Multiple good uses for fresh Mushroom Brushetta topping

It was one of the last recipes remaining to be cooked from my “Celebrating a Healthy Harvest” book, which features two recipe ideas for almost every veggie and fruit around. I’ve checked off almost every item and blogged about them in this column. Very few untested ones remain. Yet I’d been unable to find an occasion for Mushroom Bruschetta, an appetizer.

But when I studied the recipe, I realized this mushroom dish, sautéed with onion and seasonings, could be just as good a topping for burgers or for chicken and rice as it would be spread on French or Italian bread, as the recipe specified. I decided to get some fresh mushrooms, cook them up, and just see where this topping landed.

Wow, was this a sensational dish! (courtesy Chickasaw Nutrition Services, which published the cookbook). Actually the topping landed on all of the above mentioned items except for burgers, but I promised myself that it would be a do-again next time I have some turkey burgers on the grill. The blending of the mushrooms and onions (I actually used red onions) along with the curry set the stage for a tremendous mixing of flavors. This grew better with each day it had “leftover” status. The picture above shows the topping on French bread slices that had been toasted in the oven before I added the mushroom spread. I certainly could see this as a party dish.

I was sorry I had held off trying Mushroom Bruschetta, but it had been worth the wait.

Mushroom Bruschetta

1 tablespoon cooking oil

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

2 teaspoons curry powder

1 pound button mushrooms, diced

1 medium onion, peeled and diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 teaspoons dried oregano

2 tablespoons vinegar

1/2 cup fresh parsley (or 2 tablespoons dried parsley)

1 loaf Italian or French bread

Heat oil, pepper, and curry powder in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in the mushrooms, onions, garlic, and oregano. Cover and cook for 3 to 4 minutes or until desired doneness. Remove the pan from the heat; mix in the vinegar and parsley. Cut bread into 16 half-inch slices; toast. Place 2 rounded tablespoons of mushroom mixture on each toast slice; serve. Makes 12 appetizer servings.

Cauliflower and Mushroom Soup restores healthy-eating pattern

Sitting around our house sniffling after our grandmunchkin departed his week from Camp G&G, we knew we had to do something vastly different than we had in our past seven days. Meals had pretty much revolved around his dining schedule; to a certain extent, our diet marched in step with his finger foods and whatever a 1-year-old would eat. Now the time had arrived to get back to our strategic healthy ways.

I had been saving a recipe for Cauliflower and Mushroom Soup from the recent “perfect pairings” feature of the September 2011 Prevention magazine. I was intrigued by this dish because I hadn’t exactly been able to see how a soup was going to materialize out of the simple ingredients of fresh mushrooms, leeks, and cauliflower. I should have trusted my source—Prevention, which around our house is a major resource for all things healthy. This soup was delicious and simple to make.

The key involves pureeing in a blender the combined cauliflower and leeks that for about 20 minutes have simmered in 5 cups water. After pureeing until the mixture is smooth and thick, you return the soup to its original kettle and stir in sauteed fresh mushrooms and grated Parmesan. I sprinkled a little extra Parmesan on top and also dotted the soup with some herb-seasoned croutons I had on hand.

This is not a soup you’d expect to find on the dinner table every day, but it was perfectly delightful and a good trailblazer to get us back on our Post-Camp G&G healthy-eating track.

Cauliflower and Mushroom Soup

4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1/2 pound sliced fresh mushrooms

4 thin leeks, white and pale green parts, sliced

2 pound cauliflower, cut into florets

1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan

salt (or salt substitute) and pepper to taste

In pot over medium-high heat, heat 2 tablespoons oil. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, about 8 minutes. Transfer mushrooms to bowl. Add 1 tablespoon oil to pot and cook leeks, stirring, for 2 minutes. Stir in cauliflower and 5 cups water. Simmer 20 minutes. In blender puree mixture (in batches) until smooth. Return soup to pot; add mushrooms and Parmesan. Season to taste. Bring soup just to a simmer. Ladle soup into bowls. Among the bowls drizzle 1 tablespoon of olive oil. If you like, top soup with croutons. Makes 6 servings.

Think cream-of-mushroom soup only happens in a can? Try this from-scratch version.

Recently someone told me she dined on “mushroom soup—not the kind you get from a can, but mushroom soup from scratch”. That idea tickled my fancy. I mean, don’t you just get mushroom soup by visiting the Campbell’s section of the soups aisle at the store and run the can rim under the opener? What would something of this nature taste like if it were from-scratch?

My recipe yesterday for Mushroom Burger Topping provided me with some leftover fresh mushrooms and a couple of additional leeks. Lo and behold, my Celebrating a Healthy Harvest cookbooklet featured a Fresh Mushroom Soup recipe that included both of these. I was ready to tackle it and see what difference is made from preparing this pantry staple from one's own ingredients.

I browned the sliced, fresh mushrooms in the bottom of a heavy stock pot; I removed them and then browned the chopped leek and added the wheat flour for thickening. (You also can use chopped onion if you don't have leeks on hand.) Into the mix went homemade chicken broth (collected from my stovetop pan after earlier boiling some chicken pieces). The simmered, thickened mixture went into a blender for pureeing before I added the low-fat evaporated mix and seasonings.

Man, did I feel pleased with myself when I finally was able to sample the finished brew! Homemade mushroom soup, along with some warm, crusty wheat bread—and the only can I opened was the one for the evaporated milk!

Fresh Mushroom Soup

2 tablespoons cooking oil

1 1/2 pounds fresh mushrooms, washed and sliced

1 large leek, chopped (white and green parts)

3 tablespoons wheat flour or corn starch

6 cups chicken broth (if using canned variety, choose reduced-sodium broth)

3/4 cup low-fat evaporated milk

1 tablespoon fresh parsley

salt and pepper to taste

In a large stock pot over medium heat cook mushrooms in 2 tablespoons of oil until the mushrooms are browned. Set mushrooms aside. Add 1 tablespoon oil to the pan. Add the chopped leek. Cook until soft, about 3 minutes. Stir in the flour (or corn starch); cook for another 2 minutes. Set aside one cup of mushrooms. To the pan add remaining mushrooms and broth. Gently simmer for 15 minutes; stir occasionally. Cool soup, then puree it in the blender until the liquid reaches desired texture. Add in reserved mushrooms, evaporated milk, and parsley. Stir; heat to serving temperature. Makes 6 servings.