"Exotic" mushrooms
#11
  Re: (...)
I was flying through the market yesterday picking up some basil, chives etc. because they were not available during last week's shopping expedition.

There were some really strange looking mushrooms there--just couldn't resist picking them up----now what would you do with them? I haven't had the time to research anything yet but thought I would toss these out for your input.

I also picked up a beautiful HUGE portobello last week--there was a recipe in one of the back issues that looked interesting to me and will try that---now to find it!!

The "exotics" are: shimeji, enoki, fresh shitake, very large brown buttons, varieties I have never seen here before---geesh, I'm deprived!!!
"Never eat more than you can lift" Miss Piggy
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#12
  Re: "Exotic" mushrooms by Roxanne 21 (I was flying through...)
Oh, what a find for you Roxanne!!! How fun. The "very large brown button" shrooms are probably baby portabellas, at least that's what they are around here.

Since you're coming onto cooler weather, how about polenta with mushrooms?? This is so good.


GORGONZOLA POLENTA WITH MUSHROOM TOPPING

Polenta is cornmeal mush made from ground hominy corn. Some people like them to have a very loose texture. I prefer a somewhat stiffer version which I then chill for even more firmness and either grill or fry quickly so that the resulting texture is crisp on the outside and creamy inside (Note: this is what I love). The possibilities for toppings and sauces are only as limited as your imagination.

Makes 6 to 8 servings

Ingredients:

4 cups chicken stock or water
1/2 cup coarsely ground cornmeal
3 tablespoons butter, in 1/2-inch chunks
1/2 cup Gorgonzola cheese, crumbled

Preparation:

In a large saucepan, bring the chicken stock to a boil. Slowly add the cornmeal, while stirring constantly. Continue stirring until the mixture thickens and begins to pull away from the sides.

Remove from the heat and stir in the butter, then the Gorgonzola. Spread the polenta on a parchment lined cookie sheet about 1/4-inch thick. Chill for an hour to overnight. Cut into two-inch squares.

Prepare the grill. Cook each piece for two minutes over direct heat then turn and cook for two minutes longer on the other side. The outside should be crisp and the inside soft and creamy. Top with the mushroom topping below, or make up your own. Pesto or roasted red pepper purée would work well.

Mushroom Topping for Gorgonzola Polenta

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon shallots, sliced thinly
1/2 pound cremini mushrooms, quartered (or what you picked up at your market)
2 tablespoons heavy cream (maybe use 1/2 & 1/2 instead?)
1 tablespoon sherry

Preparation:

Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the shallots and cook until soft. Add mushrooms and cook until soft. Stir in cream and sherry and heat through. Serve over the Gorgonzola polenta.
Retired and having fun writing cookbooks, tasting wine and sharing recipes with all my friends.
www.achefsjourney.com
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#13
  Re: Re: "Exotic" mushrooms by cjs (Oh, what a find for ...)
That really sounds yummy Jean---'cept we don't care for the polenta product available here--it really does not cook up well at all---I'll come up with a solution though.

GORGONZOLA??? They have NO CLUE what that is here---I have to use whatever blue is available, which is not bad most of the time!!
"Never eat more than you can lift" Miss Piggy
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#14
  Re: Re: "Exotic" mushrooms by Roxanne 21 (That really sounds y...)
I remember now you mentioning before about the polenta product there -

here's another idea, nothing fancy, but oh so good! I just love the combination of barley, mushrooms and beef!!


* Exported from MasterCook *

BRAISED BEEF WITH MUSHROOMS & BARLEY

3 pounds boneless beef chuck roast -- trimmed
1 teaspoon Salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
8 ounces cremini or white mushrooms -- halved
1 medium onion -- chopped
3 GARLIC CLOVES -- CRUSHED
1 1/4 cups Beef broth
1 bay leaf
1/2 cup medium pearl barley (not quick barley)
1 cup frozen & thawed green peas

Heat oil over medium heat in a Dutch oven till hot.
Add beef; brown evenly; remove from pan.
Season w/salt & pepper, In same pan, add mushrooms, onion & garlic.
Cook & stir 6 to 8 min. or till lightly browned.
Add beef, broth & bay leaf.
Bring to a boil; reduce heat to low. Cover & simmer 1 1/2 hrs. Add barley.
Cover & continue simmering 45 to 60 min. or till beef & barley are tender.
Remove beef to cutting board; keep warm. Discard bay leaf.
Add peas to barley mixture. Cook & stir 3 min. or till heated thru.
Slice beef into thin slices; serve with barley mixture.

