lady. I also found some long, slender, tender spears of green asparagus, fingerling potatoes, and organic ground beef.  The mushrooms seem to beg for a creamy risotto.

My purchases

My purchases

Of course, there was an abundance of radishes and other root vegetables. I wound up buying some French breakfast radishes. I plan to have those this evening with salt and thick chunks of bread spread with cultured butter from Sarah.

French breakfast radishes, cultured butter, salt, and crusty bread

French breakfast radishes, cultured butter, salt, and crusty bread

As for the other stuff, I’ll just have to think of what to do with it. After all, I have another week before I head back to the market.

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October 22, 2014 · 11:08 am

IMPROMPTU PASTA

I’m in San Francisco right now, after the California Chili Cook-Off in Lodi. (More about that in another post.) Last night, Sarah, our chef-daughter, cooked dinner. Originally she planned to go to the grocery store, but ultimately decided to clear out her refrigerator. Needless to say, her made-up dish using leftovers and odds and ends turned out to be better than anything I could have cooked. The dish combines chicken and pork chop (left over from my chili cook-off venture) with pasta in a simple but delicious sauce seasoned with herbs de Santa Fe*. The side dish was a tomato and burrata salad with an herb vinaigrette. It was a delicious dinner with very little fuss.

* Herbs de Santa Fe is a mix of lavender, rosemary, thyme, savory, fennel seed, basil, and marjoram. You could substitute Italian seasoning.

Impromptu pasta

Impromptu pasta

Here’s the impromptu pasta recipe:

RECIPE

Impromptu Pasta

Ingredients

  • 3 tablespoons schmaltz (rendered chicken fat)
  • 2 pork chops, cubed
  • cooked chicken (breast and thigh), cubed
  • herbs de Santa Fe*
  • 1 pint hard apple cider
  • lemon juice
  • olive oil
  • kale, chopped
  • button mushrooms, sliced
  • red onion, diced
  • pasta cooked al dente, drained
  • salt and pepper
  • Parmesan

Method

  1. Heat the schmaltz in a medium sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add the pork and chicken, browning lightly. Stir in the herbs and hard cider and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a very slow boil and cook until the liquid is reduced by half. Add lemon juice to taste.
  2. Meanwhile, in a small sauté pan, heat the olive oil. Add the kale, mushrooms, and red onion. Sauté until  cooked through. Set aside.
  3. When the cider has reduced, stir in the sautéed kale, mushrooms, and red onion. Add enough pasta to suit your taste. Correct the seasoning with salt and pepper. Top with freshly grated Parmesan. Serve immediately.

 

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September 8, 2014 · 10:02 am

SAUSAGE-STUFFED ZUCCHINI

Zucchini season, and the bounty keeps rolling in. We do not have any squash plants in our garden patch, but there is an abundance at the farmers market and from our neighbors. It is a common situation. Many folks this time of year are experiencing zucchini burn-out. Squash blossoms are delicious, but they require immediate attention to maintain their freshness. Sautéed squash begins to get a bit boring, and so the search of the web and a shelf of cookbooks begins. Deborah Madison, the Santa Fe-based vegetarian cookbook author has numerous suggestions in her collections. I especially recommend her Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone (Broadway Books, New York) and The Savory Way (Broadway Books, New York) for all sorts of suggestions.

One of my favorite ways to cook zucchini is to grate it with a box grater, sauté it along with some scallions and sliced mushrooms in olive oil, drain any excess oil, stir in some sour cream and fresh lemon juice, and serve. So simple that no recipe is needed

Today, though, I am going to write about stuffed zucchini. The first time I ever had a stuffed squash was years ago at the home of a colleague from Greece who stuffed the tender fruits with feta, Cheddar cheese and bread crumbs. This version is a little more complicated but still not difficult.

Fresh zucchini
Zucchini with flesh and seeds removed
Zucchini stuffed with sausage mixture
Sausage stuffing topped with tomato slices
Stuffed zucchini topped with grated Swiss cheese and dotted with butter
Out of the oven
Ready to eat

RECIPE

Sausage-Stuffed Zucchini

Ingredients

  • 3 firm, medium zucchini (make certain they are not too big)
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • ½ yellow onion, chopped
  • 4 medium crimini mushrooms, washed and chopped
  • ½ pound bulk breakfast sausage (mild or hot, your preference)
  • 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
  • ½ cup almond flour (use all-purpose flour if you prefer)
  • 1 egg, beaten slightly
  • 3 medium tomatoes, sliced thinly (or enough to cover the zucchini)
  • ½ pound Swiss cheese, grated
  • cooking spray
  • butter

