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Posts Tagged ‘mushroom’

Vegan Stuffed Mushrooms

Posted in Sides (For the High Cal Right Brain, tagged , , on January 13, 2011 | Leave a Comment »

I’ll admit it, I’m an appetizer whore.  I would rather spend my meal at a cocktail party, eating one bite-sized delight after another, than at a full sit down dinner. One appetizer that has always disappointed me at weddings and restaurants alike, are stuffed mushrooms.  Not only is this recipe great, but you can saute the onion, garlic and mushrooms ahead of time to save time when your guests arrive…if you can save any for them.

Adapted from Vegan Piggy

Ingredients:

  • 1 1/2 pounds Baby Portobellos, the bigger the better (or button mushrooms)
  • 1 cup Italian Seasoning Bread Crumbs (The original recipe ground up two slices of bread and said that you needed 1.5 cups. However, I could barely fit a cup in.  I would have extra bread crumbs lying around and add slowly; you want the mixture to be crumbly, but stick together when you pinch it.)
  • 3 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 1 Medium Red Onion, chopped
  • 1 Garlic Clove, pressed

Remove stems from mushrooms. Brush one of the tablespoons of oil around in a 13 X 9 pan. Chop up the onion, garlic, and mushroom stems. (I did this in the food processor; just pulsed a few times.) Heat the rest of the oil in a pan over medium high heat.

Add garlic and onions and sauté for 7 minutes. Stir in the bread crumbs.

Evenly distribute mixture to mushroom caps. Bake for 30-45 minutes, depending on the size of your mushroom caps. Keep an eye out that they don’t get too brown.

Sorry, they went quickly…

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Easy Sherry Mushrooms

Posted in Sides (For The Low Cal Left Brain), tagged , , on November 11, 2010 | Leave a Comment »

One thing that I love about my apartment is my proximity to Spanish Harlem. There are a ton of Hispanic grocers with malt-o-meal cereal (yay Coco Roos!) and cheap produce.  During a super sale on canned anchovies (ew, ew, ew) and baby portabellas, I stocked up.  Now, I’m not gonna try to enchant you and tell you that mushrooms can replace beef and their texture will remove the need for meat (again, ew) but I really like them on top of salads instead of chicken or another meat.  Here is my favorite way to quick cook up some baby ports. Feel free to use whatever wine you have on hand, I was using the grocery store sherry, because I’m classy.  Real $1.99 sherry–classy.

Ingredients:

  • Handful of sliced baby bellas
  • 1/8 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/8 teaspoon minced garlic or a pinch of powder
  • 1/2 tablespoon of sherry
  • 3 dashes of worcestershire sauce
  • Pinch of kosher salt

Heat up a pan with some olive oil Pam.  Throw in the mushrooms and the minced garlic.  Let this cook down for a minute, then add the onion powder and garlic powder (if necessary). Let cook for another minute, then add the worcestershire and salt.  Stir every so often for 30 seconds, then add the sherry.

Let cook, tossing every so often, until the mushrooms cook down and are tender (about another 2 minutes or so).  Serve on top of a delicious salad (with blue cheese, yum) or as a side dish.  Enjoy!

Oh, and this is super low cal.  It depends on how many mushrooms you use but my dish couldn’t have been more than 30 calories for 4 mushrooms.

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Dutch Oven Baby Bok Choy and Mushrooms

Posted in Sides (For The Low Cal Left Brain), tagged , , , on September 1, 2010 | Leave a Comment »

I consider bok choy the Danny Bonaduce of vegetables.  It may look tough, it may look scary, but at the end of the day it’s just another leafy green in a sea of washed up child stars and completely conquerable.  With some quick heat and some good flavors the bok choy turns into a tender vegetable that is complemented well by the meaty mushrooms.  I bought some rice vinegar and found myself a nice Asian kick and here is the vegetarian result.

Ingredients:

  • 2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon minced garlic
  • 1/4 teaspoon minced ginger
  • 1/2 teaspoon chilli powder
  • 3 baby bok choy, around 300 grams
  • 10 ounces sliced mushrooms
  • 1 tablespoon vegetable broth or any wine or liquid you have lying around
  • 2 scallions, chopped
  • Olive oil Pam

Mix together everything but the vegetables and the vegetable broth.

Wash and roughly chop the bok choy.  Heat up a dutch oven or a high-sided pan and spray with Pam.

Throw in the mushrooms and cook for a minute.

Add the vegetable broth.  Cook for about three minutes until the liquid starts to release from the mushrooms.

Add the bok choy and the soy sauce mixture.  Toss well.  Let cook for another 3 minutes or so letting the bok choy wilt.

Toss in the scallions.


Serve and enjoy!  Makes 2, 65 calorie, servings and that’s if you suck up all the sauce.

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Pork Medallions in a Mushroom Riesling Pan Sauce

Posted in Main Dishes (For The Low Cal Left Brain), tagged , on August 9, 2010 | Leave a Comment »

I’ve always had a slight fear of any form of “medallion”.  I feel that they are the staple on any French or Italian menu and must have a super awesome sauce that I obviously can’t create without spitting out a few crazy French names and pans that cost as much Lindsay Lohan’s lawyers.  I had this tenderloin relaxing in my fridge, some mushrooms, a little bit of wine left (I can’t even fathom that I thought to leave like half a glass, well Jessica-sized glass) and onion and went for it.  Surprisingly it worked, but it’s a little bit of a “feel dish” and you gotta go with what smells good.  The sauce thickens slightly and has a good Miami Beach Marsala-esque taste to it which compliments well with the flavor of the lean pork.  Scrape those brown bits and taste often!

