My Recipe Box - Chicken Fettuccine with Brie

This recipe could be used in combination or instead of Alfredo.

Ingredients

 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 cups fat-skimmed chicken broth
 2 cups dry white wine such as Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc
 1/2 cup whipping cream
 1 tablespoon grated lemon peel
 1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds OPTIONAL
 About 1/2 teaspoon pepper
 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon hot chile flakes
 8 ounces mushroom-flavored brie cheese
 12 ounces dried fettuccine or other pasta gluten free
 2 cups coarsely shredded cooked chicken (8 oz.)
 Grated parmesan cheese
 About 1 cup watercress leaves, rinsed and drained OPTIONAL

In a 4- to 5-quart pan, combine 2 1/2 cups chicken broth, wine, whipping cream, lemon peel, fennel, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and chile flakes to taste. Bring to a boil over high heat and boil, uncovered, 2 to 3 minutes.

Meanwhile, with a sharp knife, trim rind from brie and finely chop (rind adds flavor, but discard if you like). Cut brie into about 1/2-inch chunks.

Add fettuccine to pan, pushing it down into boiling liquid. Simmer, uncovered, stirring often, until pasta is tender to bite, 8 to 10 minutes. Add chopped brie rind (if using) and chicken and stir to blend. Stir in chunks of brie. Remove pasta from heat and let stand, uncovered, 5 to 8 minutes, stirring often to make sure all the cheese melts (the rind won't melt). If you want saucier pasta, add up to 1 cup more broth and stir over high heat until steaming.

With tongs or two forks, lift pasta into wide soup bowls; spoon remaining sauce over the top. Sprinkle with parmesan and more pepper to taste, and top with watercress leaves.

Note: Tasty mushrooms:

Since mushrooms release liquid as they cook, it's important to get the process right, or the results can be pale and watery instead of deeply browned. The trick is high heat.

To prep: Trim discolored stem ends from 1 pound mushrooms. Either wipe the mushrooms clean or rinse briefly and pat dry, then thinly slice.

To cook: In a 12-inch frying pan over high heat, melt 2 tablespoons butter. Add mushrooms and stir until all the moisture has evaporated and mushrooms are browned, 8 to 10 minutes.

To serve: Season with salt, pepper, and fresh herbs, then use sautéed mushrooms to liven up anything from chicken breasts to eggs Benedict. Mix with chopped tomatoes for a bruschetta topping, toss into a spinach-feta salad, or stir into polenta.

My Recipe Box - Mushroom Sauce

 Weekend Potluck

What's for Dinner?

September 2020 - Toronto ON

I've made other mushroom gravies/sauces in the past, but nothing compared to this recipe.

The key is to brown the mushrooms well.

Blue Mountains NSW Australia

INGREDIENTS

4 tbsp butter, divided
6-10 cloves garlic, sliced in half or finely diced (I like big chunks of garlic but realize most don't)
8 oz brown mushrooms, wiped clean
1 cup chicken stock

Flour
1 pinch to 1 tsp red pepper flakes, depending on your desired spicy level

Fresh thyme
1/2 cup diced cilantro, optional
2 tbsp lemon juice
1/4 cup parmesan cheese


INSTRUCTIONS
Heat a heavy pan on medium high until very hot.
Add butter, swirl around pan, and let melt.
When butter is foamy and melted add garlic to pan, stir well.
Add mushrooms to pan, stirring occasionally to keep mushrooms and garlic from burning.
Add second half of butter to pan, let melt and add flour to thicken.
Let garlic and mushrooms brown - about 4-6 minutes. Do not let garlic burn, reduce heat if needed.
Add red pepper flakes (add slowly according to your taste) thyme, and cilantro when mushrooms are lovely golden browned.
Add stock, lemon juice, and cheese.
Stir well, being sure to scrape up any browned bits from bottom of pan.
Bring to a boil, let reduce and thicken slightly for 2 minutes.

Remove from pan and serve immediately!

My Recipe Box - Cooking Class

June 2017 - Toronto ON

 John and I took a cooking class at our local Longo's store. The cost was $35 each and you could add a wine paring for $12 each. We thought this was a great deal for a dinner out and we learned some things as well. This was a gluten free class as well.
We'll definitely be signing up for more.

I've scanned the recipes because I'm too lazy to type them out but you can click on the images to make them larger.

Mushroom Bolognese served over penne pasta (Catelli gluten free). I have been searching for tomato paste in a tube and the chef used this one, Alpino. Of course I find this now, when John just picked up 12 cans at Costco just today!

All the ingredients came from this Longo's.

     

As a bonus the chef had mixed ricotta cheese with feta with salt and pepper to top the pasta.

This was so tasty and a nice change from using meat. I was intrigued by the addition of milk.

2 oz pasta per person is a good rule of thumb.

Next we head North to Egypt where we’ll enjoy roasted snapper and dukkah spiced greens. 

