Asparagus Mushroom Hand Pies

It's Spring! and that means local asparagus is finally available. Grill it, roast it, steam it, or bake it; serve it plain or sauced with hollandaise. Mmmmm, I do love that vegetable during the few months it's available. An asparagus and mushroom galette spotted at a local bakery counter looked intriguing, so I purchased one as a taste treat. Gulp, $3.99 for a single-serving little pastry! 

The crust was crisp and flakey on top while the bottom tended toward soggy. The galette's generous mound of filling underperformed on taste, bland and lacking much flavor beyond the earthy essence of asparagus and mushrooms. Where was the punchy tang of goat cheese? "Hah!" I thought, "I could do this at home and pop that flavor."

Savory pies tempt me to indulge; sweet pies, not so much. What's more satisfying than a savory little homemade pie, it's flaky crust filled with seasonal vegetables and complementary seasonings? Answer: the same pie made with frozen pie crust dough. But that's just me, facing reality because I'm missing the requisite pie-crust making gene. No matter, a reliable red box of Pillsbury Pie Crusts had my back for this adventure.

Green onions, fresh parsley, dried tarragon, lemon peel and Parmesan cheese joined the basic filling ingredients of asparagus, mushrooms and feta cheese. Sour cream plus one egg added a moist binder to the mix. One circle of pie crust yielded four irregular squares, and the Hand Pie adventure was ready to roll.

The short version of the recipe is:
       Cook down the mushrooms
       Soften the asparagus
       Combine the filling ingredients
       Fill dough squares, shape, add egg wash for shine
       Bake at 400 F until golden brown

The first hand pies emerged from the oven with light, crisp crusts and mildly seasoned filling, an improvement over that purchased galette, but still not quite there flavorwise. Neighbor Marcie, recruited as a taste tester, suggested adding lemon zest, an acidic element to better balance the heavier mushroom and asparagus. Yes! swapping a lot of lemon zest for a little lemon powder made a subtle but noticeable difference in the second batch. Thanks, Marcie. Now I'm eager to play with some other Spring ingredients and flavorings in more hand pie or galette experiments. Sigh, elastic waistbands could become necessary wardrobe adjustments.

Asparagus Mushroom Hand Pies

Yields 4 individual hand pies

1 Tablespoon butter
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 pound mushrooms, cleaned & thinly sliced
salt and freshly ground pepper
1 Tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 Tablespoon dried tarragon
5-6 asparagus spears, trimmed and chopped
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup sour cream (or plain Greek yogurt)
6 green onions, green and white parts, chopped
1/4 cup (4 Tablespoons) fresh parsley, chopped
1 teaspoon powdered lemon peel grated zest of 1 lemon 
1 premade pie crust (Pillsbury recommended)
1/4 cup (4 Tablespoons) goat cheese ( Greek feta), crumbled
beaten whole egg wash to brush dough
2 Tablespoons fresh Parmesan shreds

Heat the butter and olive oil in a large skillet and saute the mushrooms until they brown. Add the pepper, vinegar and tarragon; cook until all liquid evaporates. Remove from the pan and set aside in a bowl to cool.

Snap off & discard the woody stalk end of each asparagus spear. Keep the tender heads intact and chop the rest of the stalks into 1/2 to 1-inch pieces. Place in a microwave-safe container with a Tablespoon of water; cover and nuke for 1 minute or until barely tender. Drain and set aside to cool.

In a medium bowl use a fork to whisk together the egg and sour cream. Add the green onions, parsley and lemon zest; stir to combine. Add the cooled mushrooms and asparagus. Gently stir to combine, coating all ingredients with the eggy sour cream.

Unroll a single piecrust sheet onto a lightly floured surface; roll out to 1/8-inch thickness (if necessary) and cut into four squares, roughly 5.5-inches per side. (Use a straightedge if neatness matters to you - I went irregular and rustic).

Onto each pastry square place 1/4 of the filling mixture, typically a mounded 1/2 cup. Top each pie with 1 Tablespoon goat cheese crumbles. Fold each pastry corner onto the center of the filling, keeping the tips apart, and crimp the outside edges slightly. Brush the exposed dough lightly with some beaten egg wash and sprinkle with 1/2 Tablespoon fresh Parmesan shreds.

