Poblano-and-Cheddar-Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms

I have a huge 3″ binder filled with recipes that I’ve cut out from various newspapers and magazines. I usually clip the recipes thinking “oh, i’ll make that soon” but the recipes pile up and often don’t get made. Every once in a while I’ll flip through the binder looking for something new and will be pleasantly surprised to find that recipe that I clipped 5 years ago.

That was almost the case with this recipe . Except that it’s from Food & Wine from February 2006.

What drew me to this recipe was the interesting combination of ingredients and the mysterious origin of the recipe. The combination of smoky poblano peppers, portobello mushrooms and cheddar sounded delicious… but what culture origin is it from? I typically associate poblanos with Mexican cooking but don’t really think portobellos are big in Mexico. Not that the origin matters at all… this recipe was FANTASTIC.

Have I mentioned that the mushrooms are also stuffed with rice (I used brown) and baby spinach? Seriously, this dish has managed to combine so many of my favourite ingredients. AND it was easy to make. The recipe says about 1 hour total but I think with some clever multi-tasking (and reading the recipe through first) could significantly reduce the time. Also, I’m not totally sold on the fact that you have to cook the mushrooms before you stuff them. I’ve made plenty of stuffed mushroom recipes that omit this step and turn out fine. I did it this time around and wasn’t convinced that the extra cooking added anything to the mix. You may want to reduce the amount of poblanos you use OR make sure that not a single seed gets in. I was lazy about the seeds, not that there were SO many in my dish, less than 10. But I found the dish had a tad more heat than I was after. I was hoping for a more mellow smoky flavour instead of actual heat. Next time I’d maybe use 1 and a half poblanos or buy smaller ones or something.

This was a great, light vegetarian meal. I was kind of lazy when I made this and didn’t make a side dish to go along with it. I’m not sure what I would serve. Maybe some oven roasted carrots? Sauteed broccoli rabe? Green beans? But seriously, these are so good you don’t need a side.

ingredients

• 2 poblano chiles
• 4 jumbo portobello mushrooms (about 6 ounces each), stemmed
• 3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/3 cup finely chopped onion
• 1 cup baby spinach
• 1/2 cup cooked rice
• 1/4 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
• 2 tablespoons coarsely chopped cilantro

directions

1. Light a grill or preheat the broiler. Roast the poblanos over the grill or under the broiler, turning, until blackened, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let cool. Peel, core and seed the poblanos then finely chop them.
2. Brush the portobello mushrooms with 3 tablespoons of the olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill or broil the mushrooms over high heat, turning, until softened, 10 to 12 minutes. Transfer to a plate, stem side down; let drain and cool.
3. Meanwhile, in a medium skillet, heat the remaining 1 teaspoon of olive oil. Add the onion and cook over moderate heat until softened, about 6 minutes. Add the baby spinach and cook until wilted, about 1 minute. Transfer the spinach to a sieve and press out the liquid. In a bowl, mix the spinach with the rice, cheese, cilantro and poblanos. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Preheat the oven to 325°. Season the mushroom caps with salt and pepper. Spoon the rice mixture into the mushrooms, mounding it slightly. Transfer the mushrooms to a baking dish and bake for about 20 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and the top is lightly browned. Serve warm or at room temperature

(From Food & Wine)

Chickpea Burgers

I really should be studying for my GMATs right now but I’m so much better at procrastinating than I am at Data Sufficiency problems so WOMP wins this round. In fact, I left work right at 5 and didn’t go to the gym thinking that I would study my Friday night away. Instead I made dinner, watched The View, Gossip Girl and Grey’s Anatomy and went out for ice cream. But I digress.

I’ve been on a veggie kick recently. It’s like my body is steering me away from meaty meals and towards things chock full of veggies. Whenever I get a craving for veggie based dishes there are a few cookbooks that I turn to: The Whole Foods Market Cookbook , Moosewood Classics , and of course Super Natural Cooking.

I totally dig Super Natural Cooking and the website by the author, 101cookbooks (see the links section). What’s great about reading the website and cookbook together is that Heidi Swanson (the author) has written about many of the recipes from her book in her blog so you get a good backstory. That’s how I rediscovered this Chickpea Burger recipe.

