Stuffed mushrooms always look much more fancy than they really are. They are easy to make, relatively inexpensive and the perfect bite-size snack. My husband makes really good stuffed mushrooms so I had him share his recipe with us.

Stuffed Mushrooms

 

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Author: Heather

Recipe type: Appetizer

Ingredients

• 15-20 mushrooms – preferably Crimini or a meatier, larger mushroom
• 6 pieces of bacon – baked and crumbled (or you can fry it up if you prefer)
• ½ cup bread crumbs
• ½ cup parmesan cheese
• ½ onion or shallot (diced)
• 3 or 4 cloves of garlic (minced)
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 teaspoons italian herb seasoning
• Parsley to taste, fresh or dried
• Optional – blue cheese, crumbled

Instructions

1. Preheat over to 375 degrees F..
2. Remove stems and clean mushrooms
3. Saute onion/shallot in garlic, butter and ½ of the olive oil.
4. When the onions are translucent, add parmesan cheese, bread crumbs and herbs.
5. Stir for 15-30 seconds – transfer contents to mixing bowl. Add blue cheese (if using) and bacon. Stir until combined.
6. Scoop mixture into mushrooms – about 1 tsp in each (or more depending on size of mushroom).
7. Lightly drizzle olive oil over mushrooms.
8. Bake on baking sheet for 20-25 minutes until tops are golden brown.

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What’s your favorite appetizer? 

Risotto is a dish we eat fairly often – because as a rice-based meal it’s fairly inexpensive. It’s also very flexible and you can add all kinds of things to it. One of our favorite ways to make risotto is with bacon, corn and bella mushrooms – which we add liberally so our risotto is a pretty “chunky” variety.

Risotto is made from Arborio rice, which can be kinda spendy if you buy it in the packaged containers at your typical grocery store. But buy it in bulk at Winco or a food co-op and you’ll probably save as much as 50% off the per pound price. I need to check and see if Costco has it, and I understand Winco has it in their bulk section, too. Look for it with the rices.

This is a recipe my husband uses when he makes risotto. He’s the designated risotto maker in the house and he has pretty much mastered it, in my humble opinion. The ingredients you add are really pretty flexible – you could do shrimp, peas, scallops, asparagus, steak – be creative!

Risotto with Mushrooms, Corn, and Bacon

 

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Author: Heather

Ingredients

• Arborio rice, about 1.5 cups
• Chicken broth, 32 ounces (or vegetable broth)
• Bacon, one 10-12 oz package
• Celery, 6 or 7 stalks, diced
• Corn, about 1 cup
• Mushrooms, baby bella, about 12 ounces
• Onion, 1-2 onions, diced small
• Parmesan cheese, about ½ cup, shredded - Don’t leave this out – it’s what makes it creamy.
• White cooking wine, about ½ cup - Could leave this out if you preferred.
• Garlic, whole clove, minced
• Dried basil, about a teaspoon
• Dried thyme, about a teaspoon
• Olive oil, about a tablespoon
• Optional: fresh lemon zest (from the peel of a lemon) – seems to complement it and add a fresh flavor

Instructions

1. In a sauce pan, pour in chicken stock and bring it to a boil then quickly bring to a simmer.
2. In another pan, add dice bacon and cook it up. Set aside. Layout on paper towels to absorb some of the grease.
3. In a large saute pan, add a tablespoon of olive oil (or some bacon grease!) and throw in the onions. Cook onions down for about five minutes and then add diced celery. After two or three minutes add mushrooms. Saute it all together with the garlic.
4. Once your onions, celery and mushrooms are starting to look like they are cooked down. Add your arborio rice and begin stirring. Don’t stop. Stir until arborio gets a nice light golden color (not burned!) – about five minutes.
5. Then pour in white wine to deglaze the pan, keep stirring. Just keep stirring. Then nearly immediately afterward, ladle in simmering chicken stock about a cup at a time – don’t add another cup until the first cup has absorbed. Keep stirring. This process is the most important part in making risotto – add the stock slowly and keep the mixture simmering and moving.
6. After a couple ladles of chicken stock you can throw in corn, peas or lemon zest, if you are including those. Keep adding stock until the rice seems soft, but a little al dente. It should take about 10-15 minutes of adding stock and stirring rice while it simmers.
7. After rice has softened and stock is absorbed, add basil, thyme and parmesan cheese – until melted and incorporated into dish.
8. Enjoy!

