Almost Chuck's Sausage with Mushrooms & Peppers

Almost Chuck's Sausage with Mushrooms & Peppers

You ever have people tell you how much better their version is of one of your dishes? I live with one of them. He who shall not be named, nearly always has something to say about how much better his Sausage and Peppers with Mushrooms is compared to mine, but has yet to prove it. We've been married nearly 8 years and except for a few batches of Italian meat sauce and a few steaks, my retired husband has never put his money where his mouth is. Granted, he is a wonderful baker and is responsible for much of the extra 10 pounds I can't seem to budge,  but its all big talk.

He's told me so many times that in his dish, he uses sweet Italian pork sausage, and canned stewed tomatoes. My original version of this dish uses pork sausage, too, but never stewed tomatoes because I think they're much too sweet with the added sugar. But since I'm trying to cut a few calories here and there, this one uses chicken or turkey sausage. And in an effort to appease him, half of the tomatoes added are stewed. To play up the sweetness, I added basil and a bit of ground fennel. And it's delicious. Really delicious. Beat that, buddy.

Note: Different brands of diced and stewed tomatoes tend to have more or less juice in them. You may need to simmer a few minutes longer if yours are very juicy. This dish is gluten free, and dairy free as prepared; if you want to serve it with a starchy food, like a bread or grain, choose according to your dietary needs.

Almost Chuck's Sausage with Mushrooms & Peppers

Serves 4

1-1/2 pounds of sweet (or hot) Italian chicken or turkey sausage links
2T extra virgin olive oil
1 med. yellow onion, 1/2" dice
10 oz. sliced cremini mushrooms
1 red bell pepper, 1" dice
1 green bell pepper, 1" dice
Kosher salt
2 large garlic cloves minced
1 14oz. can diced tomatoes
1 14 oz. can stewed tomatoes
1/2 cup red or white wine
1T dried basil
1/2 tsp. ground fennel
Fresh ground black pepper

In a large, 12" frypan, heat the oil over medium heat, and then brown the sausage links about 5 minutes per side. Remove the browned sausages to a plate to cool slightly, and into the pan add the onion. paper, mushrooms and garlic, sprinkle with a pinch of salt and sauté until the onions and peppers soften.

Slice the slightly cooled sausage links into approx. 1" chunks and add to the pepper and mushroom mixture. Add the stewed tomatoes, the diced tomatoes, the wine and the basil and fennel and stir well.

Bring to a simmer, cover and cook for 20 minutes. Remove the cover and continue to simmer about 10 minutes longer until the tomato juices no longer look watery.

Serve over pasta, artisan bread or rice.    

Marvelous Many Mushroom Beef Braise: The Unplanned Dinner.

Almost ready: Many Mushroom Beef Braise

I was planning to fix a shrimp dish for dinner tonight. But the shrimp should have been removed from the freezer about the time I was looking at the Christmas lights at Costco (didn't buy). Then, when I got home, the electrician had just arrived to service our backup generator, and the house power was shut off. So I didn't open the freezer, because I couldn't see a damn thing in the basement, anyway. My other task this afternoon was to divvy up some top round beef into freezer packs, and even though none of it was on the planned menu, a pound of trimmings and chunks suddenly became the basis of a very good, fairly quick dinner. It's fairly quick because, once you get it into the pot, you can walk away for an hour...to do something useful, like write a blog post. And it tastes like you slaved for hours. Just don't tell.  Soothing, and warm you right down to your toes.

Actually, this sort of thing is great with ground meat like beef, lamb or venison. It cooks faster, and makes a fabulous sauce for homemade  whole wheat fettuccine or other fresh wide wheat pasta.  With this chunky meat version, we usually have it with brown rice or a bean puree, and something green. Totally, delectably, wonderful.

Can I eat yet??

Many Mushroom Beef Braise
Serves 2-4

Ingredients:

2T bacon fat or safflower oil
1 lb. top round beef in 1-1/2" cubes
1 medium yellow onion, halved and sliced 1/4"
8 oz. sliced baby bella mushrooms
.25 g package of mixed dried wild mushrooms, soaked, in 1 cup hot water 10 minutes
1 cup mushroom stock homemade, boxed or made from mushroom base
1/4 cup dry sherry
1/2 tsp. dried marjoram
1/4 tsp. dried thyme
salt
freshly ground black pepper
fresh parsley, sprigs and some minced

Instructions:

1. Heat the oil in a dutch oven, or other heavy bottomed pot with a cover. Season the meat with salt and pepper. Brown the meat in the hot fat on all sides, about10 - 15 minutes over medium-high heat.

2. Lower the heat to medium, add the sliced mushrooms and onions, stirring until the mushrooms release some liquid. Add the sherry and stock, and stir up any brown bits on the bottom of the pan. Bring to a simmer.

3. Add the dried mushrooms, and their soaking liquid, careful to hold back any sediment at the bottom of the bowl. Add the dried herbs, stir well, brig back to a simmer. Cover and cook 1 hour, until the meat is tender. Taste for salt and pepper and adjust as needed. Serve garnished with fresh parsley.

