Easy Mushroom White Wine Cream Sauce Recipe

January 11, 2016 by 8 Comments

One of the things I pride myself on is being able to re-invigorate leftovers into other meals. After a fondue party last year, I had a handful of mushrooms that were left over. I also had various bottles of leftover wine (it was a wine potluck), including a white wine that was open. And, there was a small carton of cream that was in my fridge from a guest who had left it behind after making a chocolate fondue.

To extend the mushrooms and the wine into a full meal (which I also enjoyed with a glass of red wine!), I made this vegetarian and super ridiculously easy mushroom white wine cream sauce recipe.

I put mine on pasta, but these does equally well on rice, or on chicken, pork, etc. As a sauce on protein, this would be enough for 4 people! But on pasta, this was just enough for 2.
Use this Easy Mushroom and White Wine Cream Sauce recipe on pasta to feed 2, or pour it over chicken or other protein to feed 4 or more! Easy MushroomWhite Wine Cream Sauce recipe on pasta
Ingredients:

  • Olive oil
  • 1/4 cup of diced onion (I always keep a frozen bag of diced onion in the freezer!)
  • 1 minced garlic clove
  • 5 mushrooms, thinly chopped
  • 1/2 of a vegetable stock cube: just cut the solid rectangle in half. If you use chicken stock depending on how strong the flavor you may want to use 1/4 instead
  • 1/4 cup white wine
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream

Directions:

  1. In a pan on medium heat, heat a little olive oil. Add the diced onion for a couple minutes until it becomes translucent.
    Add the diced onion for a couple minutes until it becomes translucent.
  2. Then, add, garlic and mushrooms and saute until the mushrooms so that the garlic is not so raw. You don’t need to brown the mushrooms, so this will only take a few minutes.
    For this easy mushroom and white wine cream sauce, you saute briefly onion, garlic, and mushroom
  3. Reduce the heat to low, and carefully pour in the wine. Simmer until the wine has been absorbed by the mushrooms, which should take 5 minutes or so.
    Easy Mushroom and White Wine Cream Sauce - add the wine and let the mushroom absorb it Easy Mushroom and White Wine Cream Sauce - add the wine and let the mushroom absorb it
  4. Crumble in the 1/2 of a vegetable stock cube, and pour in the 1/2 cup of cream. Raise the heat to medium-low, and let it simmer and thicken, about  5-7 minutes.
    Easy Mushroom and White Wine Cream Sauce Recipe - add the wine and let the mushroom absorb it, then add the cream and let thicken Easy Mushroom White Wine Cream Sauce Recipe - add the wine and let the mushroom absorb it, then add the cream and let thicken

It’s pretty crazy right? I can easy pop in 5 mushrooms in my mouth off a vegetable tray. But, here the 5 mushrooms really last by chopping it up into all these little bits into a pretty mushroom-y sauce to take full advantage of the flavor of mushroom.
Easy Mushroom White Wine Cream Sauce Recipe- add the wine and let the mushroom absorb it, then add the cream and let thicken Easy Mushroom White Wine Cream Sauce recipe on pasta

This recipe is so easy, I was making the pasta, the sauce, texting with my family, and talking to F all at the same time. But, it’s such a satisfying sauce, and dinner.
Easy Mushroom and White Wine Cream Sauce recipe on pasta

Do you have any special recipe or trick to transform leftovers into another meal? How do you stretch an ingredient?

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Portland Drink and a Bite Highlight: Imperial

January 8, 2016 by 10 Comments

For Foodie Friday today, I wanted to start a series highlighting a Portland Drink and a Bite of food that I think not only is best in class within Portland, but is a classic representation of the character of Portland. Of course, that Portland Drink and a Bite Highlight is also delicious, and unique.

For the first highlight, I go to the first duo I craved when I returned from being away for 3 weeks or so – the A Radish Walks Into A Bar… cocktail at Imperial.

A Radish Walks into a Bar cocktail, ransom old tom gin, carpano antica vermouth, radish gastrique, lemon, and cracked peppercorns, Imperial PDX, Vitaly Paley

Crafted with Carpano Antica vermouth, Ransom Old Tom gin, lemon, radish gastrique, cracked pepper and salt, and served with a beautiful cube of ice (sourced from PDX ice) that they hand carve from an ice block. This unique cocktail is savory and sour and sweet (it’s name is a nod towards Chef Vitaly Paley’s win in Iron Chef with radish as the secret ingredient). And this cocktail is one of my top 5 favorites in Portland. It’s the best radish cocktail I’ve ever had, and I keep going back to it.