Method

  1. Slice the zucchini lengthwise. With a grapefruit spoon or sharp paring knife, hollow out the squash with about ¼ inch of a rim remaining. Try not to pierce the skin of the squash.
  2. In a medium sauté  pan, heat the olive oil over a medium flame. Add the chopped onions and cook until they are translucent but not browned. Stir in the chopped mushrooms, and cook until they give up their liquid and the liquid has evaporated.
  3. Add the sausage, breaking it up with a cooking spoon so that it is completely crumbled.
  4. Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper.
  5. Transfer the mixture to a bowl, and while it is still warm, stir in the cream cheese so it is completely incorporated. Stir in the almond flour and egg. Set aside until you are ready to stuff the zucchini.
  6. Choose a baking pan that is large enough to hold all of the squash, or use two dishes, and spray generously with baking spray.
  7. Arrange the zucchini in the pan, and spray them lightly with baking spray.
  8. Fill the hollowed-out zucchini with the sausage mixture.
  9. Top with tomato slices seasoned with more salt and pepper, and cover with the grated Swiss cheese.
  10. Dot with butter, and bake in the middle of an oven pre-heated to 350° F for 30 minutes or until the cheese is completely melted and the zucchini is tender.
  11. Serve immediately.

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August 16, 2014 · 2:40 pm

BOXED MACARONI DINNER INCOGNITO

Some time ago I wrote about James Kraft and his invention of Velveeta processed cheese food. His small company morphed into a giant food manufacturer that has been responsible for some of the inventions that have made American cuisine what it is. Those inventions include Miracle Whip salad dressing, Cheez Whiz, Parkay margarine,  and arguably the most famous of all, the Kraft Macaroni and Cheese Dinner that came into being in 1937.

Since then, there is probably not a single American child who has not had boxed macaroni and cheese. In fact, in our family it is a child’s favorite that is often preferred to Mom’s carefully crafted (no pun intended) macaroni and cheese made from the finest ingredients. The good news is that children’s tastes change as they grow older.

Recognizing the appeal of boxed macaroni and cheese dinners with kids, some time back when we were watching over some of our grandchildren for several days, I bought a box but wound up not using it. It came home with us and has been residing in our pantry for awhile (It is virtually indestructible and will probably last forever, along with my box of Velveeta). It has become a bit of an embarrassment, so when I was reorganizing the pantry a while back, I decided to use it with the sub-plot of disguising it so much that it would fool an adult.

Well, it turned out to be pretty well disguised, but sorry to say, you will not be fooled. Still it was a pleasant diversion and something that went ok with soy-sauce-and-lemon-vinaigrette-braised flounder.

Boxed macaroni & cheese dinner
Frozen spinach
Ready for the oven
Hot out of the oven
Served with flounder

 

RECIPE

Boxed Macaroni Dinner Incognito

Ingredients

  • 1 7.25-ounce package of Kraft macaroni and cheese dinner
  • 1 10-ounce package of frozen spinach, thawed
  • 1 teaspoon Pernod (optional)
  • 5 button mushrooms, sliced
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil (doesn’t need to be EVOO)
  • salt and pepper
  • ¼ cup panko
  • 1 ounce Parmesan, grated
  • butter to dot the top of the casserole

Method

  1. Prepare the macaroni and cheese dinner according to instructions on the box. Pour the finished dinner into a bowl and set aside.
  2. With your hands, squeeze as much water out of the thawed spinach as you can. Chop finely.
  3. Saute the mushrooms over medium heat in the olive oil. Drain.
  4. Combine the spinach and mushrooms with the prepared dinner. Stir in Pernod to your taste, but be careful as it can be overpowering if used too liberally)
  5. Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper
  6. Top with panko and grated Parmesan. Dot with butter.
  7. Bake in the middle of a 350° F (177° C) oven for 40 minutes or until the top is browned and bubbling. Serve.

 

 

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June 10, 2014 · 4:02 pm

BREAKFAST BURRITOS

When I was considering this post, I thought, “Who doesn’t know how to make a breakfast burrito? More than that, who doesn’t have his or her own favorite?”  While all of that is probably true, I decided to write this post anyway.

Part of the reason is that I just made some breakfast burritos for my wife, who started out before dawn to drive more than 14 hours and more than half way through Texas to visit her sister in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex and then to pick up our grandson from the airport to take him to Shreveport, Louisiana, where his parents will be involved in a two-week-long food and cooking demonstration. I will join them and plan to send posts about the events, including my daughter’s demonstration on how to butcher a whole hog! You read that right, and I plan to document the event for posterity.

The second reason for the post is that whenever I visit San Francisco, I always make breakfast burritos for Evan and Sarah as they rush out the door to the restaurant. After the birth of their new son, they have both gone on diets, so I have been told that there will be no more breakfast burritos. So I thought I needed to share with somebody.

