Shrimp & Spinach Stuffed Portobellos

Sometimes, when I have way too much time on my hands, I think about how it was discovered that certain foods are edible.

I'm sure everyone's thought about who the first guy was to eat a chicken egg - imagine his wife's face when that happened. "Honey, what are you doing? Don't play with that. Stop bothering the chicken! What are you doing with that frying pan...? OH MY GOD."

Similarly, the potato (once deemed poisonous), escargot (Seriously, who thought that one up? Whoever you are though, thank you!), and caviar seem equally as unappetizing when the attempt is made to look at them as if you'd never seen them before. Who's going to pull up a plant, see some weird looking round tuber thing stuck to its roots...and then decide to put it in their mouth? Also, how many raw potatoes were eaten before it was discovered that they're way better cooked?

All that being said, the mushroom is another one of these mystical, extremely tasty foods that frequently makes its way to our dinner plates that, at any point in our culinary history, could easily have been discarded as poison - or just plain gross. I mean, picture it in your head, walking through the damp woods your boot kicks over a bit of leaf litter revealing a spongy, brown plant. It's covered in dirt and leaves, possibly some kind of protective mucus - who's first thought is, "Gee, I should put this in my mouth"? (I know that question mark isn't where it's supposed to be - sue me.)

Again, whoever it was that tried them first - thanks. Because mushrooms are insanely delicious. Especially when they're stuffed with spicy shrimp, cheese, and spinach and then baked until they're hot and bubbly with yummy goodness.

My brother-in-law gave me the idea of pairing shrimp with sriracha - a spicy Asian condiment - while I was in Florida. For this idea I will be forever grateful. It's quite possibly my new favorite thing in the world. If you've never tried sriracha (pronounced sir-a-cha), or never tried shrimp cooked in a little butter and sriracha - you must immediately drop everything that you are doing and go make some right now. NOW.

I decided that instead of using ridiculous amounts of mayo or cream cheese to hold it all together that I'd use Laughing Cow Cheese. It's a spreadable cheese (great on Wheat Thins) that's only 35 calories per serving. I used the Garlic & Herb one - they're pretty tasty. I keep those and the little Babybel cheeses in the house at all times. They're been a great snack while I've been trying to lose weight (23 lbs. so far! 10 more, I'll be at 120, and life will be good!). Now that I recognize the versatility of the spreadable ones though, I definitely won't be giving them up when I quit trying to lose weight.

Even if you don't try the whole recipe, for whatever reason, I cannot stress this enough. Every single person in this world (except those allergic to shrimp) should try shrimp cooked in sriracha.

It will change your life.



Shrimp & Spinach Stuffed Portobellos

Serves 2

8 oz frozen spinach, thawed and drained of all water
1/4 small onion, minced
1 garlic clove, minced
2 Laughing Cow Spreadable cheeses
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 Babybel Light, cut into small pieces (substitute mozzarella or other light cheese)
salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
10 large shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon sriracha
2 portobello caps

Preheat oven to 375 F

In a medium mixing bowl combine spinach, onion, garlic, cheeses and mayo. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside. In a skillet over medium-high heat melt the butter. Cook the shrimp until just pink, toss with sriracha. Set aside. Place the portobello caps gills side up in a casserole dish. Bake at 375 for 10 minutes. Remove from oven. Top each cap with half the shrimp and half the spinach mixture. Return to oven and bake for a further 15 minutes, or until the spinach is heated through and the cheese is warm and bubbling.

Nutritional Estimate

This is a nutritional estimate, I do not claim it to be exact - although it is pretty close.

1 serving equals one whole stuffed portobello cap

Calories: 245
Carbohydrates: 15g
Fat: 15g
Protein: 18g

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CORRECTION 6/27: I am a numbskull and forgot to include the tablespoon of butter in my nutritional estimate. Therefore, the new estimate is:

Calories: 296
Carbohydrates: 15g
Fat: 20g
Protein: 18g

I would also like to point out that in omitting the mayonnaise saves 180 calories and 20g of fat, effectively halving the fat content of the recipe. This would make each cap only 206 calories and 10g of fat.