Apparently Portland Monthly agrees with me – it listed it among the Top 10 Cocktails in PDX in March 2015.

I don’t even have to look at the menu – as soon as I sit down (usually maybe once a month or so) at Imperial, I order this cocktail right off the bat, along with a Parker House Roll.
Parker House roll with whipped butter and sea salt, Imperial PDX, Vitaly Paley Parker House roll with whipped butter and sea salt, Imperial PDX, Vitaly Paley

This is the best Parker House Roll I’ve ever had – larger then your fist, served warm with whipped butter and Jacobson sea salt, it’s buttery delicate softness with a hint of sweet is a perfect match for the slight peppery bite of the Radish Walks Into A Bar cocktail, making it a great starter. Every time I go into Imperial, I order the cocktail and roll. I’ve even done this when I was on my way walking to meet others for drinks and dinner – I stopped and got this first!

The rest of the Imperial kitchen and bar is firing on all cylinders, so feel free to add to your meal with a grilled salad, Dougie’s fried chicken, or many other items on the menu. This particular Portland Drink and a Bite feels like it really embodies Portland to me in it’s celebration of Chef Paley with that creative cocktail, paired with a nod towards James Beard with those Parker House rolls, and it gets you into the door of Imperial with it’s Northwest cuisine.

Have you tried this cocktail and/or Imperial’s Parker House Roll before? Do you have a favorite drink and a bite someplace that you think really represents Portland that you’d like to nominate?

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Beer Brunch at Burnside Brewing

January 6, 2016 by Leave a Comment

Are you looking for a brunch without a line and long wait but all the goodness of homemade biscuits, fried chicken, eggs Benedict, french toast, steak and eggs… And is flexible enough to be casual with friends and also family friendly, offers a nice patio to dine outside, and serves brunch on Saturday and Sunday? How about also offers a Bloody Mary or a Beer Brunch with a beermosa? Did you even know you could get all those things at Burnside Brewing?

That’s right, Burnside Brewing is more than the beers they brew and a brewpub offering an excellent burger from their kitchen for lunch and dinner daily. During the respectable hours of 11 AM – 3 PM on Saturday and Sunday, they offer a brunch menu.

Although Burnside is a brewery offering beer, they also have a full bar and wine. That means that you can definitely get your Bloody Mary on here, and they are happy to make you a Beermosa, aka a beer with orange juice. You’ll even get a choice of beer for the beermosa, I recommend the Sweet Heat, a wheat beer brewed with Apricot and Scotch bonnet pepper and 2012 GABF gold medal winner, for a little added heat. Don’t worry about getting too much burn – I thought their Bloody Mary was much mroe spicy than the beermosa with Sweet Heat, though the spiciness of the Sweet Heat does vary by batch. Ask for a little taste of the beer if you’re unsure.
'Burnside

Ask what is the Brunch Board for the day – it changes up often, here you can see it’s a flatbread with ricotta, tomato, olive oil, mushroom, and egg. I enjoyed it as a starter as we were still working out among the group who was ordering what – order it at the same time as your drinks to share.
Burnside Brewing Brunch Board - changes up often, here you can see it's a flastbread with ricotta, tomato, olive oil, mushroom, and egg Burnside Brewing Brunch Board - changes up often, here you can see it's a flastbread with ricotta, tomato, olive oil, mushroom, and egg

Inevitably multiple people in your party will be drawn and want to order the Fried Chicken & Cornbread Waffle served with Bee Local honey butter and maple syrup. Don’t fight! Just order the dish for the table.
Burnside Brewing Brunch menu includes Fried Chicken & Cornbread Waffle served with Bee Local honey butter, maple syrup Burnside Brewing Brunch menu includes Fried Chicken & Cornbread Waffle served with Bee Local honey butter, maple syrup

Also to share for the table get the incredible Thick Cut Bacon, and the perfect mix of crispy and melt in your mouth of the Crushed Potatoes with romesco and herbed crema.
Amazing thick cut bacon at Burnside Brewing bunch Burnside Brewing Brunch Crushed Potatoes with romesco, herbed crema

Burnside Brewing Brunch also offers a few new brunch options beyond the regular that you might want to consider. For instance, there’s the Burnside Hot Brown featuring texas toast, grilled turkey, bacon, mornay, and tomato.
Burnside Brewing Brunch's Hot Brown with texas toast, grilled turkey, bacon, mornay, tomato

I personally went with the Croque Madame with country ham and gruyere in a brioche sandwich, then topped with mornay and sunny up egg.
Burnside Brewing Brunch menu includes Croque Madame with country ham, gruyere, brioche, mornay, sunny up egg Burnside Brewing Brunch menu includes Croque Madame with country ham, gruyere, brioche, mornay, sunny up egg

Have you been to the Burnside Brewing brunch before, and what was your favorite dish? Did you know that Burnside Brewing offers brunch? Have you ever had a beermosa?Where is your to go brunch spot right now?

