Italian Sausage Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms

 

This week's inspiration came from admiring a similar item in the meat section of a local grocery store.  In-store made Italian sausage stuffed Portobello mushrooms caught our eye while shopping one night.  I decided not to buy them but to try and make them as part of my blog instead.  I did an internet search for a few recipes and decided that I was okay to combine a few recipes on my own.   I never measured anything, so I apologize.  This is what I did.

 

First, I scramble fried some high quality hot Italian sausage.  I decided to buy the links and cut off the casing as the sausages looked better than the sausage meat.  (so..cut off casing, and fry the inside meat breaking it down as it cooks.).  Once the meat was cooked, I then sautéed some diced onions and peppers in the fat drippings from the sausage and added fresh spinach, allowing it to wilt.  I added more spinach periodically until the green colour looked balanced with the orange pepper.   Once the veggies were all softened, I added a small/medium can of tomato sauce and added in seasonings like dried basil, dried oregano, and black pepper.  I did not add salt nor did I add chili peppers to allow the flavour of the sausage shine through.  I then divided this mixture onto four Portobello mushrooms that had been prepped (cleaned, stems removed and placed on a foil lined cookie sheet).  I added some grated jalepeno cheddar on top of each.  Then, these yummy concoctions baked in a 350 F oven until they were done....maybe 20 minutes?  Done is supposed to look like the mushrooms softened and the cheese melted and golden brown ( I overcooked mine slightly....oops).

 

These were an ABSOLUTE hit!!   We usually make Portobello mushroom pizzas on a regular basis (basically make a pizza using the mushroom as your crust and bake them in the oven).  The Italian sausage mixture kicked it up MANY notches.   This will replace our Portobello pizzas for sure!  Next time, I would just add fresh basil and fresh oregano to the mixture (the store was out of these, and my garden is not quite there, yet...).  I have no more words to describe the experience you will have when you eat these.  If you like the ingredients I used and if you like a balance of textures, flavours, and colours in your food, you will love these! 

 



 

 

Italian Sausage Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms

Side View

Cauliflower Corn Chowder

A healthier version of a chowder caught my eye as I was perusing an issue of Canadian Living magazine.  Too good to be true, so I just had to try it out.  Pureed cauliflower instead of cream?  Interesting!

This recipe is good on its own, but I also think it offers an excellent base for a lot of chowder variations.  I enjoyed the soup, but I did find it offered a bit of sweetness....could be that my taste buds are changing a bit or that I had super sweet corn and a super sweet red pepper by chance.    The recipe does recommend to add chicken as a variation, but we are more seafood or clam chowder fans....(I know, I know....but we are saving our calories from no cream, right?).   So....I can see this being made again with the addition of prawns, scallops, and/or salmon or with just clams.  I am also curious to try it with some potato in it as well to make it super hearty.   There are many possibilities for this recipe next fall and winter for sure!

I would disagree with the hands-on time of 30 minutes unless I am a bit slower at prepping food.  I even cheated and used canned corn kernels instead of husking corn cobs, and it took me over 30 minutes from start to finish.  Having said that, it is still very doable on a week night.  Be sure to read the intro paragraph warning about taking the vent off your blender lid and covering it with a tea towel as the hot soup can cause pressure inside the blender!  That would not be fun to deal with after a day at work.....or anytime, really.....

Here is the on-line version of the recipe: 

http://www.canadianliving.com/food/cauliflower_corn_chowder.php

Enjoy!

Cauliflower Corn Chowder

Thai Cucumber Cups

Today marked a great occasion!   My copy of The Whole30 cookbook FINALLY came in.  I was so excited that I just had to make a recipe from it immediately!  I went with the Thai Cucumber Cups.  I have seen the hollowed out cucumber cup technique at many social gatherings...usually with seafood sauce and shrimp.  I have never seen them with ground meat, and I have never tried the cucumber cup technique.

I am not enclosing the recipe for this one, but it IS very good.  (the cookbook is brand new, so there are not any links on-line).  I have just flipped through the book today, but it is definitely highly recommended to non-vegetarians at first glance.  I am certain more recipes will appear in future blogs.