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Drying mushrooms is a great way to preserve them for later – which is exactly what I wanted to do with the pile of mushrooms in my fridge. This was my first time dehydrating mushrooms and it was incredibly easy – and I’m happy I now have them on hand for soups and sauces down the road.

When researching how to do dehydrate mushrooms I found a lot of disclaimers about dehydrating wild mushrooms you find in nature. If you’re not an expert forager, don’t go eating random mushrooms you find in the woods. If it’s toxic in it’s regular form, it certainly isn’t going to be any safer after drying.

I stick to store bought mushrooms, thank you very much. I might *live on the edge* and buy marked down mushrooms, but that’s as exciting as I get with ‘shrooms. This time I dried some full size portobello mushrooms (manager markdown!) and some baby portobellos (Costco!).

The first thing you’ll want to do is wipe the mushrooms off. Clean ’em up just like you would before cooking with them. I didn’t want to wash or rinse my mushrooms because this would only add moisture, which seems silly right before drying them. I wiped the mushrooms down with a paper towel. I bet if you wanted to rinse them off, it wouldn’t hurt. Just dry them well before dehydrating.

Then you may want to remove the stems. Because portobello mushrooms have a thicker stem – I opted to remove the stem. I saved those for a batch of vegetable broth.Some of the fancier mushrooms I think have a lof flavor in the stem – so you decide if you want to keep it on or not.

Then slice the mushrooms in 1/4 inch slices and spread them out on dehydrator tray.

Dry mushrooms at 130 degrees F for 8 to 14 hours*. I opted for 12 hours. If mushrooms have any moisture remaining in them, could grow bacteria or mold, so I opted for a little longer. They will shrink a lot in the process.

*I saw some sources that recommend drying the mushrooms at 90 degrees F for a few hours and then increasing it to 130 degrees F. But I cannot find any information on why they are recommending this. Anyone know? I just went with one temp, the whole time.

I won’t lie. Drying mushrooms may leave an earthy smell in your house. If you are generally sensitive to mushroom smells, this could bother you. I live near Ostroms Mushroom farm, so I’m used to it. You might not even notice, but I like to give you a heads up.

As with most dried foods, you want to store it in an airtight container away from moisture and light. Places like World Market Cost Plus have inexpensive  pantry jars with sealable lids. These can be labeled and added to your pantry shelf!

How to Rehydrate Mushrooms

I’m not an expert on this since this is my first time dehydrating mushrooms. BUT from what I’m seeing – the best method is to soak in cold water for about 4 hours. You can soak them in hot water to speed up the process, cover the bowl with a plate or lid. Everything I read said to keep the water you use to rehydrate the dried mushrooms, as it makes good stock. I’m planning to use the dehydrated mushrooms in soups, so I’ll just add a little more broth to compensate. If you’re a drying expert, and you know how to rehydrate dried mushrooms, please chime in here!

I referenced these books especially, which I’m guessing you can find at your local library (or Amazon):

• The Dehydrator Bible: Includes over 400 Recipes (pictured above on my table)
• The Complete Guide to Drying Foods at Home: Everything You Need to Know about Preparing, Storing, and Consuming Dried Foods (Back to Basics)
• The Encyclopedia of Country Living, 40th Anniversary Edition <– Love this one! It’s a huge book, 922 pages, it has so much information in it.

As for the type of dehydrator that you need – I think all of them are pretty great. First you can check your local thrift shops, because they are big appliances I think people get tired of storing them and donate them a lot.

I personally have the Excalibur 3900B 9 Tray Deluxe Dehydrator, Black – but it’s probably much more than the average person needs. The only reason I splurged is because I found a crazy good deal that included a lightning deal and a gift card I had. But I have to say that I do love it and it has amazing reviews for a dehydrator.

I’ve been a drying a lot of things lately! See my recent posts:

• Dried mangoes
• Dried strawberries

I’d love to hear from you – what do you dehydrate? How do you use your dehydrator? Have you dehydrated mushrooms before?

I’ve been battling a head cold all week and the perfect solution? Hot and Sour Soup! It’s inexpensive, filling, and it will clear your sinuses. I also love that there are only a few ingredients and it can be ready in 15 minutes (that includes prep time)!