Disclosure: I attended a Bloggers Brunch where I was able to enjoy complimentary samples of some of the menu at Burnside Brewing.  I will always provide my honest opinion and assessment of all products and experiences I may be given. The views and opinions expressed in this blog are entirely my own

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Recipe for a Vegetarian Southwest Squash Casserole

December 21, 2015 by 5 Comments

While I was in Santa Fe, I saw several times the options for a Southwest Squash Casserole. Instead of the usual burritos or other Mexican food with the generous ladling of red or green (or both, “Christmas style” – get it, using both red and green?) chiles, the Southwest Squash Casserole option sounded less heavy but still celebratory of the namesake southwest chiles. I didn’t have any while I was in Santa Fe, but I was inspired to make one myself.
Recipe for a Vegetarian Southwest Squash Casserole that uses yellow squash, butternut squash, and green chiles and red salsa

This recipe for a Vegetarian Southwest Squash Casserole uses both red salsa and green chiles, as this was my favorite way to enjoy the chiles in Santa Fe (though they used red chiles and green chiles – I dialed down the heat by using a salsa instead). Also, maybe I could never really know which would be the best at any restaurant – the green or the red – so why decide? Why not both?
Recipe for a Vegetarian Southwest Squash Casserole that uses yellow squash, butternut squash, and green chiles and red salsa

In Santa Fe sometimes the green chile came with chunks of shredded chicken in it, but if you get the ones in the can you normally see in the store it will just be the chiles – it’s up to you if you want to add in some shredded cooked chicken to this dish.

Ingredients:

  • 8 cups of squash – I used a mix of yellow squash that I chopped into half moons (they should be at least 1/2 inch thick so they don’t get too mushy) and cubed butternut squash
    A mix of yellow squash and butternut squash for this Vegetarian Recipe for Southwest Squash Casserole
  • 2/3 cup chopped onion
  • 1 4 ounce can of chopped green chiles
    A 4 ounce can of green chiles for the green and salsa adds the red for this Recipe for a Vegetarian Southwest Squash Casserole
  • 2 cups grated cheese, divided – I used a blend of cheddar and jack cheeses
  • 1/4 cup flour
  • 3/4 cup salsa – if it’s not spicy you may want a little more if it’s a chunky salsa you are using, if it’s spicy you might dial it back a little to not overwhelm the dish with too much heat
  • 2 green onions, chopped

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Coat a 11-by-7-inch 2 quart casserole baking dish with cooking spray.
  2. I had to do this in two large mixing bowls because I didn’t have a bowl large enough, but you will want to combine your 8 cups of squash, 2/3 cup chopped onion, the 4 ounces of chopped green chiles, half of your grated cheese (so just 1 cup cheese), and the 1/4 cup flour together and mix. Since I used two mixing bowls, I just put half of everything in each bowl to do the mixing – you will want to flour, onion, and green chiles and cheese to coat all your squash lightly. Then combine the mixture together into your sprayed baking dish. Cover with foil.
    Toss together your squash, cheese, green chlies, chopped onions, and flour for the first step of the Recipe for a Vegetarian Southwest Squash Casserole Toss together your squash, cheese, green chlies, chopped onions, and flour for the first step of the Recipe for a Vegetarian Southwest Squash Casserole Toss together your squash, cheese, green chlies, chopped onions, and flour for the first step of the Recipe for a Vegetarian Southwest Squash Casserole
  3. Bake the casserole until the squash is tender, about 30 minutes. Remove from oven and distribute your salsa over the top, as well as sprinkling over the salsa your last 1 cup of grated cheese.
    Top with salsa for the red in this Recipe for a Vegetarian Southwest Squash Casserole Top with salsa for the red in this Recipe for a Vegetarian Southwest Squash Casserole
  4. Return to the oven uncovered to bake for another 15 minutes or so until the cheese is bubbling. Remove from oven and sprinkle with green onions.
    Recipe for a Vegetarian Southwest Squash Casserole that uses yellow squash, butternut squash, and green chiles and red salsa Recipe for a Vegetarian Southwest Squash Casserole that uses yellow squash, butternut squash, and green chiles and red salsa

Have you ever heard of a Southwest Squash casserole? Did it have this “Christmas” version of red and green chiles, or how was it?