Place the hand pies on a silpat or parchment-covered baking sheet. Refrigerate for 30 minutes to firm up the dough. Preheat the oven to 400 F while the pies chill.

To bake, place the baking sheet in the center of the preheated 400 F oven and bake for 15-17 minutes or until the crust is a golden brown. Rotate the baking sheet after 10 minutes to encourage even browning. Remove the hand pies to a wire baking rack to cool slightly. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Marsala Sauced Mushrooms Baked with Kale and Pasta

Lately a new medication has messed with my tummy, tastebuds and appetite, and kitchen activity has been hit and miss. Looking for inspiration motivation I clicked through scads of pinterest photos, randomly searching for something tempting, something yummy that would feature the mushrooms and kale in my fridge. A photo from SmittenKitchen's "Mushroom Marsala Pasta Bake" caught my eye; visually appealing comfort food that might not challenge my tummy. So many of Deb's recipes are delicious and this one looked like a winner.  

I adjusted the ingredients, adding kale and substituting other items, but did follow the original recipe's steps. 

* Cook the pasta and soak the dried 'shrooms.

* Brown the mushrooms and onions.

* Prepare the sauce.

* Combine 'shrooms, sauce and pasta and bake until browned.

30 minutes to prep, 30 minutes to bake, and this pasta dish was on the table and ready to enjoy. It did not disappoint! This is not your old-school baked casserole, overly ooey-goey and full of processed ingredients. Oh no, this awesome dish eschews (omigosh, who really uses that word?) canned anything, celebrates the deep, earthy flavor of mushrooms, incorporates fresh kale for vitamins and color, and delivers an scrumptious, slightly booze-flavored cheesy sauce. Scrumptious? Yes, it was that good, Official taste tester RL repeatedly attacked sampled the pan of sauce with a Tablespoon and suggested we forego the pasta and skip the oven bake. Its true, by itself the sauced mushroom mixture is temptingly delicious, but I held out for the pasta and oven bake. Pastaless, I would pile a spoonful onto a toasted baguette slice for a hearty appetizer. It would be great finger food on a small bread slice or scrumptious, plated knife-and-fork fare on a large slice. 

    

Mushroom Marsala Pasta with Kale

adapted from Deb's recipe at SmittenKitchen

Servings: 4 large or 6 regular ones

1/2 pound cut tube pasta; ziti, penne, or some twisty shape like cavatappi

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 pound fresh mushrooms, sliced

1 small yellow onion, halved and sliced thin

handful dried mushrooms: soaked, drained, sliced (water reserved)

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1/4 cup marsala wine (I substituted vermouth in one batch)

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/2 cup reserved mushroom soaking water

1 cup chicken stock (or substitute beef, vegetable or mushroom)

1/2 cup (50 grams) finely grated parmesan cheese, divided 

4 ounces mozzarella cut into small cubes (I 've also used Emmentaler)

3 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, divided

2 cups kale, rinsed & sliced into thin ribbons

Directions:

Cook the pasta: 

Bring a pot of well-salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook until al dente, stopping before fully cooked since it will cook further in the oven. Drain and set aside. (It may stick together but will loosen up when added to the sauce.)

Heat oven: To 400 degrees F.

Make the sauce:

Add oil to the now-empty pasta pot and heat to shimmering over high heat. Add fresh mushrooms; cook and toss until they begun to color but before they release any liquid.

Reduce heat to medium-high; add onions, reconstituted dried mushrooms, salt and pepper and saute together until the mushroom liquid is evaporated. Add Marsala and cook mixture, stirring frequently, until liquid has nearly evaporated.

Stir in the butter, mixing until melted. Using a strainer, sprinkle flour over the mushrooms; stir until completely absorbed. Add mushroom soaking water and stock, a few ounces at a time, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. Each addition should be fully incorporated before adding the next. Repeat until all stock has been added. Let mixture simmer together for 2 minutes, stirring frequently; the sauce will thicken. Remove pan from heat.