What’s really neat about this burger is that the chickpea patties are actually used in place of a bun! You slice the patty in half and fill with your toppings. Kind of brilliant, the rationale being that having a bun and the burger can be a bit dry.

The burger was pretty yummy. It’s not a veggie burger in the same vein as a soy/imitation meat version, but is a standalone interesting creation. I followed the recipe mostly to a tee but didn’t make 12 mini burgers and opted instead for maybe 5-6 regular sized. I topped my burger with sprouts, tomatoes, vidalia onions and avocado. YUM.  The photo on 101cookbooks is so much nicer and makes the whole affair seem more delicate… I couldn’t construct a less rugged burger at all.  Believe me, I tried.

And for the record, I brought leftovers to work for lunch the next day and everyone was impressed.

Ultimate Veggie Burger Recipe

2 1/2 cups sprouted garbanzo beans (chickpeas) OR canned garbanzos, drained and rinsed
4 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 onion, chopped
Grated zest of one large lemon
1 cup micro sprouts, chopped (try brocolli, onion, or alfalfa sprouts – optional)
1 cup toasted (whole-grain) bread crumbs
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil (or clarified butter)

If you are using sprouted garbanzos, steam them until just tender, about 10 minutes. Most of you will be using canned beans, so jump right in and combine the garbanzos, eggs, and salt in a food processor. Puree until the mixture is the consistency of a very thick, slightly chunky hummus. Pour into a mixing bowl and stir in the cilantro, onion, zest, and sprouts. Add the breadcrumbs, stir, and let sit for a couple of minutes so the crumbs can absorb some of the moisture. At this point, you should have a moist mixture that you can easily form into twelve 1 1/2-inch-thick patties. I err on the moist side here, because it makes for a nicely textured burger. You can always add more bread crumbs a bit at a time to firm up the dough if need be. Conversely, a bit of water or more egg can be used to moisten the batter.

Heat the oil in a heavy skillet over medium low, add 4 patties, cover, and cook for 7 to 10 minutes, until the bottoms begin to brown. Turn up the heat if there is no browning after 10 minutes. Flip the patties and cook the second side for 7 minutes, or until golden. Remove from the skillet and cool on a wire rack while you cook the remaining patties. Carefully cut each patty in half, insert your favorite fillings, and enjoy immediately.

Makes 12 mini burgers.

(From Super Natural Cooking by Heidi Swanson)

Red Chile Enchiladas with Chicken and Melted Cheese

I think I’ll start a new tag for food crushes because I have to admit, I have many.

Ina and Mario are probably my biggest food crushes with Madhur Jaffrey steadily climbing up the ranks. My other love as of late is Rick Bayless ye of Mexican food. I’m currently working my way through Mexican Everyday which has been mostly hits with some misses. My latest venture ended up being pretty darned good.

This recipe isn’t particularly time consuming which made it surprisingly easy as a weeknight meal… or maybe I’m more ambitious than the average person on a weeknight. The worst of it was making the sauce. Cooking the peppers, blending everything together etc. It wasn’t even really that bad. My main complaint about the recipe is that I could not stretch my ingredients to make 12 enchiladas. I may have gotten 8 total. I’m not sure if I just didn’t have enough chicken or what but it did not go far at all. On another note I discovered that dipping the tortillas in the sauce, folding it over, spooning sauce on top and sprinkling with cheese is a DELICIOUS way to use the leftover tortillas. I would even make just the sauce and eat tortillas like that for breakfast or dinner.

For the record the recipe calls for Mexican melting cheese which I think (correct me if I’m wrong) can mean chihuahua cheese or queso fresco… it all mentions that you can use cheddar. Given the fact that I had some pre-shredded cheddar to clear out of my fridge I went that route and was totally satisfied with the outcome.