Garden spinach herb wrap-size flour tortillas
Clockwise: cherry tomatoes, red onion, crimini mushrooms, sharp Cheddar cheese
Breakfast sausage browning in vegetable oil
Stir in the frozen hash brown potatoes
Add two fresh eggs to the scramble
Finished burrito filling
Toast the tortillas on a hot skillet or comal until lightly toasted on both sides
Put the filling in the middle of the tortilla
Fold over the two sides before rolling from one end
Serve while still hot

RECIPE

Breakfast Burrito

Ingredients

  • 3 tablespoons vegetable oil + more as needed
  • ¼ pound breakfast sausage
  • 2 cups frozen hash brown potatoes
  • 3 crimini mushrooms, coarsely chopped
  • ½ cup diced red onion
  • 6 cherry tomatoes, quartered
  • 2 large eggs
  • ½ cup sharp Cheddar cheese, grated
  • ¼ cup diced green chiles
  • ¼ cup salsa
  • Cholula hot sauce, to taste (optional)
  • salt and pepper
  • 2 extra-large flour tortillas (10½ inch wrap size) I used garden spinach herb flavor, but you can choose any flavor)

Method

  1. Heat the oil in a medium frying pan over medium heat. Add the sausage and sauté until the pink color is lost, breaking it up as it cooks.
  2. Stir in the frozen hash browns, adding more oil if needed. Stir frequently until the potatoes begin to crisp.
  3. Stir in the mushrooms and sauté until they give up their liquid and the mixture is nearly dry. Then add the red onion and tomatoes. Sauté until the onions and tomatoes are softened.
  4. Lower the heat to medium-low and stir in the eggs, mixing them in thoroughly. When the eggs have nearly set up, stir in the green chiles and salsa. If you want more spiciness, adjust the seasoning with hot sauce, salt and pepper. Reduce heat to low as you prepare the tortillas.
  5. Heat a large cast iron skillet or comal over a high flame. When the surface is hot, place one of the tortillas on the skillet and bake for 15 seconds or until it is lightly browned. Turn and bake the other side until lightly browned and the tortilla is softened. Do not cook too long, or the tortilla will become stiff. Set the first tortilla aside and then bake the second.
  6. Place half of  the sausage and egg mixture  in the middle of each tortilla. Fold over opposing edges, and then roll up from one end. Serve immediately or wrap in foil so it can be taken on the road. If you are going to eat them at home, you can cover them with red or green chile sauce.

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March 16, 2014 · 11:04 am

USING THE LYTRO LIGHT FIELD CAMERA – SHRIMP, ARTICHOKE AND MUSHROOM MAC AND CHEESE

My son recently gave me an amazing new camera. It’s called a Lytro light field camera, and it operates on an entirely different principle than regular cameras. Peter is a techie who lives and works in Silicon Valley, so he is always up to date with the latest gadgets. This camera captures light in such a way that you can focus on any part of your image, and change the focus with the touch of a finger. You can also take close-up images from only a few centimeters away from the subject, so he thought that I would find it useful in making images of food. In spite of the instruction manual, using the camera is not intuitive – at least not for someone of my age.  With practice, though, I think I have caught the hang of it. Also, you need a computer with a fairly recent operating system to take advantage of the focusing feature. Unfortunately, when you publish the images you have to convert them to jpegs so that the focusing is lost.  Thus,  you won’t be able to get a full appreciation of how unique the camera is, and how much fun it is to use. Except for the images of the Lytro camera, which I made with my iPhone, the images in this post are made with the Lytro. Let me know what you think of them.

The Lytro Light Field Camera
Lens-end of the Lytro camera
Screen where the focusing occurs

(Roll over image for legend, click to see gallery)

I know. I know. You are not supposed to mix fish and cheese. But I was looking for something to photograph with my new camera and decided to use what I was cooking, macaroni and cheese, as the test . But how can a person put plain old mac and cheese on a food blog? So I added a few twists to make me feel better. One of those twists is the use of Old Bay seasoning which adds just a little bit of pep to shellfish. Be careful, though, or you can over-do it. You can also omit the seasoning if you like. Here it is, then, shrimp, artichoke, and mushroom mac and cheese shot with a Lytro light field camera.

