Mushroom and Barley Soup

Do you know what it's like when you have something that tastes so utterly fantastic at a restaurant that you become obsessed with trying to recreate the recipe at home? (Hmmm, maybe that's just me!).

Last week, I had lunch with some dear friends at a downtown restaurant and had a delightful bowl of mushroom and barley soup that was so full of flavor, I had to figure out how to make it.  Sometimes, being in an atmosphere of camaraderie makes everything taste better so I was anxious to see if my research and effort paid off. If you love mushrooms and mushroom soups, this is one of the best I've tried and was equally good as the restaurant version!

After all, it is November, or NovemBrrrr I should say! We had a couple of light frosts the last week of October and finally had to turn on the heat. If you are craving warm, earthy and comforting food, this mushroom and barley soup delivers! The savory, almost meaty, flavor of the mushrooms in a rich broth has a wonderful mouth-feel and the barley makes it satisfying bowl of soup.  Just add some crusty bread, a salad, and perhaps a glass of wine.

Did you know mushrooms are good for you too?  Rich in B vitamins and in disease-fighting phytochemicals, eating them regularly has been linked to a lower risk of breast cancer in studies of Chinese and Korean women. They have also prevented prostate cancer cells from multiplying in mice and might do the same in men. They are also a good source of selenium.

The leaves are falling, the winds are blowing and a chill is in the air. Let's have soup!

Mushroom and Barley Soup

Printable Recipe 

Serves 6 to 8

1 ounce dried Porcini mushrooms 

1 ounce dried Shiitake mushrooms

4 strips meaty bacon, diced

1-1/2 tablespoon tomato paste 

1 small onion, chopped into small dice 

2 carrots, chopped into small dice 

1 stalk celery, chopped into small dice 

1 shallot, chopped 

2 large cloves garlic, chopped 

1 pound baby Portabella mushrooms, quartered and sliced 

1-1/2 tablespoon soy sauce 

1/3 cup dry sherry 

1 cup pearl barley

4 cups chicken stock 

4 cups vegetable stock

1-1/2 teaspoons salt 

3/4 teaspoon pepper 

Fresh parsley, chopped

Note: You can make this soup vegetarian by eliminating the bacon. Sauté the vegetables in oil and replace chicken stock with all vegetable stock.  Please don't omit the dried mushrooms and reserved mushroom-soaking liquid.  They are essential to the complex flavor of this soup.  Amazon sells the Mycological Brand of dried mushrooms quite reasonably as an 'Add On' Item to your order. 

Place the dried mushrooms in a bowl and cover with 3/4 cup hot water and soak to soften while proceeding with the rest of the recipe. Important - Reserve the soaking water! 

In a soup pot over medium low heat, add the diced bacon sauté slowly, until evenly browned. Stir in the tomato paste and allow to caramelized just a bit. 

Reduce the heat to low, and add the chopped onions, carrots, celery and shallot to the pot and sauté about 10-12 minutes, until softened. 

Turn the heat back up to medium and add the garlic and mushrooms and saute until mushrooms release their moisture. 

Remove the rehydrated mushrooms from the soaking water (reserving liquid), and chop. 

Add the chopped, rehydrated mushrooms and the barley to the pot and mix to combine. 

Add the dry sherry and soy sauce and simmer until almost all of the liquid has evaporated. 

Add the stocks and the reserved liquid from the mushrooms and season with salt and pepper and bring to a boil. 

Turn heat down to low and simmer soup, covered, for 60 to 90 minutes, until the barley is softened. 

Add chopped parsley just before serving. 

Tip: Freeze the rest of the unused tomato paste in 1 Tablespoon portions in plastic wrap bundles. Place inside a zipper bag and keep in the freezer until you need a small portion of tomato paste again. 

Recipe inspired by Food 52

Winter Mushroom Gratin

Today, I'm bringing a delicious side dish to your Christmas or New Year's Eve dinner.  A warm and creamy winter mushroom gratin flavored with lemon, rosemary, thyme and Parmesan cheese.  We love mushrooms but my usual method of cooking them is a simple saute.  This recipe definitely raises the bar! 