Wild Mushroom Agnolotti with Cognac-Cream Sauce and Baby Pea Shoots

I hope I'm not starting to sound like a Foodbuzz broken record, but once again they've sent me a tasty treat to try and review. I promise, I'm not totally in their pocket!

This time I was sent a package of Buitoni Riserva Wild Mushroom Agnolotti to try. I'd been seeing the advertisements for this in Gourmet and Bon Apetit and was thinking of trying it out anyways.

I'm a marketing director's dream - show me enough pretty pictures and I'll try anything. I may not go back for seconds, but I'll at least try it once.

I'm notorious for watching TV (back when I had a TV) and after seeing an advertisement developing a huge craving for whatever they were advertising. It's pathetic really.

This time the product has lived up to the hype, though. The ravioli were truly outstanding - some of the best storebought ravioli I've ever had.

I actually just took a moment to google the other Foodbuzz blogger reviews and it appears that just about everyone likes them. We may sound brainwashed, but I assure you they really are quite impressive for a grocery store selection.

I know that next time I need a quick meal I'd be more likely to pick these up then the ravioli I've chosen in the past from the freezer section.

I must admit after first opening the package they didn't look all that fantastic, but they more than made up for it with flavor. I thought it was kind of silly that they promote it as 'wild mushroom' ravioli filled with cremini and portabello mushrooms. First of all, they're the exact same mushroom, merely at different stages of maturity. Secondly, they're both cultivated - not wild.

But, no matter. They were tasty. I won't complain anymore about silly marketing ploys.

I decided to participate in the contest Foodbuzz and Buitoni are holding for a sauce recipe, so I made a cognac-cream sauce with sauteed creminis and baby pea shoots. It's a simple recipe, very easy and quick to make, and has a pleasant complexity of flavor that really complements the ravioli.



Wild Mushroom Agnolotti with Cognac-Cream Sauce and Baby Pea Shoots

1 9 oz package Buitoni Riserva Wild Mushroom Agnolotti
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 medium shallot, minced
4 medium cremini mushrooms, sliced
50 ml Courvoisier, or other cognac (50 ml is one of those little airport size bottles, about 3 tablespoons)
1/2 pint heavy cream (not ultra-pasteurized)
baby pea shoots
kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

In a skillet over medium-high heat, melt the butter. Cook the shallots and mushrooms, stirring occasionally, until caramelized and cooked through. Remove the mushrooms to a separate plate, cover with tin foil to keep warm.

In the same skillet pour the cognac, be very careful if using a gas stove - the cognac will ignite if poured over the flame. Let the cognac boil until reduced by half. Add the cream all at once, bring to a boil stirring constantly. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Reduce by half.

Meanwhile, boil the pasta in salted water with 1 tablespoon of olive oil about 3-5 minutes, or until ravioli float to the top. Strain the ravioli and add to the skillet with the cream sauce. Allow to cook further for about 2 minutes.

Plate several ravioli, topped with half the cremini mushrooms and a generous handful baby pea shoots. Serve immediately.

Pappardelle with Chicken and Mushroom Ragu

This is another recipe I found in Gourmet's Gourmet Everyday section. It took a few moments to explain to Mr. TA that this was a ragu.

Mr. TA: "No it's not, ragu is that pasta sauce in a bottle."

Me: "No, this is ragu."

Mr. TA "That's not true, you made that up"

Me: "OK, fine. I'm lying to you. I like to make up words about food I make just to mess with your head."

Mr. TA: "I know. You're sneaky like that."

This is coming from the man that insists I made up the word 'charcuterie.' I have absolutely no idea what to say to that. Umm...no?

So, this stuff turned out pretty bitchin' if I do say so myself. It might be my complete awesomeness as a chef (so not the case) or it may be the 18 year balsamic MiL brought me a few weeks ago. Yeah, I'm going with the balsamic too.