Red Chile Enchiladas with Chicken & Melted Cheese

4 med dried guajillo chiles, stemmed, seeded & torn into flat pieces
2 garlic cloves, peeled & quartered
1 28-oz can fired roasted diced tomatoes in juice
1/4 t cumin
1/4 t ground black pepper
1 T vegetable or olive oil, plus a little extra for the tortillas
2 c chicken broth, plus a little extra if necessary
12 corn tortillas
salt 1/2 t sugar
2 c coarsely shredded cooked chicken
1 c shredded Mexican melting cheese
1 small white onion cut into rings
cilantro for garnish

Turn on oven to 350. Set a medium skillet over medium heat. When it is hot, toast the chile pieces a few at a time, pressing them against the hot surface with a spatula until aromatic & lightened in color underneath, about 10 seconds per side. Transfer the roasted to a blender jar. Add the garlic, tomatoes with their juice, cumin & black pepper. blend until as smooth a consistency as possible.
Heat the oil in a large saucepan over med-high heat. Set a medium-mesh strainer over the pan & pour in the sauce. Press through the strainer to remove bits of chile skin. Then cook, stirring until the sauce is reduced to the consistency of tomato paste, 5 to 7 minutes. Pour in the broth, reduce the heat to med-low and let simmer 10 minutes while you prepare the tortilla, filling & toppings.
Lay out the tortillas on a baking sheet & spray or brush lightly on both sides with oil, then stack them in twos. Slide the tortillas into the oven & bake just long enough to make them soft & pliable, about 3 minutes. Remove from the oven & stack them in a single pile; cover with a kitchen towel to keep warm.
Taste the sauce & season with salt, usually about 1 1/2 t, and the sugar. Stir in additional broth is the sauce has thickened beyond the consistency of light cream soup.
Spread about 1/2 c sauce over the bottom of a 13×9 inch baking dish. Stir another 1/2 cup sauce into the chicken. Lay out a warm tortilla, top with a portion of chicken & roll up. Lay seam side down in the baking dish. Continue filling & rolling the rest of the tortillas, then ladle the remaining sauce over the enchiladas & sprinkle with cheese.
Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, until the cheese is starting to brown. Sprinkle with the onion rings & cilantro.

Perogies

I admit, I can be a glutton for punishment with some cooking projects. Take perogie making. Sure the ingredients are fairly cheap (with the exception of the cheese but even cheddar isn’t that expensive) but the manpower required is intense. The making of the dough, the making of the filling, stuffing the perogies, crimping the edges… most people will just settle for the $3 bag of frozen perogies at the supermarket. The supermarket ones are just fine but I always enjoy a project… so perogie making it is!

I feel like whenever I refer to a recipe that I got from Canadian Living Magazine I always put some sort of disclaimer on it. Maybe I just have to embrace the fact that CL does some things very well. For example this perogie recipe which I’ve made many times over the years.

There’s nothing at all complicated about the recipe, it’s just time consuming. Ideal execution would involve an assembly line of willing family and/or friends. I had neither so it was just me, my perogies and my full series boxed set of Sex and the City (nothing says fun on a Sunday afternoon like perogie making and Mr. Big!). In the past I’ve added crumbled bacon to the filling which is great if you’re a bacon lover (I happen to think it should be it’s own food group).

I eat these perogies either boiled or friend. Boiled if I’m lazy or if they’re being packed in mu lunch. Friend if I’m feeling more ambitions. If I’m feeling particularly frisky I will sautée some bacon and onions together in butter and add the perogies and then serve with a side of sour cream.

It’s clearly health food.

These freeze really well.  I lay them on a cookie sheet covered in parchment in a single layer and when they’re frozen drop them in a ziploc bag.  If I had a team I’d double this recipe because 36 perogies is not enough.

Plump Perogies

Ingredients:

2 tbsp (25 mL) butter
1 onion, sliced
Sour cream
Dough:
3 cups (750 mL) all-purpose flour
1-1/2 tsp (7 mL) salt
1 egg
3/4 cup (175 mL) (approx) water
4 tsp (20 mL) vegetable oil
Filling:
1 tbsp (15 mL) butter
1/3 cup (75 mL) finely chopped onion
1 cup (250 mL) cold mashed potatoes
3/4 cup (175 mL) shredded Cheddar cheese
1/2 tsp (2 mL) salt
1/4 tsp (1 mL) pepper

Preparation:

Dough: In bowl, combine flour with salt. Beat together egg, water and oil; stir into flour mixture to make soft but not sticky dough that holds together in ball. If necessary, add 1 tbsp (15 mL) water at a time, being careful not to make dough sticky.