The recipe is based on one I found in a cookbook that I recently won from fellow blogger, Pam, of Pam's Midwest Kitchen Korner.  She had offered the book as a giveaway to celebrate her blog's 6th anniversary and I was the lucky winner!  Thank you again, Pam! 

The cookbook is called West Town Tavern: Contemporary Country Food with recipes from the popular former Chicago restaurant of the same name.

 
Unfortunately for us Midwesterners, the owners, Susan Goss and Drew Goss have relocated to New Orleans and the restaurant has closed.  At least we have their cookbook which is filled with wonderful recipes! It was so hard deciding which recipe to make first but I'm so glad I started with this mushroom gratin because it was so packed with wonderful flavors that I can see myself making it over and over again this winter.

It would be delicious as a side to almost any type of meat, or, just add a simple salad and it could be a delightful meatless meal for two. We enjoyed it with Garlic Buttered King Crab Legs.  Oh, and did I mention you can make this a day ahead?  Time saver alert!

I hope you are enjoying the many lights and decorations of the season!

Winter Mushroom Gratin

Printable Recipe

Serves 6

3 tablespoons olive oil
2 large shallots, thinly sliced
1 large clove garlic, minced
1-1/2 lbs. assorted winter mushrooms (I used half cremini and half shiitake), trimmed and sliced
1/4 cup dry Sherry
1-1/2 cups heavy cream
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
1/2 cup grated good quality Parmesan cheese
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons minced fresh thyme leaves
1 tablespoon minced fresh rosemary leaves
2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley

Can be made a day in advance.

Trim the mushrooms and slice or chop thickly, discarding stems of woody mushrooms as shiitake. You can leave little mushrooms whole.

In a 5-quart saute pan, heat the olive oil until almost smoking over medium heat. Add the shallots and saute until golden, about 2 minutes. Add the garlic and mushrooms, cover the pan and let the mushrooms simmer until they have given up their juices, about 10 minutes. Uncover the pan and raise the heat to high. Continue to saute the mushrooms, stirring, until the pan is dry and then add the Sherry. Stir until the mushrooms absorb the Sherry, then add the cream and salt and pepper to taste. Bring the cream to a boil and reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until the cream has thickened, about 3 or 4 minutes. Stir in the grated cheese, lemon zest and herbs and remove from heat. Adjust seasonings, if necessary.

Divide the mushrooms and sauce mixture among 6 small ramekins or use gratin dishes. At this point they can be covered and refrigerated overnight.

If serving right away, preheat the broiler to high. Place the ramekins or gratins on a baking sheet and broil until bubbling and golden on top, about 30 seconds, watching carefully. Serve immediately.

If the mushroom mixture has been made ahead and is cold, preheat the oven to 350F, uncover ramekins and bake until the gratins are warmed and bubbling. Then turn on the broiler and broil them until golden brown on the top as above.

Adapted from West Town Tavern: Contemporary Comfort Food

Note: The original recipe calls for orange zest and pecorino romano cheese.

Marvelous Mushroom Lasagna

In my immediate family, we celebrate three birthdays in a little over the same number of weeks in early spring. Last weekend, we opted to celebrate all three at once due to busy schedules. The celebration dinner was held here.

I wanted to make something special but still enjoy my family's company that evening, so, for one of the dishes I prepared, I chose to make this spectacular mushroom lasagna which can be prepared in its entirety the day before.

I don't know about your family, but my family loves mushrooms! This lasagna dish is a little time-consuming to make but the effort is well worth it. I highly recommend utilizing the do-ahead portions of the recipe.

A savory medley of sauteed mushrooms, zucchini, onion, garlic and thyme is mixed with a creamy, Parmesan-infused roux using no-boil lasagna sheets which helps cut down on preparation time.

Elegant and delicious!

