Asian Shrimp Risotto

16 01 2011
This risotto is made with arborio rice using the same techniques as traditional Italian risotto. However, I used a lot of Asian ingredients to give it a nice flavor twist. You can add other seafood. I was hoping to add some smoked scallops which I think would add a fabulous dimension to this dish.

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Winter Squash Polenta with a Wild Mushroom Ragout

20 10 2010
My husband kept asking me to come up with some good polenta recipes. So I finally completed his request. This dish used up two winter squashes I had from my Mom’s garden. You can use Butternut, Acorn, Delicata or any other winter squash. Also, you can use any selection of wild mushrooms you like. This can be prepared ahead. Make the polenta and put in the baking dish and then refrigerate. Bake before serving. Saute the mushrooms ahead. Then add in the stock and cream before serving.

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Bangkok Shrimp with Button Mushrooms

14 09 2010

This recipe uses a Thai Coconut Sauce that is also really yummy with stir fried vegetables.  Make this recipe now while fresh corn is still in season.

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Wild Mushroom Pate

15 08 2010
I was catering a party last week and served this Wild Mushroom Pate. It was a huge hit. It looked so much like real pate that I had to convince the guests that it was truly vegetarian. A little goes a long way.

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Broccoli, Mushroom, Cheddar Quiche

21 07 2010
I got some broccoli out of my Mom’s garden and was inspired to make a quiche for my family. I am going away for a few days and I knew this would be a great surprise to find in the refrigerator and would last them for dinner and probably a lunch. I must admit, this quiche looks extraordinary.
Please use your favorite savory pie crust. I have a great recipe from my time in Paris but it is hard to describe in a recipe. Good pie crust is all about the technique and lots of Beurre (butter) as the French say. I have made mine a little healthier by substituting some whole wheat pastry flour for the white flour. Come take a pie making class with me and I will teach you all the tricks.

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Wild Mushroom and Roasted Garlic Frittata

24 04 2010
I made a huge batch of roasted garlic a while back and froze them. They are great to have on hand to add to all sorts of recipes. Roasting the garlic mellows the flavor and adds a subtle garlic taste to your dish rather than the pungency of raw garlic. Look to my next post on how to roast garlic. My family ate this for dinner last night and loved it. You can use any mixture of mushrooms like shiitake, portobello, oyster, or chanterelles. The jalapeno adds a little kick but it can be omitted if you prefer a milder dish.

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Vegetable Pot Pie

17 03 2010
pot pieWhenever I look in my refrigerator and find a plethora of vegetables, I know it is time to make a vegetable pot pie. Use your favorite savory pie crust recipe. I use my recipe I learned in Paris. It is one I teach in my cooking classes because it is hard to describe the process to make it on paper. Making pastry is truly getting the feel for it. This recipe for Pot Pie is a little unusual because I add saffron to the sauce. It adds a little gourmet touch over the basic white sauce found in most pot pies. The other night, I experimented with throwing in some of the cooked vegetables from a Moroccan stew and they add a whole new dimension of flavor. Also, I did not have any fresh mushrooms so I soaked some dried shiitake and sliced them. I added some of the soaking mushroom broth to the sauce instead in addition to vegetable stock and omitted the cream. So the moral of the story is to experiment when making a pot pie. Any filling goes so look in your pantry and refrigerator and see what you can come up with. Please report back if you have a great success story.
 
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Wild Mushroom Barley Risotto

1 03 2010

Risotto Stirring

We made this Risotto style dish at the cooking class. It was delicious and a nice twist on the classic risotto made with Arborio rice. Of course, the technique is exactly the same so you could always substitute rice for the barley. We found this dish to be quite rich tasting. It would work well as both a main course or as a side dish. The key is a good selection of mushrooms and a flavorful vegetable stock.

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Wehani and Wild Rice Stew with Cremini Mushrooms, Winter Squash, and Kale

21 02 2010

You can actually use other types of mushroom as well as any type of whole grain rices or other grains in this recipe. Experiment and see what combinations work best.

1/3 cup Wehani rice

1/3 cup wild rice

1 inch piece of fresh ginger, unpeeled, sliced into thick rounds

2 garlic cloves, peeled

1 tsp coarse sea salt

2 tbsp unsalted butter or olive oil

1 large onion, diced

½ pound cremini mushrooms, cleaned and thickly sliced

1 stalk celery, diced

1 medium carrot, peeled and thinly sliced

2 tbsp minced fresh sage

1 small or ½ large winter squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1 inch chunks (about 4 cups)

1 small bunch kale, tough stems discarded, leaves sliced into thin strips (4 cups)

1 to 2 tbsp soy sauce

freshly ground black pepper

extra virgin olive oil

½ cup toasted pumpkin seeds Read the rest of this entry »





Baked Portobello Mushrooms with blue cheese, pecan crumbs and sage and smoked paprika aioli

21 02 2010

These mushrooms make a good side dish or main course with a salad or roasted beets  on the side. An aioli is a garlicky mayonnaise. This one is reddish in color due to the paprika. Use the leftover aioli to make a yummy tuna or salmon salad sandwich.

4 cloves garlic

1 egg

1 egg yolk

1 tsp Dijon mustard

9 oz olive oil

1 tsp smoked paprika

salt and pepper to taste

lemon juice to taste

½ lb butter

1 bunch sage leaves

¼ cup pecans

1 slice whole wheat bread

4 large Portobello mushrooms

2 oz. Blue cheese Read the rest of this entry »