I did make a few adjustments to the recipe, as always. I used shredded chicken from a whole bird instead of thighs, a tin of diced tomatoes in juice instead of whole, egg noodles instead of pappardelle (they def don't sell that at the commissary) and about 5 oz. of frozen, chopped collard greens instead of the arugula. I'm sorry, when I realize the only thing I don't have to make a recipe is the arugala, I'm so not running to the store just for that. Speaking of arugala, have you seen this? And anyone who knows me knows I'm a die hard liberal wildly in love with Barack Obama, so don't leave any nasty comments. I do, however, have a great sense of humor. (I'm humble too!)



Pappardelle with Chicken and Mushroom Ragu

6 ounces cremini mushrooms
3 garlic cloves
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/4 pounds skinless boneless chicken thighs, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 small onion, chopped
3/4 teaspoon chopped rosemary
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 (28-ounce) can whole tomatoes in juice
1/2 pound dried pappardelle
5 ounces baby arugula (about 8 cups)

Pulse mushrooms and garlic in a food processor until finely chopped. (I pulsed the onion, diced the mushroom - be a rebel)

Heat oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium-high heat until it shimmers. Season chicken with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until just golden, about 3 minutes. Transfer with a slotted spoon to a bowl.

Reduce heat to medium and cook onion, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 3 minutes.

Add mushroom mixture, rosemary, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper and cook, stirring constantly, until beginning to brown, about 4 minutes.

Add vinegar and cook until evaporated. Add chicken and tomatoes (with juice), then simmer, breaking up tomatoes with a spoon and stirring occasionally, until sauce is just thickened, about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook pappardelle in a pasta pot of boiling salted water (2 tablespoons salt for 6 quarts water) until al dente.

Add arugula to sauce and stir until wilted. Stir in drained pasta and cook 1 minute.

Asparagus & Mushroom Orzotto with Feta

I subscribe to a few different food magazines, one of them being Vegetarian Times. I'm not a vegetarian, but I've spent most of my life avoiding most meat. Only recently have I really made meat my main protein source in my diet and that's simply because I've fallen into a rut with cooking. I've been so busy with school lately that it's so much easier to throw a last minute steak on the grill than to actually think up a menu and stick to it. But, my body's not really loving me for it. Plus, I do have a little moral issue with meat. Not all meat, but commercially raised meat. I was raised with a healthy respect for all life, and if something is going to be giving up its life to sustain me then it better be damn well treated humanely while it was on this earth. Modern factory-farming is just not that. It's a horrible, evil thing and I feel like a complete wretch every time I buy meat at the grocery store. I also think that if one is willing to eat meat then one should be willing it kill the animal, but that's a long story and is not the time nor here the place. So, I've been looking through my past issues of VT, hoping to find some healthier alternatives to our meals as of late.

This Asparagus and Mushroom Orzotto recipe was found in the last issue of Vegetarian Times. It was paired with a veg Osso Bucco that sounded particularly delicious. However, I am fundamentally unable to follow a recipe so I ended up changing it quite a bit. First off, I don't usually have vegetable stock, so chicken stock it is - and there goes vegetarian right off the menu. It wanted me to add parmesan, I wanted to add feta, you see, we just weren't getting along. So, as per usual, I just did whatever I felt like.

Thankfully it turned out pretty fantastic.



Asparagus & Mushroom Orzotto with Feta

2 Tbs. olive oil
1 Tbs. unsalted butter
1/2 cup diced onion
2 cloves garlic, minced (2 tsp.)
1 bunch asparagus spears, trimmed and sliced on bias into thirds
6 oz. cremini mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
1 cup orzo
3-4 cups chicken stock, warmed
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
1/2 cup feta, crumbled

Heat olive oil and butter in large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and saute 5 minutes, or until soft. Add garlic, and saute 2 minutes. Add asparagus and mushrooms, and saute 5 to
7 minutes, or until mushrooms start to release their juices. Add 1/2 cup orzo and cook 3 to 5 minutes, or until lightly browned. Add remaining orzo, and cook
3 minutes more, or until all pasta bits are browned. Stir in 1/2 cup vegetable broth,
parsley, and thyme, and simmer 2 to 3 minutes, or until orzo has absorbed all liquid, stirring often. Continue adding broth to orzo 1/2 cup at a time until all liquid is absorbed and orzo cooked through. Remove from heat, and top with feta and a crack or two fresh ground black pepper.