Stuffed Mushrooms--And the First Breeze of Spring.

Last Thursday morning, I went out to do some grocery shopping before a long weekend. It was a sunny and warm day, above 70F. On the way back I noticed in my neighbors' front yard a big bush covered with yellow flowers. I am sure it was not like that earlier in the day, because I would have noticed that. It has been a warm but a very windy week but it is only mid-February and this bush, the only one blooming in my whole neighborhood, screemed "spring!" Today, however, skies in DC are still clear and bright blue, but a strong wind, which cut off our power again last night, reminds us that cold days will be back tomorrow.

When I went shopping on that sunny Thursday, I bought some large white mushrooms. They were so fresh and smooth that I got a whole bag of them.
I thought that I would serve them whole to preserve their good looks. Right away I had just one idea--stuff them. I almost forgot that we used to do that often back home where white mushrooms have always been very popular and widely available. For some reason I thought about that dish on this dawn of spring, because we made it during this season, when fresh vegetables were not yet available. We filled mushrooms with egg stuffing and served them on Sunday brunches.

Stuffed Mushrooms

Ingredients:
14 oz or 8-10 big stuffing mushrooms,
2 hard boiled eggs,
1 medium onion, tiny chopped
1 cup breadcrumbs,
1 egg,
3 tbsp chopped parsley,
salt and pepper.

Preaparation:
1. Preheat oven to 370F.
2. Wash mushrooms, remove stems gently and throw them away. Using a melon curving spoon, or a small coffe spoon, scoop out the gills and a little bit of flesh underneath them to leave place for the stuffing. Save the scooped out parts.

3. To prepare the stuffing, chop finely the mushroom parts that you scooped out and place them in a medium bowl. Chop onions, parsley, hard boiled eggs and add them to teh bowl. Add breadcrumbs and one beaten egg, and season with salt (about 1/2 tsp) and pepper.
4. Stuff mushroom caps with the filling and place on a lighty buttered baking tin.

5. Bake for 25-30 minutes.
6. Serve warm with baguette or bread.

This is the bush that woke up for the spring last Thursday.

Pasta with Mushrooms for a Girls Night In

Everybody loves pasta. So do I. It's an easy dish and perfect for a casual evening with friends. I almost always serve pasta whenever I have girlfriends over for an evening of laughter, closet inspection, and wine tasting. It's best to prepare the sauce a couple of hours ahead, cook the pasta at the last minute, and have all the time in between to enjoy the company.

Advance preparation turned out to be very helpful last time I had a friend over. We started by opening a bottle of white wine. By the time I put the pasta on the stove the bottle was gone. Meanwhile, we had spent a couple of hours on gossiping, talking fashion, and a review of the latest sale wardrobe trophies; we had had so much fun, that I do not think I would have been able to cook anything from scratch at that moment. Luckily, all that was left for me to do was to cook the pasta, put the mushrooms on top, and sprinkle some freshly shredded Parmesan on it. That much I could still do.

This pasta is light and delicate in taste as sauteed mushrooms are used instead of sauce. It is simple to make and tastes even better if garnished with a freshly chopped sage.

Sauteed Mushrooms Pasta

Ingredients:
1/2 box of Barilla pasta--for this dish I like to use the Gemelli type,
12oz white mushrooms,
12 oz shiitake mushrooms,
12 oz oyster mushrooms,
6-8 sliced garlic cloves,
2 tbsp of chopped flat leaved parsley,
1 tbsp of chopped sage leaves--optional,
1/2 stick of butter
salt and pepper.

Preparation:
1. Wash mushrooms and cut out stems.
2. Cut mushrooms in thin slices.
3. Melt the butter in a frying pan and fry garlic slices in it until gold.
4. Add all the mushrooms and fry until gold.
5. Season with salt and pepper, add the chopped parsley.
6. Cook pasta al dente (for about 8 minutes).
7. Strain the pasta and serve it on a plate, put the mushrooms on top.
8. Shred fresh Parmesan, decorate with sage and serve with red wine.

We finished our evening late after midnight with a meringues fruit dessert, not very low in calories but quite scrumptious. I am going to publish the recipe shortly.