Ingredients:

  • 1 pork tenderloin, about .75 to 1 pound
  • Kosher Salt
  • Black pepper
  • Chilli powder (the regular old blend you get in a supermarket, don’t use your fancy extra hot one or this guy
  • Olive oil Pam
  • 1 Vidalia onion, diced
  • 1/2 cup Riesling or another sweet white wine
  • 1-2 cups button mushrooms
  • 2 scant teaspoons flour
  • 3 tablespoons chicken stock  (I used 99% fat-free, low sodium)

Rinse the tenderloin and pat dry.  Slice into 1 inch thick medallions.

Sprinkle both sides with kosher salt and black pepper.

Dust both sides with a good coating of chilli powder–don’t be afraid, the remnants of this in the pan help flavor your sauce.  Heat a dutch oven or a high sided skillet over medium heat.  Make sure your skillet isn’t too huge, this is just a meal for two.  If you have a large skillet, I suggest doubling, for non-burny sake.

Spray skillet with olive oil Pam and place the medallions in the pan.  Throw the diced onion on top.

Let cook for 4 minutes, then flip.  Let cook for another 4 (or until cooked through), then remove the meat from the pan, leaving the onions behind.

Add the wine, then whisk to remove the brown bits on the bottom of the skillet.  After letting this cook for about 2 minutes, add in the mushrooms.

Stir until the mushrooms are covered with sauce and let the sauce increase from the water in the mushrooms.  Let this simmer for about 5-7 minutes, stirring occasionally.  In a small, separate bowl, whisk (or fork stir, if you’re lazy like me) the flour into the chicken stock.  Add to the sauce, and stir well.

Let cook for another two minutes; the sauce should thicken.  Add back in the medallions, toss and serve.

I found there was around 4-5 ounces of pork per person using my .75 pound tenderloin.  4 ounces of pork with the pan sauce is around 200 calories.

Enjoy :)

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Moo Shu Pork, Sorta

Posted in Main Dishes (For The Low Cal Left Brain), tagged , , , , , on March 13, 2010 | Leave a Comment »

I have a pretty high, undying love for Fresh Direct.  They have this sweet section with one click recipes, calorie counts and all.  Since I started a new job this week (new suits, two Blackberries, loss of all street cred…), I needed something quick and easy to make.  This recipe is delicious, easy, and fast.  The longest part is the chopping, and if you have a mandoline your life will be a lot easier.  You can make this with pork, chicken, or just veggies if you like. 

Moo Shu Lettuce Wraps, adapted from Fresh Direct

Ingredients:

  • 1 tablespoon canola oil
  • 2 cups sliced mushrooms
  • 2 chicken breasts, cut into very thin strips
  • 3 cups shredded cabbage or coleslaw mix
  • 2 matchstick-cut carrots
  • 1/2 sliced red bell pepper
  • 2 scallions, thinly sliced
  • 3 tablespoons Hoisin sauce, or to taste
  • 1 small head Boston or Bibb lettuce, leaves separated and core discarded

In a wok or large skillet over high heat, add oil. Saute the mushrooms for 1 to 2 minutes.

Add chicken,

 

cabbage,

carrots, bell pepper, and scallions and sauté for 5 to 7 minutes, or until tender.

Add Hoisin sauce and stir to combine. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes, or until vegetables and chicken are cooked through. If sauce is too thick, add 1 tablespoon water.

Serve wrapped in lettuce leaves.  Makes 4 servings at around 200 calories each.

I had a pretty emotional moment when making this recipe.  It was the first time I ever saw the nutrition facts for Hoisin, and I was floored.  It basically has 4 times the calories of soy sauce, and a crapload of sugar.  Hot flashes, images of drunken, Asian, buffet eating while globbing the sauce on my fried scallion pancake-style Moo Shu…  Oh God, I can feel my behind beginning to emulate Kim Kardashian, and not in a good way.

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Ugly Stew

Posted in Main Dishes (For The Low Cal Left Brain), tagged , , on February 5, 2010 | 1 Comment »

As I forage further and further into the deep waters of lazy cooking that is my slow cooker, I am finding that more and more recipes are delicious yet, well, unpresentable.  This stew is delicious, easy, low calorie, yet has the fair qualities of a naked mole rat swimming in mud.  Ignore my pictures and try this, you won’t be sorry.

Adapted from Fix It and Forget It Lightly.

  • 10 3/4 oz can 98% fat free cream of mushroom soup
  • half a soup can of water
  • 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, each cut into 4 pieces
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper
  • 1/2 pound fresh mushrooms cut up, preferably half Portobello
  • 1 cup baby carrots
  • 2 ribs celery, cut into small pieces (don’t over do it on the celery, your stew will get watery!!)
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder

Combine soup and water in slow cooker.  Rub the salt and pepper into the chicken, then add to the pot.  Add the mushrooms, carrots, celery, garlic powder and mix.

See, right now it’s relatively attractive.  More in the “hairless cat zone” than the mole zone.

Cover and cook on low 6-8 hours until chicken is done.  Enjoy.  Each serving is around 230 calories, about 5 ounces after cooking the chicken.

 See?  Ugly. If someone really loved me, they would buy me a food photography class.  I take pictures like  a 5 year old with rabies.

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