Recipe: Simple Mushroom Tart!

If you remember, I bought some mushrooms at the Richmond Specialty Mushroom Farms stall at the Trout Lake Farmers Market one weekend.



I bought a combination of crimini and portobellos, and rounded out the mix with some dried lobster mushrooms that I'd bought the same afternoon at Whole Foods.



I have to admit, as I was strolling about the farmers market that day, this recipe materialized in my head. An assortment of mushrooms sauteed with shallots in a light wine & cream base, and baked atop puff pastry. A variation on this would be a cream of mushroom soup with the puff pastry tops baked on to individual ramekins - yum!



...forgot to mention that I bought a pair of gigantuan shallots at the Langley Farmers Co-Op stall at Trout Lake as well: check them out! they were about three inches in diameter!

Ingredients
About 8 to 10 large mushrooms - I used crimini and portobello, sliced
1/3 cup dried lobster mushrooms
1 huge shallot, or 2-3 smaller ones, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 t thyme
Salt & Pepper to taste
1/4 c Dry white wine
1/4 c cream
1 recipe rough puff pastry, chilled, or thawed overnight in refrigerator if previously frozen
2 T chopped parsley, divided

Method
Soak the lobster mushrooms in about 1 cup of cool water for at least 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 425ºF.

Meanwhile, prepare the fresh mushrooms by heating a couple tablespoons of olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Saute the shallots, stirring to coat with oil. Cook for 1-2 minutes. Add garlic; cook 30 seconds, stirring. Add sliced fresh mushrooms and stir to coat with oil. Season with salt, pepper, and thyme, and cook 2-4 minutes, stirring. Add drained lobster mushrooms.

Deglaise the pan with white wine; allow to cook off and add cream. Cook until mixture has thickened slightly. Taste and reseason if necessary. Stir in 1 tablespoon of chopped parsley.

Remove from heat and cool to room temperature.

Roll out puff pastry on a floured surface to a rectangle approximately 14" x 12". Using a long, sharp knife, trim the dough. Cut approximately 1/2 off each side of the rectangle for the border. Press these strips onto the rectangular base. Chill dough at this point if necessary.

Transfer crust onto parchment-lined baking sheet.

Spoon mushroom mixture onto puff pastry dough. Arrange any mushroom tops attractively on top. Sprinkle with remaining chopped parsley. Bake for 20-30 minutes or until pastry is crisp through. Enjoy warm.



I do have to say that this is very classically French. I don't know what drew me to make something like this - I guess clean, rich food and flavours?

Looking forward to cooking with more Farmers Markets finds this year!

Recipe: Wasabi & Honey Glazed Salmon with Herb Buttered Mushrooms

We lucked out and picked up two portions of salmon for about $5 each this weekend, so I marinated them and pan fried for a healthy dinner.



I started with the salmon first, since it needed time to marinate. This can be done the night before, or about an hour before you intend to cook the salmon.

Ingredients
1/4 c olive oil
3 T soy sauce (light)
1 1/2 T honey
1 T brown or yellow sugar (I prefer brown, but only had yellow sugar)
2 T rice vinegar
2 T dijon mustard
1/2 t garlic powder
1 t wasabi powder

About 900 grams / 2 lbs of fresh sockeye salmon fillet portions, skin on

Method
In a non reactive bowl or lidded container, combine all ingredients except for salmon. Stir or whisk to disolve the sugar and wasabi powder, and to incorporate the mustard. Add the salmon and allow to marinate overnight, or approximately one hour.

When ready to cook, heat a tablespoon of canola oil in a wok or pan over medium heat. Cook salmon, skin side down for approximately two minutes. Flip salmon over with a spatula and finish for five to seven minutes on other side, or until salmon is pink and cooked through.

Optionally, you could flip the salmon over and finish in an oven set to 400ºF for about three to five minutes.

I served my salmon with some fried tofu, a generous sprinkling of dukkah (it was really nice with the salmon!), and a side of sauteed mushrooms with bell pepper.

Ahh, herb-buttered mushrooms. Its pretty much the favourite vegetable sidedish for all my major family "western food" functions. Trust me, the photos do not do it justice.

Ingredients
2 T olive oil
1/4 onion, sliced
3-5 cloves of garlic, minced
8-12 good sized mushrooms, sliced
1 bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1/4 t thyme
1/4 t oregano
salt & pepper
2 T white wine
~1 T butter

Method
In a wok or a pan, heat olive oil over medium heat and saute onion, separating with a wooden spoon and stirring until onion is opaque. Add minced garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes more, stirring to prevent burning.

Add mushrooms and cook, stirring and tossing pan for about 3 minutes. Add bell pepper and cook 2 minutes more. Season with thyme, oregano, salt and pepper. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary.



Add white wine (I used a cheapie, Night Harvest 2008 Sauvignon Blanc) and allow to reduce, stirring contents of pan. Remove from heat and monte au beurre with tablespoon of butter.

His and Hers Bentos

Another lunchtime favourite: bentos!

Although I don't have the skill or the craft to make elaborate, tasty and healthy bentos, I couldn't help but snap a photo of the lunches I packed for today for the beau and myself.



We have some lovely spicy, sweet and fragrant Carribean chicken drumsticks, herb-buttered mushrooms sauteed with onions and garlic, russet and red potato frites, topped with some creamy avocado. His and hers bentos? Well obviously the man has the triple helping of drumsticks on the left, while I have the two smaller boxes of food on the right.

This was a fairly cheap meal, considering we picked up the drumsticks at $0.99 / lb at Sunrise Market this weekend. We also picked up a pair of lovely avocados for $0.69/each. I snatched them up as I'd read that the price of avocadoes was going to soar this year. I'd also seen them advertised at chain supermarkets at the "sale" price of upwards of $1.25 each! So when I saw them at only 69 cents at Sunrise, I had to get them.

Have a good day everyone! It is the dawn of a new era - Obama was sworn in this morning and I listened to it at work.

Change is good.

More foodie photos at my flickr photoset, Food Glorious Food!