Assemble and bake dish:

(Use the cooking pan if it’s an oven-safe dish. Otherwise...

Transfer this mixture to a 2-quart baking dish.)

Add cooked pasta to the sauced mushroom mix and stir until combined. Add the kale, half the parmesan, all of the mozzarella and two tablespoons of the parsley; stir until evenly mixed. Sprinkle the top with remaining parmesan. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until edges of pasta are golden brown. Sprinkle with reserved parsley and serve hot. Reheat as needed.

For a crowd double the recipe and use a 9×13-inch or lasagna pan.

My recipe for Pasta with Mushrooms, Kale and Walnuts offers a stovetop dish with similar ingredients but quite different results. Give them both a try. 

Pasta with Mushrooms, Kale and Walnuts

Dinner. Now, please. Something, anything quick. Okay, maybe not anything. Flavor matters.

We had an early evening, low-energy emergency in the kitchen and there was no plan. Aaaargh! A crisis loomed until I opened the fridge and spotted some crimini mushrooms and dinosaur kale. It had been weeks since my surgery, when RL took over cook and butler duties, and I was SO anxious to return to the kitchen.This simple pasta bowl solved the problem and was surprisingly tasty for an unplanned, no-recipe dish I could handle while moving around on crutches.  

This so-simple-you-don't-need-a-recipe combination might have been inspired by something I found on pinterest, or maybe a Facebook page, but I couldn't locate it again. Too many pins and posts, too little organization, but no problem. The improv worked out just fine; quick, easy and flavorful, PLUS I got to play briefly in the kitchen.
  

Pasta with 'Shrooms, Kale and Walnuts

Ingredients:

6 Tablespoons unsalted butter
A generous 1/2 pound fresh mushrooms, cut or torn into bite-size pieces
1/2 small red onion, sliced thin
1 teaspoon dried Italian herb mix (basil, oregano, thyme, rosemary)
3 cloves fresh garlic, peeled and minced
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Short, ridged tube pasta
1/2 cup ricotta, divided
1/2 cup toasted walnut pieces
Fresh Parmesan, grated or shredded
Honey, for drizzling (optional)

Directions:

Warm a serving platter or bowl in the oven.

Melt butter in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat; working in batches as necessary, cook mushrooms, onions, Italian herb mix, garlic, salt, and pepper until mushrooms are golden and give up their juices, about 12-15 minutes. 

Meanwhile, bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil. Cook pasta until just al dente, about 8 minutes. Drain pasta, reserving 1/2 cup cooking water. 

Add to the skillet the drained pasta, half of the pasta water, half the ricotta, kale shreds, salt, and pepper and toss to combine. Add more cooking water as needed.

Transfer to the heated serving platter and garnish with remaining ricotta, walnut pieces and Parmesan. Drizzle with honey, if you like.

Cucumber Wrapped Tofu with Dipping Sauce

Today at the grocery I was surprised to find small, pickling-sized cucumbers… mini cucumbers, available in December! Checking the label I found they were grown in Delta, BC greenhouse, perhaps in one of those multi-paned buildings we motor by enroute to the boat. Does that make them local vegetables, even if not quite not seasonal???

Acres of new commercial greenhouses keep popping up along our route from Seattle to the Tsawwassan Ferry Terminal.  Delta, B.C., located just north edge of the USA-Canada border, has long been known for its year-round "greenhouse grown in B.C." tomatoes. Lately we have noticed more and more of these structures along Highway I-5 on the Washington State side of the border. I wonder if all of this glass-enclosed acreage is used exclusively for vegetables or is some space dedicated to flowers? Just curious, I might need to check this out in the future.

