What variety of mushrooms are you planning on using?

What do you want to use it for? I have a good soup, stuffed for appetizers, pickled, risotto, duxelle in a port reduction....grilled portobello.....etc etc...

Julia Child's Quiche aux Champignons! (It's posted in this blog if you don't have Mastering the Art of French Cooking. I also leave off the final butter. I think it would be useful if the cheese were extra dry (I use gruyere), but that just doesn't happen much anymore.)

This isn't an actual recipe, but delicious chicken with oyster mushrooms. Dredge and brown some chicken breasts and prep some veg to go with it (green or wax beans, bell pepper slices, broccolini, baby carrots or whatever you have that you'd like). Wash and tear or cut the oyster mushrooms, 2-3 per piece of chicken. Make a light brown roux, add 1-2 cups of plain fat-free yoghurt (depending on quantity of chicken) and a couple good slugs of Marsala wine. Season with S&P, garlic, and herbs, plus some fresh chives, cut large (one inch). Add a little sweetening if it's too tart. Layer the chicken in a pan with the vegetables and mushrooms on top. Pour the sauce over -- it should be thick and just about enough to cover. The mushrooms and veg will release liquid into it. Simmer covered until cook through and hot.

Or any kind of dish with mushrooms reduced with red wine...

We love mushrooms. I always keep a big jar of dried porcini's in the pantry. I use sparingly, a loose 1/2 cup at a time. So much flavor in the soaking liquid. Used with others like baby bellas or portobellas.

I often caramelize a couple onions, then halfway through simmering, add thin slices of mushrooms, the soaked porcini and the liquid, a minced shallot, some garlic, low heat for 1/2 hour, then a bit of white wine. Sometimes some roasted cherry tomatoes. Used as a side or tapenade on toast points or on salad greens. Chopped parsley to the table.

leftovers freeze well to add to soups.

The recipe i've used since my first cookbook 25yrs ago is Marcella Hazan's Porcini Risotto. One of the first meals i made. Still a favorite. Recently added leeks from the garden.

Should have been more specific as I still use a lot of the plain ole regular mushrooms, and have yet to get into use of the fancier ones. Especially enjoy soups and stews, but would like to try risotto. Dull, huh? Thanks for suggestions.

The HG's favorite mushrooms are very easy to make and can be a side dish or an appetizer.

MoJo Mushrooms

8oz whole baby portabellas (or sliced for side dish)

1 tbls butter

1 tbls EVOO

1 tbls roasted and chopped garlic

1/2 cup Badia Mojo Marinade
Rinse mushrooms and place in medium sauce pan.

Simmer mushrooms until water is rendered

Pour off water

Add butter, garlic, EVOO, and mojo sauce

Cover and cook on medium-low for 15-20 minutes until sauce reduces

Mushrooms can be expensive.

Do not throw away the tough stems. Use your stick blender or coffee grinder, add a little water and turn the stems into a paste for cooking. Lots of great mushroom flavor in those stems.

dcarch

I make mushroom soup often. No detailed recipe, but the process is:

Cream of Mushroom Soup

Stock: 2 lb button, brown, or cremini mushrooms (the standard cheapest ones at the grocery), 1 onion, 1/4 bunch celery, 3 qt water. Slow boil/fast simmer for 3-4 hours (or pressure cook 1 hour). Uncover then reduce (probably by about 1/3) and add salt until stock is a tasty drink by itself. Strain out and discard solids.

Soup: 2 lb mushrooms, plus the stock. Shallot, onion, garlic, etc all optional. Remove some of the liquid, blend to smooth. If consistency is too thick, add the reserved liquid. If too thin, add heavy cream, and next time reserve more liquid. (If consistency is right, then reduce the reserved liquid until very concentrated, and add to soup. Or save it for something else.) Adjust with salt, white pepper or wasabi powder (for a bit of heat).

Mushroom Tomato:

Stock: as above.

Soup: Saute sliced mushrooms. Peel tomatoes and slice into wedges. Add to stock. Dissolve in some tomato paste. Shallot or onion (thinly sliced) optional. Adjust flavor with salt, black pepper, anchovy paste, red wine. Before serving, garnish with chopped cilantro and grated parmesan cheese. (Note this is not a blended soup.)