Hot and Sour Soup

 

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Author: Heather

Recipe type: Soup

Ingredients

• 4 cup(s) fat-free chicken broth
• 2 tbsp rice vinegar
• 2 tsp asian hot sauce, or chili paste, (or to taste, start with a little and add until it seems like it carries the right punch)
• 2 cup(s) mushroom(s), sliced (I prefer crimini, but white, shitake or any kind of mushroom will work just fine)
• 9 oz firm tofu
• 1 tbsp cornstarch, mixed with 2 tbsp water
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 medium scallion(s), sliced
• optional – ⅓ cup(s) bamboo shoots, sliced
• optional – egg whites

Instructions

1. Dice up your tofu, mushrooms and bamboo shoots
2. In a soup pot, stir together the chicken broth, vinegar, hot sauce, soy sauce, mushrooms, bamboo shoots and tofu.
3. Bring to a simmer and cook for five (5) minutes.
4. Stir in cornstarch and simmer two (2) minutes more.
5. Serve, sprinkling each bowl with sliced scallions.

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Let me know what you think!

Got zucchini? We do. We’ve been harvesting zucchini from our garden for the last few weeks – and while I was admittedly getting tired of it, this recipe has re-kindled my love for zucchini.

We started with a recipe from Vegetables from an Italian Garden: Season-by-Season Recipes(Amazon), one of my favorite Italian cookbooks. And we modified it to fit our preferences – including adding bacon and grilling, instead of roasting, because it’s just too stinkin’ hot to be turning on the oven.

Grilled Stuffed Zucchini

 

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Author: Heather

Recipe type: Vegetables

Ingredients

• 6-7 zucchinis, sliced in half, lengthwise – We used two mondo zucchinis.
• 1 cup of finely diced onions
• ½ cup cooked, diced bacon – Original recipe called for ham.
• 2 tomatoes, diced finely
• 2¾ cups mushrooms, sliced or diced
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 3 tablespoons fresh bread crumbs – We just food processed day-old bread
• ⅔ cup grated fresh parmesan cheese – We used Pecorino Romano, which we get at Costco for a great price.
• ½ cup parsley
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• salt and pepper

Instructions

1. Wash and half your zucchinis. Toss them into salted, boiling water and let them cook for about 10 minutes. They should just be starting to get tender.
2. While your zucchini slices are boiling, prep all your stuffing ingredients. Dice everything up. Cook your bacon if you haven’t already.
3. Once zucchini is al dente (slightly tender) drain it well. Lay them out on a cutting board and let them cool so you can work with them.
4. Scoop out the flesh of the zucchini with a small spoon. It should scoop out pretty easily, most of it will be seeds.
5. We re-used the skillet we cooked our bacon in and drained the excess bacon grease (if you don’t want to do this, use a fresh skillet with a tablespoon of olive oil). Saute the onion and garlic. Once your onion is softened, add tomatoes and simmer it down a bit. Add mushrooms and saute until soft.
6. Take sauteed mixture from skillet and pour into mixing bowl. Add egg, fresh bread crumbs and parmesan cheese. Stir well. It should have a creamy texture.
7. Meanwhile, spray a grill basket or a grill pizza pan with non-stick olive oil spray. We used a round grill pizza pan – it worked well because it has holes in the bottom which were great for circulation on the grill.
8. Lay out zucchini halves, skin side down and spoon the stuffing into the zucchini.
9. Put stuffed zucchini on grill, on medium heat (about 350-400 degrees) for about 30 minutes. Just keep an eye on it. It should get nice and crispy on top. As long as the zucchini is cooked enough for your liking, it’s ready to eat.

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p.s. Make EXTRA filling and you could use it for a frittata or omelet for breakfast the following morning – would make two great meals and only one prep!

Let me know if you make these and tell me what you think!

Last Friday we scored a dozen mangoes at Safeway for only $5. That deal was awesome… almost as awesome as this recipe for Mango Chicken Curry. We made this tonight for dinner and it’s a keeper, in my opinion. This recipe is thanks to Simply Recipes with a few modifications.

I was worried it would be too sweet – but it wasn’t at all! Our mangoes were not overly ripe – so I guess this helps keep it from getting too sweet. I should also add that this recipe is TOTALLY out of our comfort zone. We are experts at ordering curry in restaurants, but never really ventured into making it at home. It is soooo easy and very rewarding to make something new. Our taste buds were grateful.

Don’t be intimidated with these spices – head to your local Winco and pick them up in the bulk bins to save the most. They might also be available at a local co-op or Fred Meyer also has a bulk spice station.

