People are cooking more than they likely ever had. In many cases it’s not just necessity but also a great creative outlook. I recently exchanged emails with a college friend, David B, who shared in reference to his three teenage children “they have cooked a ton for us, and creative, labor intensive things.” A silver lining for so many reasons. And, I’m reminded that I didn’t learn to cook until I was out of college. It makes me so happy to see people cooking at an early age.
While Ed and I have certainly tried some new recipes during our time at home, we have also gone back to some old favorites and tried making them a different way. We recently signed up for a MasterClass subscription and of course began with the cooking and cocktail classes. For this week’s Sunday cocktail, we revisited the classic Mojito (thank you Ryan Chetiyawardana AKA Mr Lyan). In this case the mint wasn’t muddled, there was no seltzer water and crushed ice went past the top of the glass. But it still had all the classic flavors of a mojito. Our favorite tip was having the fresh sprig of mint right next to your nose while taking a sip.
With that thought in mind, I’d ask you to think about mushrooms differently. More often than not they’re served sautéd and are kind of soggy and slimy. While I love this it may not appeal to all. In this recipe, the mushrooms are brined for a short time to evenly season them and then roasted. They come out of the oven firm and flavorful. A texture you’re not likely not used to for mushrooms. I used a combination of cremini (AKA baby bella) and shitake mushrooms. They’re topped with toasted pine nuts and Pecorino-Romano cheese. For this recipe, I prefer freshly shaving the cheese using a microplane rather than using already grated cheese. This results in light and fluffy cheese that evenly coats the mushrooms.
Have you approached any favorite recipes in a different way recently?
| Roasted Mushrooms | Print |
- 1-1/2 pounds cremini mushrooms, trimmed - keep stems and if small, leave whole; medium, cut in half; large, cut in quarters)
- 1 pound shiitake mushrooms, remove stems and cut in half if caps are larger than 3 inches
- 5 teaspoons Kosher salt
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 ounce Pecorino-Romano or Parmesan cheese, grated (~1/2 cup)
- 3 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley or basil
- Fine sea salt and freshly ground pepper
- Place oven rack in lowest position and preheat oven to 450°F.
- Place a piece of parchment paper on a large rimmed baking sheet.
- In a large bowl, dissolve 5 teaspoons Kosher salt in 2 quarts room-temperature water. Add cremini and shiitake mushrooms and cover with a large plate or bowl to submerge. Brine at room temperature for 10 minutes.
- Drain mushrooms and pat dry with paper towels or a clean dish cloth. Dry out bowl used for brining mushrooms and add mushrooms back into bowl. Toss with 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil. Spread mushrooms in a single layer on prepared baking sheet. Roast until liquid from mushrooms has completely evaporated, about 35 to 45 minutes.
- Remove sheet from oven and stir mushrooms. Return mushrooms to oven and continue to roast until they are deeply browned, another 5 to 10 minutes.
- Whisk remaining tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil and lemon juice in a small bowl. Add mushrooms to a serving bowl and toss with dressing. Stir in cheese, pine nuts and parsley or basil. Season with fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Serve immediately.
* Baby bella and cremini are two names for the same mushrooms.
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