Making Stuffed Mushrooms

While my Mom, Sister and Nieces visited they decided they wanted stuffed mushrooms.  I had all the ingredients to do so and so I made them!   Here is what I made.

Ingredients

24 medium or large baby bella mushrooms (each about 2 inches wide)2 tablespoons chopped garlic2 oz goat cheese4 oz whipped chives cream cheese, room temperature
4 oz tablespoons shredded colby jack cheese
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 c. Mayonnaise (Hellman's)

1/4 teaspoon salt
4 oz Asiago cheese
2 teaspoons Parmesan-style grated cheese
Black pepper, crushed on top

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Gently remove the stems from the mushrooms and set both the caps and the stems aside.
Lightly spray muffin tins with nonstick spray. Place the mushroom caps inside each whole.  
Meanwhile, chop mushroom stems. In a medium bowl, combine the stems with garlic, garlic powder, goat cheese, cream cheese, mayonnaise, salt, Asiago cheese. Mix well and stir until blended.
Evenly distribute the cheese-veggie mixture among the mushroom caps. Next, add the colby jack and grate the parmesan cheese on the top of each one and add fresh black pepper.
Bake the stuffed mushrooms in the oven for 8 to 10 minutes, until the topping begins to brown. Let cool slightly and enjoy!


Here is a photo of some of the items that were made including the stuffed mushrooms, brownies and Ina Garten cookies (and my nieces favorite- olives!)

Ginger butter risotto

Over 4th of July weekend we had dinner at a local place and I tried a bite of ginger risotto.  I wanted to try and recreate it because I couldn't stop thinking about it.  So here is what I did.

Ginger butter risotto

Ingredients

8 cups chicken stock

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 medium white onion, finely diced (about 1 1/2 cups)

1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons grated ginger

1 1/2 cups Arborio rice

1 cup white wine ( I used Dry riesling)

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano reggiano cheese

Salt and freshly cracked pepper to taste

4 T chopped cilantro 

Preparation

1. Bring the stock to a simmer in a medium pot and keep it at a simmer until the risotto is done.

2. Heat the oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the onion and 1 tablespoon of the ginger and cook, stirring constantly, for 2 to 3 minutes, until the onion is translucent.

3. Add the rice and stir. Stir in the wine and simmer until the liquid is evaporated. Begin adding stock, one ladleful at a time, stirring constantly until the liquid is absorbed. Continue adding stock until the rice is cooked but still firm and creamy, 30 to 35 minutes.

4. Turn off the heat. Add the butter, the remaining 2 teaspoons of ginger, cilantro, and the Parmesan. Season with salt and pepper and serve immediately.

Here's the finished product! (With bacon wrapped pork and asparagus) Delish!!

It's time to share some new things!

I'm back and will be posting everything that was missed!  I'm going to try and post the meals that I create each week and also try to help with menu planning.  It's easy if you plan well.  Here is tonight's dinner, I prepped the meal over the weekend and all I did was bake them after work!

Stuffed turkey peppers

Ingredients

1 T olive oil

1 lb ground turkey seasoned with 1 T of taco seasoning

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 can black beans, rinsed and drained

1 can sweet corn, drained

8 oz mushrooms, sliced and diced

6 large bell peppers, halved and deseeded 

1 cup of cheddar jack cheese

1/4 c tomato sauce

1 jar vindaloo sauce (can be found in international aisle at most stores)

Coarse salt

Fresh ground pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Place your pepper halves in two glass dishes, (you will freeze one for a meal for later), drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper.

In a skillet add tablespoon of olive oil on a medium heat add the ground turkey and cook all the way through.  Add your diced mushrooms with 1 T oil and cook until softened into meat mixture.  Next add your black beans and corn, and cook until heated through.

Last, add the tomato sauce and stir.   

Start placing the filling in each pepper.  When finished add the vindaloo and cheese to each pepper.  Place in oven and bake for 35-45 minutes, until pepper is softened and cheese is browned.