Wednesday, March 9, 2011

Stuffed Mushrooms on Greens and Grains

Boy have I been eating lots of what I call "peasant food" lately. It's mostly plain winter food that's kind of monochromatic - all those potatoes and mushrooms just make everything kind of a brown/white mess. But it's the hugely nutritious type of brown and white foods anyways so there's no guilt.


It seems I've been practically mainlining mushrooms into my system. Here's another way to enjoy them that looks fancy but it isn't. It's simple and rustic. Just remove the stems, chop them up, add some cheese, bread crumbs, garlic, parsley, thyme, salt, pepper, and olive oil.

Scoop some of that filling into the mushroom caps and toss them into a hot oven.


As the 'shrooms bake, your kitchen will smell so amazing that you will want to take them out early and eat them. Resist the urge. You will be rewarded after 25 minutes with sweet and rich roasted mushrooms filled with a garlicky cheesy stuffing.


Serve them just like that for a tasty one-bite appetizer, or perch them on top of a pile of fiber-filled brown rice (cooked in vegetable stock) and mixed with a huge handful of chopped fresh spinach for a hearty entree with a perfectly paired glass of pinot noir.


Stuffed Mushrooms on Greens and Grains
1 package crimini mushrooms (the largest ones you can find)
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/2 cup parmesan or other hard cheese like asiago, romano, pecorino, etc
2 cloves garlic, minced
a handful of fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped
1 Tbsp thyme leaves, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
olive oil

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Remove stems from mushroom caps and chop finely. Line up mushroom caps on a lightly oiled baking sheet.

In a mixing bowl, add chopped mushroom stems, bread crumbs, cheese, garlic, parsley, thyme, salt, and pepper. Stir together and add olive oil (about 1/4 cup) until the mixture is moistened.

Spoon stuffing into caps. Drizzle a tiny bit more oil over the top of all the caps. Bake for 25 minutes or until the tops are golden brown.

Serve over 1 cup cooked brown rice mixed with 1 cup fresh chopped spinach.


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