Turn out dough onto lightly floured surface; knead about 10 times or just until smooth. Halve dough; cover with plastic wrap or damp cloth. Let rest for 20 minutes.

Filling: Meanwhile, in skillet, heat butter over medium heat; cook onion for 3 to 5 minutes or until tender. Transfer to bowl and mix in potatoes, cheese, salt and pepper.

Working with one portion of dough at a time and keeping remaining dough covered, roll out on lightly floured surface to about 1/16-inch (1.5 mm) thickness. Using 3-inch (8 cm) round cutter, cut dough into rounds.

Place 1 tsp (5 mL) filling on each round. Lightly moisten edge of one half of dough with water; pinch edges together to seal and crimp attractively. Place on cloth; cover with damp cloth to prevent drying out. Repeat with remaining portion of dough.

In large pot of boiling salted water, cook perogies, in batches, for 1-1/2 to 2 minutes or until they float to top, stirring gently to prevent perogies from sticking together or to bottom of pot. With slotted spoon, remove to colander to drain.

In large heavy skillet, melt butter over medium heat; cook onion for about 5 minutes or until golden. Add perogies and toss to coat and warm through. Serve with sour cream.

(From Canadian Living)

Spinach in Puff Pastry

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I totally have a food crush on Ina Garten aka The Barefoot Contessa. It may even be more than a food crush, I kind of want to be her BFF. I have visions of myself ditching NYC for the weekend in favour of spending hours getting myself out to the Hamptons and arriving on Ina’s doorstep for a lovely country picnic. There will be some cheese, a delicious salad, perhaps some sandwich involving seafood, perhaps some cookies and a lovely fresh drink. Perhaps later that evening after whipping up a feast, Ina, Jeffrey and I will light a bonfire by the ocean and make s’mores whilst singing camp songs. Ok, maybe not the last part but I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that I really want to go to her Hamptons house and eat her food for days on end.

But I digress.

I’m a huge fan of Barefoot in Paris , I use it ALL the time and have yet to have a bad experience with it. Every once in a while I’ll decide to stay away from the tried and true in favour of something different. The photo of the Spinach in Puff Pastry has always seemed appealing but a little out of reach. Not sure what it is but pastry freaks me out. It’s why I don’t make my own pie crust. Granted, making my own puff pastry was never on the table but it still managed to freak me out. The other day I was feeling particularly ballsy and decided to whip this recipe up.

This recipe is actually pretty darn easy. No crazy techniques. No hard to source ingredients. Not even that much tims is required. The filling consisted of spinach, gruyere, parmesan, pine nuts, onions, garlic and spices. When I went to make it I thought that I had pine nuts in my freezer but didn’t and forged ahead without the pine nuts. No great loss.

There was absolutely nothing frightful about using my President’s Choice puff pastry. It was way too easy. I literally just opened the box and unrolled the two sheets and that was it. When I got to the step for the egg wash I realized that I didn’t have a pastry brush I attempted to do the eggwash with a spoon and some careful handiwork to no avail. I skipped it in the end. Sure, the finished product lacked colour but it was delicious. As in kind of incredible. I think I got two dinners out of this and a few lunches. It’s probably not the healthiest thing (cheese baked in a buttery crust) but if Ina isn’t counting calories that neither am I.