Mango Chicken Curry

 

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Author: Heather

Recipe type: Chicken

Ingredients

• 1.5 pounds of boneless, skinless chicken breasts (or thighs)
• 2-3 mangos, we used three (3)
• 13.5 oz can of coconut milk – if using lowfat coconut milk, add 2 tablespoons heavy cream
• 1-2 onions, diced
• ½ red bell pepper, diced
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger
• 2 tablespoons curry powder
• ½ teaspoon ground cumin
• 2 tablespoon cider vinegar
• salt and pepper to taste
• Cilantro for garnish

Instructions

1. Get a large saute pan – heat oil over medium heat. Add your pepper and your onions and simmer. Stir occasionally until soft (about 5 minutes). Add garlic and ginger and continue to cook for another minute. Add curry powder and cumin and cook for another few minutes. It starts to smell soooo good. If needed add a little more oil to keep it from sticking to pan, but we didn’t worry about it.
2. Add vinegar, coconut milk and about half of the diced mangoes to the pan. Turn up the head and bring it to a light boil. Lower heat to a low simmer and let it “simmer” for about 15 minutes. Stir occasionally. Remove pan from heat.
3. Carefully scoop your sauce into a blender. Puree the sauce until it’s smooth. Return sauce to pan.
4. Add your diced chicken to the pan. Simmer on low, covered for about 8-10 minutes. Chicken should cook all the way through. Check a large piece to make sure.
5. Throw in remaining mango. If using cream (if you had lowfat coconut milk), add it now. Cook on low temp for another minute or two. Don’t boil or you could curdle your cream.
6. Taste test. If too sweet, add more vinegar. If not sweet enough, add a little sugar. Add salt, pepper to taste. Garnish with cilantro.
7. Serve with rice.

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I just dried mangoes for the first time and they were so awesome, I just had to share!

First you’ll need a batch of ripe mangoes. I bought a box at Costco. They came out to $1 each, which is not super amazing, but not bad either. Here in the Northwest if you can get them for $0.50 – $0.80 that is stock-up talk.

Surprisingly you can’t really tell much about a mangoes ripeness by it’s skin color – it’s best to give them a little squeeze. If they have a little give, I think they are perfect.

Then you peel them. Be careful, they get slippery.  Then slice it into 1/4 inch slices. If you’re not familiar with cutting mangoes, here is a great video from the Mango Board about how to cut a mango.

Cut the cheeks into 1/4 inch thick slices. I did some thinner. It doesn’t really matter what you pick – but the thicker they are, generally the longer they take to dehydrate and the chewier they might be.

Then I had adorable, baby girl hands {not required} that picked up the slices and moved them to the dehydrating tray. My two-year-old loves puzzles, so this was actually an awesome project for her. She just filled the tray with the shapes.

Fill your dehydrator tray with mango slices. Eat some while you do this.

Then put the mango slices into the dehydrator at 130- 135 degrees F for 10 to 12 hours. You’ll know they are done when they are dry and leathery and still flexible. We had preschool in the morning, so I actually dried mine for closer to 14-16 hours. They were fine, in fact, they were delicious – and crunchy. I don’t think you can screw them up.

Then remove them from racks and eat some, of course.

And then after your full, store the rest (if you have any left) in an airtight container. How you store them is up to you, but try to avoid moisture, air, heat or sunlight. I think jars with a tight fitting lid work great!

My kids LOVE eating fruit – and they devoured the dried mangoes and strawberries. I think I’ll be using this as a great way to pack healthy snacks in the car. No way am I packing sticky mangoes or mushy strawberries as an on-the-go snack, but these would be fantastic tossed into a baggie for the car.

I’m not an expert at this by any means. I referenced these two books especially, which I’m guessing you can find at your local library (or Amazon):

• The Dehydrator Bible: Includes over 400 Recipes
• The Complete Guide to Drying Foods at Home: Everything You Need to Know about Preparing, Storing, and Consuming Dried Foods (Back to Basics)

As for the type of dehydrator that you need – I think all of them are pretty great. First you can check your local thrift shops, because they are big appliances I think people get tired of storing them and donate them a lot.

I personally have the Excalibur 3900B 9 Tray Deluxe Dehydrator, Black – but it’s certainly a dehydrator on steroids – probably much more than the average person needs. The only reason I splurged is because I found a crazy good deal that included a lightning deal and a gift card I had. But I have to say that I do love it and I’m super impressed.

I’d love to hear from you – what do you dehydrate? How do you use your dehydrator? Have you dehydrated mangoes before?