This is my last post until after the holidays: in fact, I actually left for Japan several days before this post went up! So I wanted to take this opportunity to wish you a wonderful warm holiday until 2016, full of new memories and of course lots of deliciousness.

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Rosemary and Cheddar Breakfast Sausage Dip

December 18, 2015 by Leave a Comment

A incredibly delicious recipe I made for brunch one weekend was this Rosemary and Cheddar Breakfast Sausage dip.
Rosemary and Cheddar Breakfast Sausage dip paired with Food Should Taste Good gluten free GMO free Multigrain Chips

The original inspiration that I only did minor tweaks came from the Food Should Taste Good website recipe for Brunch that users breakfast sausage, maple syrup, cheddar cheese and fresh rosemary. They got the recipe courtesy of Amanda Paa of heartbeetkitchen.com. My minor change as that I used sage breakfast sausage and removed the use of salt as I’m not a huge fan of too much salt and I also had some leftover sage that I minced and added as well to help highlight the sage in the sausage I used.

I’ve written about Food Should Taste Good chips before based on an event I attended and made a Mexican Street Corn dip with their Blue Corn Chips, and then again with a Caramelized Onion Jam and Goat Cheese with Sweet Potato Chips.

These  are the Food Should Taste Good multigrain tortilla chips that are paired with this dip are gluten free, GMO free, and include healthy ingredients such as brown rice flour, flax, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, quinoa, and stone ground corn as well as rosemary extract, which will echo the bit of rosemary in the dip.

And, it was a great way to use some of the leftover grated cheddar cheese I had grated (I grated 36 ounces of it for the cheddar fondue recipe I posted earlier on Monday!)

Ingredients:

  • 8 ounces of breakfast sausage
  • 1/4 cup minced onion
  • 3 cups freshly grated cheddar cheese (9 ounces)
  • 2 1/2 tablespoons corn starch
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons fresh rosemary
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 1/2 cups milk
  • 1 tablespoon of maple syrup
  •  bag of Food Should Taste Good Multigrain Chips for serving

Directions:

  1. In a medium sized skillet over medium high heat, add the 8 ounces of breakfast sausage. Crumble it as much as you can as you add it to the plain skillet, and as you cook the sausage crumble it some more to break it up and stir.
  2. When sausage has just a little pink remaining, add the 1/4 cup of minced onion and continue cooking, until meat is no longer pink and onions are translucent. Drain meat (separate it from the oil that emerged – I save the oil in a container to use for fried rice or something else) and set aside to cool.
    Crumble and cook breakfast sausage with minced onion
  3. In a bowl, toss together the 3 cups of freshly grated cheddar cheese, 2 1/2 tablespoons of cornstarch, 1 1/2 teaspoons of rosemary, and 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder. If you use pre-grated packaged cheddar cheese it already has cornstarch and other preservatives in it – I recommend grating the cheese fresh!
  4. In a medium sized saucepan, combine the 1 1/2 cups of milk and 1 tablespoon of maple syrup. Turn the heat to medium and stir constantly while it warms to steaming but not burning. Once it starts steaming, add your cheese rosemary dry mix and continue stirring as the cheese melts.
    Adding the cheese to the warmed milk and maple syrup
  5. Once the cheese is melted and smooth, add the sausage and stir is to distribute the sausage evenly. Pour into a container and serve with the chips!
    Combining the pre cooked breakfast sausage with the melted cheese

This dip is so good I can imagine folding a few spoonfuls into an omelette as well. This feeds 6 people and refrigerated well – I just warmed it up before serving again. I served mine in mini-ramekins with the chips. It’s great for if you have guests staying over for a little fancy extra breakfast side, or just to treat yourself on a cold morning – I justified the healthy multi grain chips as making this cheese and mat dip totally balanced.
Rosemary and Cheddar Breakfast Sausage dip paired with Food Should Taste Good gluten free GMO free Multigrain Chips

If it looks sorta fondue-y… you’re right I thought the same thing! Obviously this isn’t vegetarian, which I wanted for my party, but for brunch for myself, sausage and bacon are fair game right?

What’s your favorite breakfast?

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