4 Tbsp	unsalted butter
2 cups	onions, chopped
1 Tbsp	chopped garlic, (3 cloves)
2 (10-oz) boxes	frozen chopped spinach, defrosted
1/3 cup	scallions, chopped, white & green parts (2 scallions)
1 cup	Gruyere cheese, grated
3/4 cup	Parmesan cheese, grated
4	eggs, lightly beaten
1 Tbsp	bread crumbs
2 tsp	salt
3/4 tsp	pepper
1/2 tsp	ground nutmeg
1/4 cup	pine nuts, toasted
2 sheets (1 box)	rozen puff pastry, defrosted in refrigerator overnight
1	egg, beaten with 1 Tbsp water, for egg wash

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Heat butter in saute pan and cook the onions over medium-low heat for 5-7 minutes, until tender. Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Meanwhile, squeeze most of the water out of the spinach and place it in a bowl. Add the onion mixture, scallions, Gruyere, Parmesan, eggs, bread crumbs, salt, pepper, nutmeg and pine nuts. Mix well.

Unfold one sheet of puff pastry and place it on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Spread the spinach mixture in the middle of the pastry, leaving a 1-inch border. Brush the border with the egg wash. Roll out the 2nd sheet of pastry on a floured board until it’s an inch larger in each direction. Place the 2nd sheet of pastry over the spinach and seal the edges, crimping them with a fork. Brush the top with egg wash but don’t let it drip down the sides of the pastry won’t rise. Make three small slits in the pastry, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and bake for 30-40 minutes, until the pastry is lightly browned. Transfer to a cutting board and serve hot.

This can be assembled a day in advance, refrigerated, and baked before serving.

(From Barefoot In Paris by Ina Garten)

Salmon Cakes

Every once in a while I’ll go to the supermarket and see random canned goods on sale and I’ll stock up for a “rainy day”. There are very few things that I enjoy out of a can. Italian sodas, coconut juice, baked beans (heinz or bush’s), some varieties of tuna and beans if I’m lazy (I prefer the overnight soak method… less salt and scum). When I was living in NYC I would always see cans of salmon on sale for $1/can. A dollar! A can! So one day I bought a few not being too sure of what to do with them. I couldn’t really see myself whipping up salmon sandwiches so the search began for a useful way to use up mechanically separated salmon bits.

The answer: Salmon Cakes! courtesy of Canadian Living Magazine. Canadian Living isn’t usually one of my sources for recipes. They are oversimplified and dumb down “ethnic” recipes with easily accessible “Western” ingredients. Not that there’s anything wrong with that but I just don’t think that spaghetti noodles are a good substitute for rice noodles in pad thai. But maybe that’s just me.

But give CL a pretty tradition recipe and they can do a good job. The great thing about this recipe is that if you have some canned salmon in your cupboard you’re pretty much set to go… with the exception of cilantro, I never have that just hanging around. It’s a great lazy weeknight meal but manages to be pretty satisfying. My only issue is that I’m never quite sure what to serve salmon cakes with. this time around I made some broccoli rabe because I had some in my fridge. But what’s another way to go? Maybe wild rice or something? There are already potatoes in the salmon cakes so a side of potatoes (or even another starch really) seems kind of excessive. Thoughts?

Ingredients:

2 large potatoes (1 lb/500 g)
3 green onions, chopped
1/4 cup (50 mL) chopped fresh coriander
1 tbsp (15 mL) Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp (2 mL) salt
1/4 tsp (1 mL) each grated lemon rind, pepper and hot pepper sauce
1 egg, beaten
2 cans (each 7.5 oz/213 g) salmon, drained and flaked
2 tbsp (25 mL) vegetable oil
4 lemon wedges

Preparation:

Peel and cut potatoes in half crosswise. In 6-cup (1.5 L) microwaveable dish, cover and microwave potatoes with 1 cup (250 mL) water at High for 10 minutes or until tender. (Or cover and cook in saucepan of boiling salted water for 15 to 20 minutes or until tender.) Drain.

In large bowl, mash potatoes until smooth; stir in onions, coriander, mustard, salt, lemon rind, pepper and hot pepper sauce. Blend in egg. Fold in salmon. Let cool for 5 minutes.

Using hands, shape into eight 3/4-inch (2 cm) thick patties.

In large nonstick skillet, heat half of the oil over medium heat; cook 4 of the patties for about 5 minutes per side or until golden. Repeat with remaining patties.

Serve with lemon wedges.