Source:
"7-Day Menu, 1/10/01"
------

and here's one Tammy posted a while back -


Mushroom Croustades

24 slices firm-textured white bread
3 tablespoons chopped shallots or onion
1/4 cup margarine or butter
3 cups finely chopped fresh mushrooms
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup whipping cream
2 tablespoons snipped fresh chives
1 tablespoon snipped fresh parsley
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1 Dash ground black pepper
Dairy sour cream (optional)
Snipped fresh chives (optional)

1. Lightly grease twenty-four 2-1/2-inch muffin cups. Cut a 2-1/2-inch round from each slice of bread.* Carefully press each bread round into one of the prepared muffin cups to form a shell. Bake in a 400 degree F oven about 10 minutes or until golden brown.

2. Meanwhile, for filling, in a medium saucepan cook shallots or onion in hot margarine or butter for 4 minutes. Stir in mushrooms; cook, uncovered, about 15 minutes or until most of the liquid has evaporated. Stir in flour. Add whipping cream all at once. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly. Cook and stir for 1 minute more; remove from heat. Stir in the 2 tablespoons chives, the parsley, lemon juice, salt, ground red pepper, cheese, and black pepper.

3. Remove bread shells from muffin cups. Place bread shells in a shallow baking pan. Spoon filling into shells. Bake, uncovered, in a 350 degree F oven for 15 minutes. If desired, top with sour cream and additional chives.

Makes 24 appetizers.

*Note: You can use the bread scraps to make soft bread crumbs for casserole toppings or meat stuffings.

To Make Ahead: Prepare the baked bread shells as directed. Place in a freezer container or bag and freeze for up to 3 months. To serve, thaw bread shells. Fill and bake as directed.

Leftover filling, if there is any can be thinned with milk or cream to make a yummy soup. My brother crushes Ritz crackers in it and says it's awesome. It's also good served with chunks of bread, like a fondue. Heck, it's good no matter how you eat it!

Description:
"Better Homes and Gardens
----

As soon as everyone else wakes up, I'm sure you'll get lots more ideas.
Retired and having fun writing cookbooks, tasting wine and sharing recipes with all my friends.
www.achefsjourney.com
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#15
  Re: "Exotic" mushrooms by Roxanne 21 (I was flying through...)
at Whole Foods in Amherst, MA. I grabbed a bag and then noticed the price US$59.99!!!!!!! I have yet to taste a fresh morel.
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#16
  Re: I saw some fresh morel mushrooms by lxxf (at Whole Foods in Am...)
Rox, if you like working with phyllo, here's a great one. You can sub in ( or out) most mushrooms. I just copied and pasted it from another board I'm on, hence the comments in it.

Phyllo by Jill O'Connor
Chronicle Books 1977

This is another one I made while on my phyllo kick last weekend.

1 ounce dried porcini mushrooms
1 cup boiling water
2 Tbsp olive oil
3/4 cup sliced shallots
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 1/2 pounds mixed fresh mushrooms ( chanterelle, shitake, portobello, cremini, oyster) cleaned and sliced
3 Tbsp minced fresh thyme leaves
1/3 cup dry Marsala
1/2 cup creme fraiche or sour cream
1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup shredded Fontina cheese
S & P to taste
8 sheets phyllo dough
6 Tbsp butter, melted

Place the dried mushrooms in a bowl, and cover with the water. Let the mushrooms soak until the water is tepid. Remove the mushrooms from the water, sqeezing any liquid from them back into the bowl, and coarsely chop them.

Slowly pour the mushroom soaking liquid through a coffee filter, or a sieve lined with a double thickness of paper towels into a small saucepan, removing any sediment. Bring the mushroom liquid to a boil over medium heat and cook until reduced by half. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.