Marvelous Mushroom Lasagna

Adapted from Wild Mushroom Lasagne, Gourmet, 1999
Printable Recipe

Serves 6.

For mushroom filling:
3 cups water
2 ounces dried porcini mushrooms (about 1 cup) (I only used 1.5 ounces)
2 pounds fresh white mushrooms (I used a combination of white, baby portabella and shiitaki mushrooms - feel free to use your favorites)
2-3 zucchini (about 1 pound)
1 large onion
3 garlic cloves
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
6 tablespoons Sherry
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme leaves
2 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

For sauce:
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
5 cups whole milk
4 1/2 ounces freshly grated Parmesan (about 1 1/2 cups)
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 1/2 teaspoons salt

Eighteen 7- by 3 1/2-inch sheets dry, no-boil lasagne (about 1 pound)
1/2 pound freshly grated mozzarella (about 2 cups)
1 1/2 ounces freshly grated Parmesan (about 1/2 cup)

My Notes: When sauteing the mushrooms, zucchini and onions, I used a combination of half butter and half olive oil to cut down on fat.


To make filling:

In a small saucepan bring water to a boil and remove pan from heat. Stir in porcini. Soak porcini 20 minutes. Lift out porcini, squeezing out excess liquid, and reserve soaking liquid.

In a sieve rinse porcini to remove any grit and pat dry. Chop porcini and transfer to a large bowl. Simmer reserved soaking liquid until reduced to about 1/4 cup. Pour liquid through a sieve lined with a dampened paper towel into bowl with porcini.

Quarter white mushrooms and in a food processor pulse in 3 batches until finely chopped.

Cut zucchini into 1/4-inch dice. Chop onion and mince garlic. In a 12-inch heavy skillet heat 1 tablespoon butter over moderate heat until foam subsides and cook one third white mushrooms with 2 tablespoons Sherry, stirring, until liquid mushrooms give off is evaporated and they begin to brown. Add mushroom mixture to porcini. Cook remaining mushrooms in 2 batches in butter with remaining Sherry in same manner and add to porcini mixture. In skillet cook zucchini in 1 tablespoon butter until tender and stir into porcini mixture. In skillet cook onion in remaining tablespoon butter, stirring, until softened. Stir in garlic, thyme, salt, and pepper and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir onion into mushroom mixture until combined. Filling may be made 1 day ahead and chilled, covered.


To make sauce:

In a 3-quart heavy saucepan melt butter over moderately low heat and whisk in flour.

Cook roux, whisking, 3 minutes and whisk in milk. Bring sauce to a boil, whisking constantly, and simmer, whisking occasionally, 3 minutes. Stir in Parmesan, mustard, and salt. Remove pan from heat and cover surface of sauce with wax paper. Sauce may be made 1 day ahead and chilled, covered. Bring sauce to room temperature before proceeding.

Preheat oven to 375°F and butter a 13 x 9-inch (3-quart) baking dish.

Assemble lasagna:

Spread 1 1/4 cups sauce in baking dish and cover with 3 pasta sheets, making sure they don't touch each other.

Spread one third filling over pasta sheets in dish and top with 3 more pasta sheets, gently pressing down layers to remove air pockets. Top pasta sheets with one third mozzarella. Continue layering in same manner with sauce, pasta sheets, filling, and mozzarella, ending with mozzarella (dish will be filled to rim). Spread remaining sauce over top and sprinkle with Parmesan. On a foil-lined large baking sheet bake lasagna in middle of oven until bubbling and golden, about 45 minutes. Let lasagna stand 20 minutes. Lasagna may be made 1 day ahead and chilled, covered. Bring lasagna to room temperature and reheat before serving.

Spinach and Strawberry Salad

Getting on the scale after the holidays is never fun. Ever. Starting with Thanksgiving, the calories tend to add up quickly with rich, carb-filled meals, family gatherings, parties, cookies, pies and treats. We rationalize the consumption, telling ourselves it's only once a year.