Duqqa, du'ah, do'a, or dukkah is an Egyptian condiment consisting of a mixture of herbs, nuts, and spices. It is typically used as a dip with bread or fresh vegetables for an hors d'œuvre.

The addition of lemon juice to the kale was brilliant! Combined this all tasted delicious.

Finally for dessert, a hint of the tropics with coconut, chocolate and peanut butter squares.
John pronounced these as fantastic. The chef also suggested adding chia seeds and protein powder to have them as a breakfast dish.
You could also add cranberries or other dried fruit. The peanut butter can be switched out for any other kind of nut butter.

My Recipe Box - Garlic Mushroom Quinoa

Pinned this recipe from Damn Delicious.

This was absolutely delicious with steak.

Garlic Mushroom Quinoa


Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes

Total Time 35 minutes


Yield 6 servings reduce as required

An easy, healthy side dish that you'll want to make with every single meal!

Ingredients
1 cup quinoa
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pound cremini mushrooms, thinly sliced
5 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan

Instructions
In a large saucepan of 2 cups water, cook quinoa according to package instructions; set aside.
Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add mushrooms, garlic and thyme, and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 3-4 minutes; season with salt and pepper, to taste. Stir in quinoa until well combined.
Serve immediately, garnished with Parmesan, if desired.

Notes


Adapted from Barefeet in the Kitchen

My Recipe Box - Sausage Stuffing

I saw this recipe on TV early in the week as part of a Thanksgiving segment on the Marilyn Denis show. I thought it would be good in a pork tenderloin.

It was good but the sausage I had on hand was not easy to break up.

Sausage Stuffing


1 medium firm apple
2 cloves garlic
1 peeled shallot I didn't have one so I used an onion
150 grams oyster or crimini mushrooms I had a large container of common white mushrooms
2-3 tbsp olive oil
75 ml apple cider
30 ml bourbon
200 grams sausage meat
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method:
In a food processor add the mushrooms, garlic, shallot and apple and chop until fine.
In a pan on medium heat, sauté the mixture in olive oil for about five minutes, until softened. Season well, and then add the cider and bourbon and cook for a minute or until the liquid is reduced.
Remove the meat from the sausage casing and mix with the mushroom-apple mixture.

My Recipe Box - Roasted Mushrooms - Various

Image source

I forgot to take a photo!!

I love mushrooms - John not so much except fried in a big breakfast. I had lots of mushrooms so tried this recipe and served them with steak. 

This would be a great way to do them for breakfast as well if you were cooking for a crowd.

ROASTED MUSHROOMS
Ingredients
16 even-sized open cup mushrooms, stalks cut level - I didn't remove the stems
3 tbsp olive or vegetable oil
2 cloves garlic, chopped very finely
3 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
2 tbsp fresh thyme, chopped
½ tsp garlic powder
5 tbsp fresh breadcrumbs
1½ tbsp lemon juice
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste


Instructions
Preheat the oven to 400F. Lightly fry the mushrooms, cap-side down, in hot oil for 2-3 minutes.
Arrange the mushrooms in a a 9x13 cooking dish (or whatever rectangular oven-proof dish you have on hand) with the stalks facing upwards.
In a small bowl, mix together the butter (make sure its softened), garlic, thyme, lemon juice and seasoning.
Spoon a little garlic butter on to each mushroom, then lightly press the breadcrumbs on top.
Either refrigerate for later use, or bake immediately in the oven for 15 minutes or golden around the mushroom cap.

SHEET PAN ROASTED TOMATOES AND MUSHROOMS

INGREDIENTS
2 pints

cherry tomatoes, halved

olive oil

fresh thyme leaves, divided 1/2 teaspoon

kosher salt

small cremini mushrooms, halved or quartered if large

4 cloves garlic, smashed and peeled

Freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

INSTRUCTIONS
Arrange a rack in the middle of the oven and heat to 375°F.

Place the mushrooms, cherry tomatoes,  olive oil,  thyme, salt, and a few grinds of black pepper in a large bowl and toss to combine. 

Transfer to a rimmed baking sheet and arrange the tomatoes so that they are cut-side down.

Roast until the vegetables are soft and caramelized, 30 to 35 minutes. Remove from the oven and mash the tomatoes gently with a fork to realize some of their juices. Drizzle the balsamic vinegar over the vegetables and toss to combine and evenly coat the vegetables. Serve warm or at room temperature.

2012 - Sauteed Mushrooms

My DIL introduced me to cooking mushrooms this way. It is delicious with steak.


Sauteed Mushrooms

1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
12 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp sugar
2 tbsps olive oil
10 ozs mushrooms (quartered)
1 tbsp unsalted butter
1 garlic clove (chopped)



1 Stir together lemon juice, soy sauce, and sugar. Heat a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderately high heat until very hot. Add oil, then sauté mushrooms, stirring, until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add butter and garlic and saut
, stirring, until butter is absorbed. Add lemon mixture to mushrooms, stirring until sauce is absorbed.