Preheat oven to 400F. In a large saute pan, heat the oil over medium high heat. Add the shallots and cook until limp and just beginning to brown, 2 - 3 minutes. Add the chopped garlic and continue cooking stirring constantly, until the garlic is fragrant, but not brown, 1 - 2 minutes more. Add the fresh mushrooms, porcini mushrooms, and thyme to the pan, and cook over high heat until the mushrooms are tender.

Add the marsala, stir to scrape the browned bits from the bottom of the pan, and cook until most of the liquid is evaporated. Add the reserved mushroom liquid and continue cooking until it, too is evaporated. Remove pan from heat, and allow to cool completely.

When the mushrooms are cool, stir in the creme fraiche or sour cream, parsley, and the cheeses. Season with S & P, and refrigerate.

Gawd, this is taking me forever to type.

Lay one sheet of phyllo dough flat on a clean work surface. Lightly butter the phyllo. Layer the remaining 7 sheets of phyllo over the first, buttering each one.

Spread the cool filling down the long side of the phyllo, about 2 inches from the bottom and i inch in from the sides. Fold the bottom edge and sides over the filling, and roll the pastry up like a jelly roll. Place the strudel seam side down on an ungreased baking sheet, and lightly brush the top and sides with the remaining butter.

Bake for 20 - 25 minutes, or until the pastry is crisp and golden, and the filling is hot. Remove from oven and let rest 5 minutes. Slice into diagonal pieces with a serrated knife, and serve immediately.

The combination of the mushrooms, marsala and thyme was great. I made 3, we ate one, and I froze the other two uncooked.

I kid you not, I think it took me longer to type this out, than it did for me to make them.
Practice safe lunch. Use a condiment.
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#17
  Re: Re: I saw some fresh morel mushrooms by Lorraine (Rox, if you like wor...)
Here's another one. I've tried this and it's pretty good:


* Exported from MasterCook *

Mushroom Medley with Spinach

Recipe By :
Serving Size : 0 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : Fruits-Vegetables

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
2 teaspoons oriental sesame oil
1 red bell pepper -- cut into strips
2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger
1 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic
8 ounces shiitake mushrooms -- stems trimmed, caps
8 ounces button mushrooms -- sliced
4 ounces small oyster mushrooms
1 package ready-to-use spinach leaves -- (10 ounce) stems tri
6 green onions -- cut into thin strips
1 tablespoon soy sauce
Lemon wedges


Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add bell pepper, ginger and garlic and sauté 1 minute. Add all mushrooms and sauté until brown and tender, adding 2 to 3 tablespoons water if mixture is dry, about 10 minutes. Add spinach and green onions and stir until spinach wilts, about 2 minutes. Stir in soy sauce. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer to bowl. Serve, passing lemon wedges to squeeze over.
Don't wait too long to tell someone you love them.

Billy
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#18
  Re: Re: I saw some fresh morel mushrooms by bjcotton (Here's another one. ...)
Here's one a good friend of mine did New Years Eve. Creamed Mushrooms.

Clean and slice the mushrooms. Finely dice some shallots and fry in butter. Add cleaned sliced mushrooms, and lots of chopped fresh thyme. Season well with S&P. a bit of fresh nutmeg is nice. Cook until lightly browned. Deglaze the pan with cognac, brandy, wine, whatever you have. Add heavy cream, and cook until reduced to thick.

You can serve it on puff pastry, pate a choux, your chose. I scraped every last bit out of the pan before putting in the dish pit, and it was great. I made it recently and seasoned it with sea salt flavoured with dried mushrooms and truffles. I think this is one you could really play around with. Enjoy them!
Practice safe lunch. Use a condiment.
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#19
  Re: Re: I saw some fresh morel mushrooms by Lorraine (Here's one a good fr...)
A major plus is that the mushies are puchased from a retailer, so you will know the mix is safe. I remember a mushroom dish we had in Oz. Mixed mushies, cream sauce, as Lorainne has described. Maybe some mixed soft hebs. It was served with with torn jagged and OO'd croutons for dipping. Very good indeed.

I do realise this is too late...
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#20
  Re: Re: I saw some fresh morel mushrooms by vannin (A major plus is that...)
Sounds good to me, Lorraine and Dale, could play with this idea for my oldest who adores mushrooms. Is there really an Oz?

PJ
PJ
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