Hmmmm, what to do with these mini cukes? We enjoy Quick Bread and Butter Pickles, and Japanese Sunomono Salad was another possibility. Easy decision, a package of six little veggies offered the opportunity to enjoy familiar recipes and still try something new. That something new was Cucumber Wrapped Tofu with Dipping Sauce. Well, new to me, though I'm certain there is a recipe online somewhere. I played with the notion of quick-pickled, sunomono dressed, cucumber noodles combined with tofu for a more filling dish. This was cute packaging, but the appeal was much more than visual. The tofu bundles' light, bright flavor was an instant hit at lunch today, and would work equally well as an appetizer or a bento box addition. Two thumbs up on this versatile dish - it's a keeper. Below is the procedure I followed rather than a list of specific measures, so experiment and enjoy.

Cucumber Wrapped Tofu with Dipping Sauce

Small pickling cucumbers, or an English seedless cuke
seasoned rice vinegar
sesame oil
sesame seeds
hot pepper flakes

a package of extra firm tofu
low sodium soy sauce

Ponzu sauce
Seasoned rice vinegar

Directions:

1. Use a vegetable peeler to cut long cucumber ribbons and toss them with a sunomono-style dressing. 
2. Sprinkle soy sauce over long batons of firm tofu and wrap them with the cucumber ribbons. 
3. Serve with a dipping sauce mix of Ponzu and seasoned rice vinegar to add one more flavor note to the party.    

Savory Quinoa Patties

It's hard to cook just a little quinoa. Those deceptively tiny grains fluff up so enthusiastically I know they want to take over the kitchen. Turn your back and poof! there's even more quinoa in the pot, or at least it seems that way. Instead quinoa just takes over refrigerator space as you store the overage from a typical batch. Accept this as a gift, a challenge to get creative.

Earlier this week we enjoyed a Quinoa Mediterranean Salad for several meals, but a generous bowlful still remained, chilling out in the fridge. I could have served it as a salad one more time, but we were ready for something different. Inspiration came from a SevenSpoons' post that reviewed a quinoa patty recipe from Heidi Swanson's award-winning book Super Natural Every Day. That led me to these crunchy little cakes of deliciousness.

Just my luck, we ate every single patty this time so there were no leftovers. Too bad, because I think quinoa patties might pair well with a frisee salad and I still want to top a fat quinoa cake with a soft poached egg and parsley sauce. I must be thinking of the SevenSpoons' photo that first brought me to this recipe.

While I used leftover Mediterranean salad as the base for these patties,  plain quinoa could serve as well. Add some of your favorite savory ingredients and you're half-way there. These little cuties come together quickly after you mix cooked quinoa with crumbled cheese, capers, green onions, herbs and seasonings, breadcrumbs and eggs. Use a small cookie scoop to portion the mixture into small balls and use your fingers to compact the mixture a bit to avoid crumbling as they cook.

Heat a tablespoon of oil in a nonstick pan over medium-high heat, place the quinoa balls in the pan and gently flatten to form small patties, about 1/2" thick. Now leave them alone for several minutes - really, don't move them, don't poke them, just ignore them - so the base will set and hold them together nicely. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes until the bottom is nicely browned.

Photo: space the patties so you can turn each one without disturbing its neighbors

Use an offset spatula to gently turn them over cook until the second side is nicely browned, about 2 to 3 minutes.

Photo: note the crispy, golden-brown crust

Keep the first batch warm while you cook the remaining patties, or use two skillets or a large griddle and cook them all at once. You'll want to serve them hot, with a sauce on the side. To sauce or not to sauce is a major decision. RL covered his last few patties with Thai Peanut Sauce.

Photo: RL likes a little sauce on his quinoa patties

I couldn't choose a favorite between Sweet Thai Red Pepper Sauce and Mint Tzatziki, so I tried both. Both sauces were delicious and highlighted different ingredients in the patty mixture, but I preferred my quinoa cakes plain, without any sauce to mask the already tasty flavors.  

The surprise of the day was RL's change of opinion from "Do I really have to eat these?" to an enthusiastic "Let's have them again soon". That's fine with the cook although I am officially through posting quinoa recipes for a long while. Unofficially though, quinoa might appear on my plate again soon. It has joined kale as a current must-have ingredient.