As far as an actual recipe.... I guess you should buy the book!!!  or.... I think that one could find their own way by simply googling "Thai Cucumber Cups" or even using the recipe from one of my previous blogs.  I would use the meat mixture from the Korean Beef Lettuce Wraps and put that inside the cucumber cups.  The Whole30 recipe is great as there is not any type of sweetener in it.  From a quick internet search, it seems that a lot of the recipes on-line had some sort of sweetener.  After eating these, the sugar definitely was not missed.

I would serve these to company that was very comfortable to me as they can be quite messy.  I am not sure I would bring these to a gathering of strangers for the mess factor.  All in all, both my husband and I enjoyed these for dinner and can see them being made again in our home.

BBQ Glazed Mini Meatloaves

This week's recipe is going to accomplish a few things.  Naturally, I am meeting my goal of trying a new recipe with the added bonus of having a new meal I can make at home and share with others.   The super added bonus is that I found yet another recipe that will be able to be used in my Foods 9 program as this recipe is very easy to make!  Gotta love when things work out like that!

I was worried at first with this recipe as I didn't love the taste of the sauce as I was making it....BUT...once it was all done, this recipe tasted awesome!  It took a bit of convincing to myself to use ground beef as I tend to only use ground turkey, but I am glad I stuck to the recipe for the first round.  I might consider using ground turkey next time just to compare.  I love the addition of grated carrots, grated zucchini, and wheat bran for added nutrition.  I was also surprised that it did not require an egg.  When I make this at home next time, I will double the recipe for sure as these make a nice leftover lunch or are also fun to have around for a snack.

This recipe reminded me of the salsa stuffed muffin meatloaves that I also found with Canadian Living magazine and that have now been part of my Foods 9 program.  The problem now is that I like aspects of BOTH recipes, so.....my next step for this recipe is to combine the two recipes into one for my Foods 9 program. (SEE LINKS BELOW FOR BOTH RECIPES)  I am still thinking on what I will keep and what I will eliminate.  Will I  keep the wheat bran, carrot, and zucchini and eliminate the black beans?   I am torn between the salsa versus the homemade sauce.  I like the seasoning of the chili powder and think I will use fresh garlic instead of green onions.  I will not use an egg nor the cheese.  I might just present both recipes and allow the students to play and make up their own creations.   It will take some playing and some feedback from the students this year to perfect it for next year.  Whatever choices come into play in the weeks to come,  I know that these will be a hit with the students as they love the salsa stuffed muffin meatloaves.  For me, it is more about the technique of making the mini meatloaves and demonstrating that there are many different possibilities.  How exciting!  I hope that you, too, have some fun playing around with these two delicious recipes. 


http://www.canadianliving.com/food/bbq_glazed_mini_meat_loaves.php


http://www.canadianliving.com/food/quick_and_easy/salsa_stuffed_muffin_meat_loaves.php

 

BBQ Glazed Mini Meatloaves

BBQ Glazed Mini Meatloaves

Tropical Avocado Tart with Coconut Crust

WOW!   OMG!  Yumm!  HMMMM!   This is sooooo good!   These are a few of the phrases/sounds you might hear if you serve this for dessert.  This dessert will WOW anyone who tries it - guaranteed!  Not only is it visually stunning and colourful, but it is also VERY VERY delicious (and this is an understatement!).  I also like that as far as desserts go, this one is pretty healthy.  I personally like that it is not overly sweet and LOVE the added bonus of all the fruit!   Thanks again, ALIVE magazine!

I am not much of a dessert maker, as I tend to prefer to cook and eat savoury dishes.  I have about three "go to" desserts that I like to make for company.  After trying this recipe out, I now have four!  As long as you have a food processor and a springform pan.....you are good to go with this recipe.  It is fairly simple to make.  Cutting and arranging the fruit is the most time consuming part.  You do need to plan ahead as the tart needs to chill for a minimum of 6 hours AND needs to rest at room temperature prior to serving.  Even if it is served a bit frozen, it will still be amazing!