For Breakfast, Lunch or Dinner: Spinach, Mushroom & Bacon Strata

Sometimes, I get lazy. Even though I love to cook, often I'd rather hang out with a cup of coffee in the morning, or with a glass of wine in the evening and not have to fuss much over a meal for the assembled family. This usually happens over the holidays or on vacation. Unfortunately, I also have a solid case of Italian Guilt, instilled most thoroughly by my mother years ago that I haven't been able to shake. Its forced me to find something delectable to serve the gang that won't force me to run around the kitchen at the last moment. Usually it ends up being a make ahead dish, and a good one. A strata.

In case you aren't up on just what a strata is, I'll explain. A strata is a layered dish, involving bread, eggs and usually cheese, plus whatever other goodies (generally pre-cooked) you want to add in. As it bakes, it puffs, almost soufflé-like and then settles into a rich, puffy, creamy dish that you can have for pretty much any meal. You can make them savory or sweet, both versions are great additions to your cooking repertoire.

The nice part is that a strata is much better if you assemble it hours in advance, or the night before, and let it set in the fridge until baking time. It bakes in about an hour, which gives the cook time for that second cup of coffee, or glass of wine. For breakfast or brunch with a savory strata, all you need is some fruit on the side, and maybe some pastry; for lunch or dinner, a good salad or a side vegetable, or a cold soup before the strata  is nice. If you choose to make a sweet one, it makes a wonderful breakfast  or a fabulous dessert for a light meal. I promise to give you a sweet strata recipe later into the Autumn.

I've been making this version for years, but I've adopted a technique from Cook's Illustrated recently that adds some weights on top of the casserole while it chills. I think it really does improve the texture. I always chill the assembled strata at least 8 hours before baking to be sure all the stale bread has had a chance to soak up the eggs and cream. I just make it up before I go to bed, and let it rest while I do.

Adapted from Cook's Illustrated

Spinach, Mushroom and Bacon Strata
Serves 6-8

Spinach, Mushroom & Bacon strata. Cheesy and easy to make ahead,
and so delicious1

Ingredients

8 slices of stale Italian bread, sliced 1/2" thick
4T unsalted butter, softened
6 slices of smoked bacon, roughly chopped
8 oz. sliced cremini mushrooms
1 small onion, chopped fine
1 10oz. box frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
8 oz. Gruyere cheese, shredded
6 large eggs
1-1/2 cups whole milk
1/2 cup light cream
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
1 tsp. kosher salt
ground black pepper
cooking spray or butter for pan

Instructions

Spray an 8" square baking dish with cooking spray or butter liberally. Spread one side of each slice of bread with a half tablespoon of butter, and set aside. In a large non-stick frying pan, cook the bacon until just crisp, and then remove to a paper towel lined plate to drain, leaving the bacon fat in the pan. Add the onions and mushrooms to the fat, and cook until the onions are soft, about 5-6 minutes over medium high heat. Add the spinach to the pan and stir until heated through. Turn off the heat, and mix in the bacon. Set the pan off the hot burner.

Place 4 slices of the bread in the bottom of the prepared pan, buttered side up. Distribute 1/2 of the spinach mixture over the bread evenly, and then sprinkle over 1/3 of the shredded Gruyere. Arrange the remaining 4 slices on top of the cheese, more or less in the opposite direction from the bottom slices. Top with all the remaining spinach mixture, and then 1/2 of the remaining cheese.

Whisk together the eggs, the milk, the cream, the nutmeg, kosher salt and black pepper to taste, and por the mixture carefully over the top of the bread and spinach mixture in the baking dish. Place a large  sheet of plastic wrap flush on top of the top cheese layer, and place a small, heavy frying pan ( or as Cook's suggests 2 1-pound boxes of sugar) on top of the plastic wrap to weigh down the bread. Chill it weighed down for at least 3 hours, or overnight. When ready to serve, preheat the oven to 325ºF, remove the weights and the plastic wrap and sprinkle over the remaining Gruyere cheese and bake for 55-65 minutes, until browned and puffed.  Serve hot or at room temperature, and remember, it will deflate just about as soon as it comes out of the oven, and that's supposed to happen...

Homemade Spinach Fettuccine with Mega Mushroom Sauce, Meatless or Not

Homemade Whole Wheat Spinach Fettuccine

Every now and then, an old memory comes up and smacks you on your head. You know the kinds that say ”Hey, you know it’s a long time since you thought about me, so now DO something!” This is one of those thoughts that just happens to have a recipe or two attached.

About 10 years ago, during a long drive home from an auction with a couple of friends, the conversation turned to what each of us was going to fix for dinner that night. One said she was going to make something her mother used to make often when she was a kid, and that she hadn’t made in quite a while. A pasta dish made with ground beef, sliced mushrooms and a packet of onion and mushroom soup mix. You could have knocked me down with a feather, because my Mom used to make this too, and I’d thought she’s invented it. I hadn’t had it in years. It was a rich, woodsy, mushroom-y dish that was not tomato based, a thing practically unheard of back in the 1970’s when my mother served it. It’s also fast and really easy.