Eating salads for dinner two or three nights a week helped my husband and I get back on track. This strawberry salad has been a favorite in my family for over a decade and is often requested for birthday dinners. The recipe isn't unique but the list of ingredients have been adjusted over the years to appeal to my family's taste buds.

In case you didn't already know (quoting from Wikipedia here), "Spinach has a high nutritional value and is extremely rich in antioxidants, especially when fresh, steamed, or quickly boiled. It is a rich source of vitamin A (and lutein), vitamin C, vitamin E, vitamin K, magnesium, manganese, folate, iron, vitamin B2, calcium, potassium, vitamin B6, folic acid, copper, protein, phosphorus, zinc, niacin, selenium and omega-3 fatty acids. Recently, opioid peptides called rubiscolins have also been found in spinach. It is a source of folic acid (Vitamin B9), and this vitamin was first purified from spinach." No wonder Popeye was so strong!

Years ago, I found a wonderful dressing in a local Junior League cookbook that that works perfectly with spinach. It has a nice balance of sweet and tart.

If it's reckoning time for you and your scale, I hope you give this salad a try for dinner one night. It also pairs well with grilled chicken, salmon or beef tenderloin.

Strawberry Spinach Salad
Serves 6-8
Printable Recipe

3-4 large bunches of spinach
3/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted
1 pint of fresh strawberries
8 oz of fresh button mushrooms
2 avocados

Wash spinach in a sink full of clean water by swishing around. Snap all the leaves off stems with your fingers and drain in a colander.

To toast the almonds, spread them out in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet and toast in a 350 oven for about 5-7 minutes, watching carefully not to let them burn.

Clean strawberries and mushrooms and slice thinly into a bowl.

To assemble salad place first four ingredients into a very large salad bowl (sometimes I pull out my super large aluminum just to toss the salad then I serve it in a salad bowl). Slice the avocados and add them to the bowl. Pour enough dressing over the salad to coat lightly, toss and serve. Start with about 1/2 cup of dressing if you are making the entire recipe, toss and add more dressing, if necessary.

Note:

Another tasty version of this salad can be made by using cooked and crumbled crispy bacon, sliced hard boiled eggs, and toasted almonds. Use the same dressing below.

North Shore Dressing
Adapted from Be Our Guest

2/3 cup sugar
punch salt
4-5 green onions, using a little of the light green part
1/2 cup cider vinegar
1/3 cup ketchup
1 T Worcestershire sauce
1 cup vegetable Oil

In food processor or blender combine all ingredients. Process until smooth.

Papparadelle with Mushroom Ragu

Papparadelle with Mushroom Ragu, a delightful pasta dish for the fungi lovers out there. Flavored with Marsala wine and fresh thyme, it has a wonderful, earthy flavor.

BACON AND WILD MUSHROOM PASTA
Printable Recipe


Serves 4

2 pounds of mushrooms (can be combination of dried porcini, shitake, crimini,button and portobello)
1 c. hot chicken broth
5 strips of lean bacon
2 shallots, finely diced
½ cup marsala wine
1/2 tsp. thyme
½ stick butter
1/2 c. whipping cream - optional
8-16 oz. papparadelle or other pasta

Soak any dried mushrooms in 1/4 cup hot broth until soft. Drain, reserving liquid. Cut mushrooms into bite-sized pieces.

Cook bacon, discarding all but 3 teaspoons fat. Remove bacon, dice and set aside.

In frying pan with reserved bacon fat, add shallot sauté 5 minutes or until translucent. Add mushrooms and sauté until they are soft and brown. Add marsala and cook until it is mostly evaporated. Add the reserved mushroom soaking liquid, if any, avoiding any sediment at the bottom. Add remaining broth and thyme. Simmer 10 minutes or until reduced by 1/2. Add butter, 1 T at a time, and then cream (if using) and simmer over very low heat until warm. Toss with pasta and reserved bacon. Add freshly grated parmesiana-reggiano, if desired.