Garlic Mushrooms

Holiday Hustle
I’m struggling. I am struggling with the reality that I am cooking for 16 people on Thursday. Don’t get me wrong I LOVE the fact that my entire family will be there laughing and stuffing themselves to the brink with turkey and mashed potatoes. The actual cooking on the day of isn’t that bad. What wears you out is the run-up to Thanksgiving.

For the past few weeks, I have been thinking about how much turkey we need or how many pecan pies is enough. Spoiler alert: there can never be enough, but I did make the pie crusts and have them happily sitting ready to go in my freezer. I have been digging through cabinets and drawers to see if I have enough napkins that are presentable or at the very least aren’t too stained. The wine glass check was next to see if we have enough. We don’t. Too many have been bounced off our floor. Lastly, finding the space to seat 16 has been a bit of a puzzle but I think we have finally figured it out though we might need radios to talk to the people at the other end of the table.

All of this is to say that my brain is tired.

I could definitely use a nap. But, strangely, I am also looking forward to the cooking. The cooking quiets my mind. It is methodical and somewhat logical. But, this is also a scary time where I can get myself into trouble because I overthink things and decide to add just one more side dish like these Garlic Mushrooms. Even though we have enough to feed an army, I want to make sure there is enough for everyone including the veggie lovers.

Garlic Mushrooms Recipe
Adapted from Lexi’s Clean Kitchen
Yields servings

Our Garlic Mushroom recipe is packed with umami flavor and topped with fresh herbs. It is quick to throw together. Serve these at your next holiday or dinner party and everyone will rave about them! Read more…

Mushroom Walnut and Pomegranate Spread with Serrano Chili

Turkey Day Tid Bits
There are a lot of good things about Thanksgiving. But, one of the best, in my opinion, is that the menu is basically set. Sure, you could change things up a bit and do a different side, but you pretty much know what you are going to get. Turkey. Mashed Potatoes. Stuffing. Gravy. Cranberry Sauce. Maybe yams.

The hardest thing about Thanksgiving—again according to me—is figuring out an appetizer for the folks who linger while waiting for the main event.

Not going to lie, I usually go the easy route and grab some dips from our cheese department and put those out with some nice crackers and a veggie platter. This year I am going to put a little more effort into it. At least that is what I am saying now when we are a week out. Talk to me next Thursday…

Our Mushroom Walnut and Pomegranate Spread recipe is the hors d’oeuvre of choice for this Thanksgiving. I am choosing to serve this with crostini rather than pita slices ’cause I prefer the crunch.

Mushroom Walnut and Pomegranate Spread with Serrano Chili Recipe
Yields 4 Servings
Adapted from Shroom by Becky Selengut Read more…

Autumnal Mushroom Soup

Soupin’ Into Your DMs
I don’t spend an awful lot of time on Instagram. But, I do find myself on the app for a multitude of reasons. It has become the go-to app to find out anything and everything happening at my kid’s school. Sports, plays, early out days, etc. Anytime my daughter has a gig, she gets the word out via the ‘Gram. And then there is the Tail of Fragile the Sheep (pronounced fra-GEE-lay) and the hijinks documented on his profile last holiday season. (It’s a long story.)

All of this is to say that I am on Instagram enough that I receive suggestions for pages and videos I might find interesting. And, most of those, as you would imagine, are food-related. Some are fun to watch but I would never tackle.

They are mostly cake-decorating mind-blowing videos. Others are of people making their “famous” dishes that are frightening to behold and would never make an appearance in my kitchen. But then some recipes are undeniable and make you wish you could DoorDash them immediately. This exact scenario happened last week.

Autumnal Mushroom Soup Recipe
Adapted from Whisper of Yum
Yields 4 servings

This hearty soup is a flavorful mix of cremini mushrooms, herbs, and aromatics. It is perfect for an Autumn meal. Read more…

Chicken Marsala

Chicken Marsala Two Ways
I have a new favorite pasta. Normally, I swing back and forth between tomato-based pasta dishes and olive oil or garlicky ones. Last night I took one of my favorite recipes for chicken marsala and turned it into a really good mushroomy bowl of pasta.

There is some magic that occurs when you mix mushrooms, butter, and wine. The flavor just can’t be beat. This is why chicken marsala, (or veal if you want to go traditional) is such a good dish. It seems so fancy—but really, it is simply good comfort food.

The recipe below is the marsala recipe I use when I want to do it straight. (I did add garlic to it). Last night, instead of pounding the chicken breasts into cutlets, I cut them into chunks and browned them before moving on to the rest of the instructions as written. I still added my garlic to the pan with the prosciutto and I may or may not have added just a bit more butter than was asked for.

When everything was all done, I spooned the marsala, sauce and all, over some lightly buttered pasta. It was a flavor bomb of umami awesomeness and a perfect start to the new month. Next time I make this I might try to double the amount of liquid and toss everything together.

Definitely try to get a decent bottle of Marsala wine. It will make all the difference.

Chicken Marsala Recipe
Adapted from Tyler Florence and the Food Network
Yields 4 servings

Here is our adapted version of the original recipe (with garlic!). You can also try it over pasta with the variation at the bottom of the recipe. Read more…