Of course I had to make it as soon as I could. With a few, ahem, changes. You can use a packet of soup mix, which is the easiest and original, or the substitution (which I use) since I try to avoid processed products loaded with things I can’t pronounce. This, easily and deliciously, can be made without meat and also gluten free, especially since many folks are vegetarians, or simply abstain from meat for Lent or during this Easter week. Just see the note at the top of the recipe.

Serve over wide whole wheat pasta, brown rice or wild rice, unless you want to serve it my favorite way, over fresh, home made, wide whole wheat-spinach fettuccine.  The recipe for the fettuccine follows after the mushroom sauce. Oh, it's so good, I can’t wait until dinner!

Mushroom Lover's Mega Mushroom Sauce

Mushroom Lover’s Mega Mushroom  Sauce

Note: The dried porcinis need to soak for 30-60 minutes, prior to cooking the sauce. If you would like to make a meatless version, omit the meat, and use 1-1/2 pounds of sliced fresh mushrooms, water or mushroom stock, and be sure your mushroom base is vegetarian /vegan and gluten-free, if you need it to be.

2T olive oil

1 lb lean ground beef or turkey
1 medium onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 oz dried porcini mushrooms, soaked in 1 cup water for 30-60 minutes, then chopped (reserve liquid)
8 oz sliced white or baby portabella or cremini mushrooms
1 packet onion and mushroom soup mix (OR 2 teaspoons of natural mushroom soup base, and ¼ cup dried minced onion)

1-1/2 TBS Italian Seasoning or 1 tsp. each: oregano, marjoram, thyme and rosemary
2 c low-sodium stock of choice, or water
1/4 c dry sherry or dry vermouth

Freshly ground black pepper

½ cup fresh, minced parsley

Salt if needed

Grated pecorino for the table, if desired

Heat olive oil in a large nonstick frying pan on medium-high. Brown the meat with onions and garlic, breaking up meat. Add all the mushrooms, reserving the mushroom soaking liquid. Add the mushroom liquid, discarding the sediment at the bottom of the cup. Mix in the soup mix or the alternative, and the Italian seasoning, and then add the stock and sherry or vermouth and black pepper to taste.


Reduce the heat to medium and boil gently until thick enough that you can make a path with a spoon to the bottom of the pan. Stir in the parsley. Taste for salt and season if needed. Can pass grated Italian cheese at the table, if you want.

Serves 4-6

Eggs, spinach, salt and oil to start...

Whole Wheat Spinach Pasta

Note: I’m using white whole wheat flour from the King Arthur Flour company here as the lighter color gives a prettier green finished product. You may also need more or less flour depending on variables like the humidity, how you’ve measured it, and how much moisture there is in your eggs and spinach. The hand-cranked pasta machine you’ll need for rolling and cutting is available from Kitchen Kapers; mine came from them at least 20 years ago and it’s a very handy little kitchen slave.  The finished pasta freezes extremely well, but will also keep in the refrigerator, dusted with flour and gently coiled in a zip top bag.

3 large eggs

Big pinch of kosher salt

8 oz. frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed really dry

1T extra virgin olive oil

2-1/2 (approx.) cups of white whole wheat flour (King Arthur is the most widely available.)

Extra flour for rolling, cutting and storing

1-2 quart sized zip top plastic bags

Place the eggs, salt, the well-squeezed spinach and the olive oil in the work bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel chopping blade. Process for about a minute to 1-1/2 minutes until the mixture is homogenous, and the spinach is minced. If the spinach pieces are too large, it’ll be hard to cut the rolled pasta sheets.

Looks like just enough white whole wheat flour now...

Add 1 cup of flour and process until mixed. Add another ½ cup and process for about 15 seconds. If the dough looks pebbly, squeeze some together and see if it holds, it’s likely very sticky at this point, so add another ½ cup and process until a ball of dough forms on one of the blade. There will probably be some crumbly dough in there as well.  Feel the dough; it should be soft and moist, but not very sticky. Add more flour as needed, this time a tablespoon at a time and process between additions.

When the dough is soft and pliable, but not overly sticky, process it for about 10 seconds, then carefully remove the dough, form it into a flattened ball and wrap in plastic wrap. Let it rest at least a half hour or longer before proceeding to roll and cut.

Let that dough rest...it's tired!

Divide the dough into 4 pieces, and rewrap  three of them back into the plastic. Flatten the small piece of dough a bit and dust lightly with flour if it’s sticky. Set the rollers on your pasta machine to the widest setting, and feed the dough through. Fold the sheet in half and repeat. Then, make the opening one notch smaller. Repeat the process until you are down to the next to the narrowest setting, run the dough through, and then run it through the fettuccine cutter. 

Rolled, cut and ready to cook.

Dust the strands very lightly with flour, spread them out on a clean kitchen towel, and dust lightly again with more flour. Toss the strands every once in a while you make the rest. Repeat with the remaining three lumps of dough. Let the past dry slightly for about an hour, tossing occasionally to keep the strands from sticking together.. To cook, bring a big pot of well-salted water to a boil, drop in fettuccine, and cook for about 2 minutes. Drain and serve. If you are not going to cook immediately, toss again lightly with flour, slip into a zip top bag and refrigerate for up to 24 hours, or freeze.

Makes 6 servings