RECIPE

Shrimp, Artichoke and Mushroom Macaroni and Cheese

Ingredients

  • 5 tablespoons butter, divided + more to butter the baking dish
  • 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 1½ cups milk
  • salt and pepper
  • 1 ounce Cheddar cheese, grated
  • 1 ounce mozzarella cheese, grated
  • 2 ounces Swiss cheese, grated
  • ½ teaspoon Old Bay seasoning (optional)
  • salt and pepper
  • 2 quarts of salted water
  • 2 cups dry macaroni
  • ½ pound (31/40) shrimp, peeled, deveined, and rinsed
  • 6 medium crimini mushrooms, rinsed and broken into pieces
  • 1 cup marinated, quartered mushroom hearts, drained
  • ¾ cup panko
  • ½ cup Parmesan cheese, finely grated

Method

  1. In a medium saucepan, melt 3 tablespoons of butter over medium heat.
  2. add the flour and stir in the flour cooking for a few minutes to remove the raw flour taste.
  3. Add the milk and bring to a boil, stirring constantly to remove any lumps and to avoid scorching until thickened.
  4. Turn the heat to low and stir in the Cheddar, mozzarella, and Swiss cheeses. Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper. Add optional Old Bay seasoning. When the cheese is melted and the sauce is smooth, remove from the heat and set aside.
  5. In a large pot, bring the salted water to a boil. Add the macaroni and cook at the boil, stirring occasionally, until the macaroni is al dente. Drain.
  6. In the large pot, combine the cheese sauce and cooked macaroni.
  7. Stir in the shrimp, mushrooms, and artichokes
  8. Prepare the baking dish  by heavily greasing the inside with butter. Then coat the butter layer with panko crumbs. Pour in the macaroni mixture.
  9. In a small saucepan, melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter over medium heat. Add the remaining panko and brown it lightly, stirring frequently to prevent burning. Remove from the heat
  10. Combine the toasted panko and grated Parmesan cheese. Sprinkle the mixture over the top of the macaroni mixture.
  11. Bake for 45 minutes in the middle of an oven pre-heated to 350°F. If the top becomes too brown, cover with aluminum foil and continue baking.
Three kinds of grated cheese
Mushrooms, scallions, parsley, artichoke hearts (clockwise from upper left corner)
Old Bay seasoning
Ready to go into the oven with the Parmesan and toasted panko topping
Out of the oven
A serving of shrimp, mushroom, artichoke mac and cheese

(Roll over image for legend, click to see gallery)

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November 18, 2012 · 11:43 am

GOULASH – BUT NOT HUNGARIAN

A few of my recent posts have dealt with pasta and casseroles, especially those I remember from my childhood. Here is yet another: my mother’s famous (or infamous as you will see) goulash, which was decidedly not the Hungarian variety. It was one of her most prized recipes, and a dish that family visitors often requested. She would bring it to the table with great pride, always in an oven casserole. When we had visitors, it would disappear before the meal was over, no matter how much she made.

Sometime around my parents’ 25th wedding anniversary, the topic of Mom’s famous goulash came up at the dinner table, and my father – for whatever reason  – made the offhanded comment that, actually, he never much cared for my mother’s goulash. A pall fell over the gathering, everyone ate quickly, and plates were rushed to the sink without much more comment. My mother never made her goulash again. Too bad, because it is really a quick, easy, and tasty one-dish meal for a family dinner.

When I was compiling a family cookbook years ago, I asked my mother for the recipe.  She didn’t send it even with a lot of cajoling. She even claimed that she had lost it. Finally, I received a copy just before she died. Actually, you don’t need a recipe, just a little imagination.

RECIPE

Goulash

Ingredients

  • 2 cups uncooked dry macaroni
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 medium onion, chopped coarsely
  • 3 ribs celery, chopped
  • 1 green bell pepper, seeded, deveined, and chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, peeled and mashed or minced
  • 1 pound ground beef
  • ½ pound mushrooms, washed and sliced
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • ¼ teaspoon ground bay leaf
  • ¼ teaspoon ground thyme (more if you like)
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 14.5 ounce can of diced tomatoes
  • 4 ounces sharp Cheddar cheese, grated
  • 2 tablespoons butter to dot the top of the casserole

Method

  • Cook the macaroni in a large pot of salted, boiling water until just al dente (about 12 minutes at sea level, longer at higher altitudes). Drain and set aside.
  • In a large oven-proof container (a large, heavy cast iron skillet works best), heat the oil on the stove over medium heat.
  • Add the onions and sweat them until they are translucent and soft. Then add the celery, bell pepper, and garlic. Continue to cook, stirring frequently, until the vegetables are soft and well cooked.
  • Add the ground beef. Stir frequently to break apart any lumps of uncooked meat. Continue to cook until the  meat is well-browned. Then stir in the paprika, bay leaf, and thyme. Correct the seasoning with salt and pepper.
  • Add the sliced mushrooms and stir until they are lightly cooked.
  • Stir in the cooked macaroni.
  • Stir in the canned tomatoes until well combined. Then stir in half the grated cheese
  • Sprinkle the top of the casserole with the remaining cheese, dot with butter, and bake in the middle of an oven pre-heated to 350°F for about 40 minutes or until the cheese topping is melted and bubbling a bit.
  • Serve immediately at the table with a salad and crispy bread.

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