I would not change a thing in this recipe, except the fruit.  As you can see if you compare the website photo to mine, I did have to alter the fruit slightly.   The arranging of the fruit is obviously the fun part, and it can be fun for the whole family!  I had two assistants, age 3 and almost 10 help me out with the cutting, design and placing of the fruit.  It was actually my niece's idea to place extra fruit on the actual serving plate too so that people could get some of the fruit that wasn't going to be in their piece.  So, if anything, I guess one could play around with the design to get a variety of fruit on each slice....

I highly recommend making this dessert as the weather warms up.   You will find it to be VERY refreshing! 


http://www.alive.com/recipes/view/1410/tropical_avocado_tart_with_coconut_crust

Ahi Tuna Tostadas

This week's inspiration comes from two amazing meals we had over Easter break.  We had the opportunity to have some truly AMAZING authentic Mexican food prepared by my aunt's friend.  She made MANY things, but one course included some tostadas.  Then, hubby and I had yummy ahi tuna tostadas as an appy at a restaurant the next evening.  One game that I liked to play with my mom while growing up was....eat some yummy food at a restaurant and try to recreate it at home....So...it began....we tried to combine both tostada ideas into our own creation.  Sorry, folks, no recipe link here.....but this was definitely new for us!

 

We started with some tostadas, which can be found in the Mexican section of the International Aisle in most grocery stores.  We would reconsider here and try soft corn tortillas or simply use tortilla chips for the more elegant ahi tuna.  I would use tostadas for shredded chicken, ground meat, or pulled pork for sure.   We then spread some chipotle aioli on the tostada.  (sounds fancy...this is just canned chipotle peppers with the adobo sauce blended to taste with some mayo...you might want to add some fresh lime..can get spicy!).  The tuna was ahi tuna from the seafood shop that we pressed and covered entirely with chili powder.  This needs to be quickly seared on both sides in a frying pan or on the bbq.   We tried the bbq but might try a frying pan next time.  The toppings are endless....we used sliced radishes, sliced avocado, jicama matchsticks, chopped tomatoes and a salad.  The salad consisted of grated carrot, minced cilantro, sliced napa cabbage, and sliced romaine lettuce tossed with lime juice, olive oil, and salt and pepper.

 

So...sorry....no exact measurements this time....This is a taste and see / get creative type of dish!  The result was flavourful, surprisingly filling, and very, very refreshing!   We WILL be making these again...perhaps as an elegant appy on the tortilla chips or as a meal with soft tortillas to hold in all of our veggies!  Hope you make this one day, too!

 

 

 

 

Ahi Tuna Tostadas

Brussels Sprouts with Pancetta

Well - here it is - the Tuesday AFTER Easter, and we are making Brussels sprouts as a side dish for our work night dinner.   Indeed, we are, perhaps, the rare couple as we both love these little morsels.  A conversation with my esthetician on the weekend combined with a quick internet search before work today resulted in finding this recipe for Brussels sprouts with pancetta.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/brussels-sprouts-with-pancetta-recipe.html


The recipe offered a LOT of flavour.  I would definitely NOT add any salt, plus I would consider using a NO SALT broth or making your own.  The salt from the pancetta provided enough salt for the recipe.   In the future, I guess some variations would be to try bacon instead of pancetta, but pancetta just sounds that much classier.  (side note....you might want to cook extra as the pancetta is very easy for those who nibble while you cook....or who have others who nibble while you cook....or both).    I started off by cooking the sprouts whole and pan searing them whole.  Part way through searing them, I watched the video and it seemed like they were in half there.  I am still a bit confused as they are whole in the photo on the website.  I might try cutting them in half after blanching them just to get a more browned look on the flat, cut part....

Overall - we loved both the texture and the flavour.  The chicken broth adds a whole new flavour to one of our regular side dishes.  We usually just steam them.  I tried oven roasting them once and was given strict instructions not to do that again as the texture was too soft.   This recipe is simple, elegant, delicious and fairly nutritious.  I will be making this recipe next time we host a traditional family dinner just to see if we can convert anyone else to liking or even loving Brussels sprouts.  YUM!

Brussels Sprouts with Pancetta