By Ted
Gross
It's like having a pizza only healthier. Facial expressions are
priceless when someone tries something for the first time and gets
an unexpected flavor. Evil as I am, sometimes I just can't help but
pass things off without giving my poor victims any clue. Most of
the children in my family would never eat a mushroom on purpose.
One night each week, my parents, sisters and their children come
for dinner. When I let the children pick what we will have, I let
them help prepare the meal. The little ones are just too cute
getting their hands all messy and looking so proud of themselves
for helping.
I place all the ingredients on the table. They look at the
mushrooms then at me and ask "What are these?"
I tell them they are special pizza molds made for children to
cook with. Of course, my own child is used to my tricks. She will
wait and see what the reaction is from others before trying it for
herself. Surprisingly, there was not one complaint.
You can prepare the mushroom ahead of time and place in the oven
to reheat. I cut the recipe for a smaller serving. I strongly
suggest fresh ingredients for the best flavor.
Wikipedia tells us that Portobello Mushrooms are officially
known as, "Agaricus bisporus". Call them what you will, I also have
some mushroom haters in my family. But I am willing to bet they
would try this dish. And keep in mind mushrooms are incredibly low
in calories which is a great reason to try them in dishes if you
like them!
The recipe requires some finesse in cleaning out the mushrooms
and the first stage of grilling or cooking - but otherwise a great
recipe, and well worth the need to concentrate. It can also be
served as a great appetizer! This is one of those recipes where the
imagination on what to use to stuff the mushrooms is endless. Enjoy
it.
Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms
Ingredients:
1. 4 Portobello Mushrooms
2. 2 Red Peppers (diced)
3. 1 Cup Black Olives (chopped)
4. 1 Bunch Scallions (diced)
5. 3 Large Tomatoes (diced)
6. 2 Cloves Garlic (minced)
7. Approx 1/2 - 3/4 Cup Olive Oil ( best quality you can
afford)
8. 1/4 Cup Balsamic Vinegar
9. 1/4 Cup Fresh Basil
10. 2 Tablespoons Black Pepper
11. 1 Cup Parmesan Cheese (grated)
12. 1 Cup Mozzarella Cheese (Shredded)
Utensils You Need:
1. Unsuspecting guests
2. 1 Baking Sheet
3. Medium pan
Directions:
1. Remove mushroom stems
2. Scrape inside of mushroom with a spoon to clean it out - Do
this with care and patience so you do not destroy the mushroom
head. Finesse counts here!
3. EITHER GRILL: Brush each side with oil and grill for 10
minutes on each side (If grilling mushrooms: Brush both sides with
olive oil and cook on each side for 10 minutes, flipping to prevent
burning.)
4. OR OVEN: If using the oven, cook for 10 - 15 minutes on each
side (If cooking mushrooms in the oven: Brush both sides with olive
oil and cook on each side for 10 -15 minutes.)
5. In medium pan, heat oil.
6. Add garlic and scallions. Cook until tender (about 3-5
minutes)
7. Add basil, pepper, red peppers.
8. Cook over low heat for 10 minutes to allow the flavors to
come together.
9. Allow mixture to cool completely before letting the kiddies
help.
10. Divide the tomato mixture between all of the mushrooms
11. Add black olives
12. Drizzle with balsamic vinegar
13. Top with cheeses
14. Drizzle with olive oil
15. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 -20 minutes
Variations:
1. Add toppings you like
2. Leave off toppings you don't like.
The article
Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms was Submitted by Ted
Gross through Articles.GetACoder.com
network. Here's the additional information: Copyright © 2007 Ted W.
Gross. All rights reserved. (You may publish this article in its
entirety with the following author's information with live links
only.) Ted Gross's award winning cooking blog, (voted best Food
Weblog 2007 & a Google Blog of Note), Help! I
Have A Fire In My Kitchen contains recipes and humor including
recipe submissions from all around the world. The recipe above,
belongs to and was originally published (with images and possibly
additional content) at Help! I Have A Fire In
My Kitchen - a humorous look into the adventures of a single
parent who learned the hard way and with a great deal of
trepidation how to cook, feed his children, friends and the rare
date with a measure of dignity and (hopefully) good food - Recipes
Included! And it is all KOSHER to boot!