Quinoa Patties

Makes 12 small patties

2 cups cooked quinoa (I used leftover Quinoa Mediterranean Salad)

1 Tablespoon capers, rinsed & drained

4 green onions, sliced in thin rings

2 eggs, beaten

1/2 cup seasoned breadcrumbs

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded or grated

a generous handful of fresh feta or mozzarella crumbles

2 Tablespoons fresh parsley or mint or both, roughly chopped

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Hot sauce, to taste (option)

Olive oil, canola oil or clarified butter to cook the patties

1. Combine all of the ingredients except the oil and mix thoroughly. Chill and let rest a while to allow the breadcrumbs to soak and soften. 
2. Portion the mixture into twelve small balls.
3. Heat a tablespoon of oil in a pan, place the quinoa balls in the pan and gently flatten with a spatula to form patties, roughly 1/2" thick. Now leave them alone for several minutes - don't move them, don't poke them, just ignore them - so the base will set and hold them together nicely. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes until the bottom is nicely browned.
4. Use an offset spatula to carefully turn them over cook until the second side is well browned, about 2 to 3 minutes.
5. Keep warm while you cook the remaining patties, or use two skillets or a large grill and cook them all at once. You'll want to serve them hot, with a sauce on the side, or perhaps with an egg on top.

Quinoa Mediterranean Salad

Quinoa is back on the menu again. I have ignored this versatile grain far too long, reaching past the three-pound package sitting on a pantry shelf as I grabbed other items. But it is ignored no longer. This month that fluffy, protein-filled pseudo-grain has starred in a stuffed pepper recipe. It worked so well that I was ready for something more. More, but different. 

Next I cooked a pot of quinoa, added various ingredients that we like, mixing sweet and tart flavors, and raided the refrigerator for more inspiration. Lemons, of course, lemons must be part of the mix. Friend Tanya had just gifted me another bag of gigantic Arizona lemons from her orchard in Yuma. These Southwestern lemons are something special, incredibly juicy and somehow more lemony than any of the puny, local grocery offerings.  

Photo: the puny lemon on the bottom right is the grocery store product

The dressing began with a 2:1:1 blend of Greek olive oil, seasoned rice vinegar and lemon juice. Taste, adjust, taste, tweak it a bit more... I probably ate an entire serving's worth in taste tests but it was worth it. The resulting salad was delicious. How good is delicious? Well, RL reluctantly  sampled a small serving, and then... Wait for it... asked for a second helping. 

We have enjoyed that quinoa salad recipe over several days in a number of ways and it has not lost its appeal. Serve it on a lunch salad plate.

Fill an avocado or even an avocado shell .

This is not a new idea. Similar recipes are found all over the web, and I must have skimmed a few at one time or another, but this version just... happened. Okay, just now I Googled "quinoa salad" and found over 13 million hits. 13 million! There's something going on here. Beyond the fact that quinoa is a complete protein, providing all 9 essential amino acids, is gluten-free and cholesterol-free and usually organic, has a lot of fiber and cooks in 10 to 15 minutes which is quick compared to most grains - beyond all that, quinoa is incredibly versatile and adapts to a wide range of flavors and cuisines. 

Hmmmm, what's next? What is your favorite quinoa recipe?

Quinoa Mediterranean Salad

4 generous servings

1 cup quinoa, rinsed & drained
1 3/4 cups water (or broth)

1/3 cup dried cranberries
1/3 cup sultanas or raisins
1/4 cup seasoned rice vinegar or orange juice
1 sweet red bell pepper (or several multi-colored minis)
3-4 green onions, white and green parts, chopped
1/4 cup pine nuts
1 generous Tbs capers, rinsed
zest of one fat lemon
1/8 cup fresh mint leaves, rough chopped
handful of fresh flat-leaf parsley, rough chopped
1/4 cup or more mild feta cheese, crumbled

Dressing:
4 Tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons seasoned rice vinegar
2 tablespoons lemon juice (more or less to taste)
Salt and freshly ground pepper

1. Cook the quinoa as directed on the package, resisting any urge to lift the lid while it cooks. Fluff with a fork and turn out into a medium bowl to cool.
2. Add the dried fruit and 1/4 cup seasoned rice vinegar to a small cup and warm in the microwave. Set aside while the fruit plumps.
3. Mix the dressing ingredients. Taste and adjust, adding more lemon if it seems flat, or a touch of warmed honey if it is too tart.
4. Add the chopped peppers, green onions, pine nuts, capers, lemon zest, mint leaves and parsley to the cooled quinoa. Add the now-plumped dried fruit to the mix and gently toss all to mix. Add the dressing, one large spoonful at a time, tossing as you go. Again, taste and adjust. 
5. Top with the crumbled feta cheese and serve.

