Mushroom Ravioli in Butter-Sage Sauce

Recently a friend of ours received boxes of locally-grown, organic mushrooms. One man can only eat so many mushrooms, so T and I were very fortunate recipients of a huge bag of them. They looked unlike anything I had ever seen before. They were huge, with massive caps and lots of little sprouts at the bottom. They smelled like the forrest floor. Following some online exploration, I deemed these mushrooms to be simply "wild mushrooms," that one website suggested only eating them at the discretion of a mycologist, a mushroom expert.

I figured they came from a local farmer, so I threw caution to the wind and threw the mushrooms in some butter and cheese and made musrhoom ravioli!

Now, I'll be honest here. The mushrooms not only smelled like the forest floor, they tasted like it too. But do not be deterred! If you love wild mushrooms, go ahead and use what you can find. Or, play it safe and use mushrooms from the grocery store that are not so strong and full of flavour. (The types recommended below are the store-bought kind, not the wild kind).

Overall, ravioli was simple enough to make (go ahead and check out some YouTube videos for good technique) and tasted good. Next time though, I'll use mushrooms from Loblaws!

Ingredients

• 2 pounds assorted fresh mushrooms (such as button, cremini and shiitake), brushed clean, trimmed and coarsely chopped
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 medium shallots
• 1/4 cup coarsely chopped parsley
• 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup ricotta cheese
• 1 tsp coarse salt
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
• 8 sheets fresh pasta
• all purpose flour for dusting

For butter-sage sauce:

• 1/4 cup butter
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 tsp dried sage
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup parmesan cheese

Directions

• In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add shallots and cook until translucent. Stir in parsley and cook one minute more. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring frequently until mushrooms first release their liquid and then liquid evaporates, about 10 minutes. Add 1/4 cup water, cook stirring until liquid evaporates. Transfer to a bowl and cool briefly before stirring in parmesan and ricotta. Season with salt and pepper.

• Dust baking sheet with flour; set aside. Place pasta sheet on a lightly floured surface. Place eight heaping measuring teaspoons of mushroom filling along the top third of the sheets, about two inches apart. Moisten pasta around each mount of filling using a pastry brush dipped in water. Fold the dough up and over the filling to enclose, press around filling to seal. Cut between the mounds with a pastry wheel to cut into square ravioli. Transfer to prepared baking sheet a chill until ready to cook. Repeat with the remaining pasta and filling.

• In a small pot, melt butter over medium heat. Stir in garlic and cook until the garlic has softened. Stir in the sage and salt for a few seconds.

• At the same time, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook until ravioli float to the top, or about five minutes. Drain. Toss with butter-sage sauce and toss gently with 1/4 cup parmesan cheese.  

Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart Living

Bacon Rollups

Appetizers, in my experience, tend to be cold because the cook is always using the oven for the dinner. But when I get an opportunity to use the oven for an appetizer, I make these bacon rollups that my dad has been making for years. 


Ok, they're pretty bland looking (though they're better if you bake them seam-side down as I indicate in the recipe), and have no illusions about the health content of these little guys -- bacon and cream cheese?! -- but they explode like little bites of heaven in your mouth. I know it's everything in moderation, but I could eat the entire plate of these. Don't judge until you've tried them.


Ingredients

• 6 slices of bacon, diced
• 2 cups finely chopped mushrooms
• 1 onion chopped
• 5 oz. cream cheese
• 15 slices sandwich bread
• 1/4 cup melted butter

Directions

• In a skillet, cook bacon
• Add mushrooms and onion for 5-8 minutes
• Stir in cream cheese until melted
• Trim crusts from sandwich bread and flatten slices with a rolling pin
• Spread 2 tsp of bacon mixture on each slice
• Roll each piece like a jelly roll and secure with a toothpick
• Place seam-side down on a baking sheet
• Cover and chill for at least an hour
• Brush with melted butter
• Bake at 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes, or until brown
• Remove toothpicks, cut in half and serve

Brunch Strata

Brunch is a really challenging meal to host because so many things you serve have to be done at the very last minute -- eggs, pancakes, french toast.

I was hosting a small brunch party today and went in search of something I could prepare in advance and leave to bake while I was entertaining. Enter the brunch strata.

Strata is like a breakfast casserole. It's wholesome and hearty, healthy and delicious. And you can prepare it in advance and watch it bake while you're enjoying a mimosa. What could be better?

Here's the recipe I used this morning and it was a hit!

Ingredients

• 1 cup sliced mushrooms
• 1 cup chopped zucchini
• 1 cup diced onion
• 1 cup chopped red pepper
• 1 cup bacon/ham/sausage -- whatever you have on hand
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1/4 cup oil
• 1 pkg cream cheese (softened)
• 1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
• 1/4 cup cream
• 2 cups day-old cubed bread
• 6 eggs

Directions

• Cube bread about the size of large croutons and leave out overnight
• Prepare veggies

• Cook the meat, drain and set aside

• Sautee veggies in oil and garlic, drain and set aside

• In a mixer, combine cream cheese with cream until smooth
• Add eggs and mix
• Add bread crumbs, veggies, meat and cheddar cheese and mix
• Pour into greased 11 x 7 pan

• Bake in oven at 350 degrees for about an hour
• Let cool for about 10 minutes
• Serve!

(this is it baked, but I couldn't take a picture before the vultures got at it!)