Sunday, 29 March, 2009
Here is the final recipe from our wine tasting – an appetizer of sausage stuffed mushrooms – the perfect bite-sized taste to accompany our fruity and delicious Barriosa Sombrero Rojo Rioja wine. Our guests are still raving about these mushrooms over a week later – I call that a successful dish!
Sausage Stuffed Mushrooms
3 pints baby bella mushrooms, cleaned with the stems removed
1 lb. chicken or turkey sausage, sweet Italian is great, but almost any flavor would work (We used a red wine and cheese variety from Trader Joes here.)
2/3 cup plain breadcrumbs
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cup parmigiano regiano cheese, grated (plus extra for sprinkling)
1/4 cup minced onion
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
2-3 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley
Preheat a heavy skillet over medium heat. Meanwhile, remove the casings from the sausages and put the meat in the skillet. Brown the sausage until cooked through, using a spatula to break apart any pieces. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 375 degrees and grease a large baking sheet. Arrange the mushrooms cap-side-down on the sheet and set aside.
In a medium bowl, combine the bread crumbs, eggs, cheese, onion, garlic, pepper, and parsley. Add the cooled sausage to the mixture and stir until combined. Fill each mushroom cap with about a tablespoonful of the sausage mixture, and don’t worry if the filling piles up and overflows a bit. When all mushrooms are filled, sprinkle some extra grated cheese on top.
Bake for 15-20 minutes, until filing is set and sizzling. Serve immediately and enjoy!
Sunday, 22 March, 2009
Here is the salad that we served during our wine-tasting party. It paired beautifully with the La Crema Pinot Noir. Everyone loved the ginger crostini in this salad – and you will not believe how easy it was to make. This would be a perfect salad to serve at a cook-out – the grilled flavors of the sausage and the onion are complimented so beautifully by the balsamic.
Grilled Salad with Ginger Crostini
Adapted from Rachel Ray
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3 teaspoons ground ginger
6-8 slices crusty white bread
1 pound sweet Italian pork sausages
2 medium sweet onions, peeled and quartered
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
8 cups mixed greens
1/4 cup balsamic vinaigrette (recommended: Newman’s Own)
Preheat oven to 300 degrees. In a small bowl, mix together the olive oil and the ground ginger. Brush the ginger mixture generously on the bread slices. Place them on a baking sheet, and bake until toasted and crispy, about 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, using a grill, grill pan, or George Foreman, cook the sausages over medium-high heat, turnning as necessary, until browned and crispy on all side, about 15-20 minutes.
Pour the balsamic vinegar over the onion wedges. Grill on both sides over medium-high heat for about 4 minutes on each side. The wedges should become soft and slightly charred.
In a large bowl, toss the greens with the balsamic vinaigrette until the greens are lightly coated. Divide the salad into 6-8 portions, topping each with a grilled onion wedge and a ginger crostini. Slice the sausages diagonally and divide the pieces among the salads. Serve immediately, and enjoy!
Saturday, 24 January, 2009
Chili is just one of those classic dishes that reminds me of a chilly fall night when I was a little girl. No one’s recipe will ever compare to my mom’s because mom’s chili is the culinary manifestation of comfort and warmth. Mom always serves it on a bed of rice, topped with shredded cheese. It’s just the best.
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Tuesday, 9 December, 2008
This is a Christmas morning tradition in our household: I make the monkey bread, and mom makes the breakfast casserole. Both can be made the day before, and then popped into the oven while the family is opening presents. Mom’s strata is sooooo delicious, and not too greasy or heavy like the recipes I’ve seen that use crescent rolls. It puffs up and browns beautifully, and it heats up well the next day if you have leftovers!
The other great thing about this recipes is that you can customize the combination of ingredients to any taste – we’ve even made it vegetarian a few times. We like ham with tomatoes and swiss cheese. We like sausage with cheddar and mushrooms. We like bacon with anything!
You could make it “Mexican” by adding a can of green chilies, drained, using some chorizo sausage and using a Mexican cheese blend and salsa. You could make it “Italian” with some Italian seasoning, an Italian cheese blend, and chopped up Roma tomatoes. You can make it “Southern” by making it with sausage or country ham and serving it with biscuits and gravy. It’s very versatile and, most importantly, extremely easy and delicious!
I hope you enjoy this brunch treat!
Mom’s Egg and Cheese Brunch Strata
1 lb. sausage (or 4 cups ham, or 8-10 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled)
1 1/2 (8 ounces) cups cheese, grated ( whatever type of cheese you like: cheddar, swiss, etc.)
10 eggs
4 cups bread, cubed in 1/2 inch pieces
4 cups milk
1 teaspoon salt (opt.)
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons dry mustard
1/2 cup sliced fresh mushrooms and/or chopped tomato
Grease a 9″ x 13″ pan. Arrange bread cubes in pan and sprinkle with cheese. In a large bowl, beat eggs, milk, salt, pepper and mustard with a whisk. Pour egg mixture evenly over bread and cheese layer. Sprinkle with meat and vegetables. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Preheat oven to 325 degrees and bake strata uncovered until eggs set in the center, about 1 hour. Cover loosely with foil (sprayed with Pam) if top browns too quickly.