Note: The flavors will blend over time, some will brighten while others recede. I tend to add more mint on following days, or a sprinkle more lemon zest. 

Kale and Artichoke Grilled Cheese Sandwich

April is National Grilled Cheese Sandwich Month. An entire month honoring grilled cheese? Well,let the celebration begin, as though grilled cheese sandwiches needed any excuse to appear in my galley. Just thinking of that ooey, gooey goodness melted between crunchy layers of grilled, buttered bread brought on hunger pangs. The cravings got serious when I spotted Joy the Bakers's post for a Spinach and Artichoke Grilled Cheese Sandwich. Her filling ingredients were a riff on a favorite appetizer, Spinach and Artichoke Dip. Just one look at the photo of  stacked sandwiches and I knew I had to grill up my own version. 

Similar ingredients lurked in my refrigerator, though I had to get creative with a few items. Kale substituted for spinach, the heat from Crimson Fire (WSU's version of pepper jack) replaced the sriracha's kick, and I skipped completely forgot to add the sour cream. Deli-sliced turkey was a last-minute addition, a spur of the moment inspiration, but was totally unnecessary. Any trace of turkey flavor disappeared as though it wasn't part of the cast of players; it's mild flavor couldn't stand up to the bolder tastes of cheese and peppers. 

I built one sandwich on a jalapeno & cheese-topped mini baguette and a second one on multigrain sandwich bread.  

Grilling the baguette was little tricky. The rounded top tried to roll over on the grill pan and a sandwich weight (aka bacon press) slid right off. No matter, the cheese melted and the filling ingredients blended together into a delicious cohesive mass. Tangy yet mellow, smooth and crunchy in every bite, this was comfort food at its best.

RL joined in the taste test and added more salt and some green tabasco to his sandwich segments. I was happy with the flavors as cooked, or hungry enough to be non-critical. Later on I spotted a package of frozen salad shrimp in the freezer and considered another round of sandwiches incorporating shrimp instead of turkey... or maybe not. I know for sure that we will celebrate National Grilled Cheese Sandwich Month again and again this month.

      

Kale and Artichoke Grilled Cheese Sandwich 

a description rather than a recipe

inspired by a recipe from Joy the Baker (original recipe)

1. Saute chopped onion and minced garlic in a lightly oiled pan over medium-low heat until softened. Add chopped kale and cook until wilted. Transfer to a bowl and set aside to cool. 
2. Add shredded pepper jack cheese, a pinch of salt, and a handful of drained, chopped artichoke hearts to the bowl. Mix with a fork until well combined. Taste and adjust as needed - this is your chance to get creative with other ingredients. (Sour cream? crema? mayonnaise? lemon pepper or lemon zest? hot sauce?)
3. Use two slices of bread or one split roll for each sandwich. Spread one side of each slice with cream cheese. Pile some filling onto the bottom slice of bread. Top with another slice, cream cheese side down, and press together lightly. 
4. Lightly butter the top side of a sandwich and lay, butter side down, on a preheated heavy grill pan, OR melt a dab of butter in a heavy-bottomed skillet and add the sandwich(es). Toast on each side until the cheese melts and the bread is golden brown.
5. Don't wait, slice and enjoy this treat right away.

Update: April 7, 2013
Check out the menu (link) at Monte Cristo, a Seattle food truck that specializes in gourmet grilled cheese sandwiches. Browse the site, you'll enjoy it and wish you lived in Seattle. 
More ideas for creative and tasty grilled cheese sandwiches (and a contest) can be found at FoodieCrush (link)
You could look for healthier grilled cheese makeovers at CookingLight (link).