Balsamic Portobello Mushroom Pizza

Tags

balsamic vinegar, Fontina, garlic, mushroom, pizza, portobello

Packing up for a move is quite a pain. It’s been a while since I last moved, and it’s amazing what all has accumulated over the years! At first, I was looking forward to packing as a chance to go through everything and toss what we no longer need. But after days of packing (and I only have a 2 bedroom apartment), I’m over it and I’m not having fun anymore! Hehe. A few more days and it will all be over… then it’ll just be time to unpack it all!

But once my pizza stone is unpacked, I have some pizza dough all ready and I can make this awesome pizza again! For those of you who have been fortunate enough to try a pizza from BJ’s Restaurant and Brewhouse, this pizza what inspired by one of their Chicago deep dish pizzas. Theirs consists of balsamic portobello mushrooms and carmelized onions. Not being a big onion fan, I omitted the onions and went straight for some mushrooms tossed with balsamic vinegar, parsley, and thyme for some tang and fresh herb flavor. Top it off with some nutty Fontina cheese, and you have yourself a delicious, and seemingly fancy, pizza!One Year Ago: Chicken-Fried Steak with Cream Gravy and Chicken Piccata

Balsamic Portobello Mushroom Pizza

2 tablespoons olive oil
¾ pound baby Portobello mushrooms, sliced
½ teaspoon salt
4 cloves garlic
1 tablespoon fresh thyme
4 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon parsley
8 ounces Fontina cheese, shredded
Pizza dough, unbaked

Place a pizza stone on a rack in the lower third of the oven, if using. Preheat oven to 500 degrees F for at least 30 minutes.

While the oven is heating, heat olive oil until shimmering in a large skillet. Add mushrooms and salt, and toss mushrooms to completely coat them. Cover the skillet and let the mushrooms sweat until soft, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and thyme and allow to cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add balsamic vinegar and cook another 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the parsley.

Meanwhile, Let the dough relax for at room temperature for 10 to 30 minutes before beginning to work with it. Lightly sprinkle parchment paper or a pizza peel with cornmeal or semolina flour. For a little garlic flavor, add some granulated garlic to the cornmeal or flour. Transfer the dough to your prepared surface, and shape the dough until it has a 12-inch diameter. Brush the outer edge lightly with olive oil.

Spread the mushroom mixture over the pizza dough, leaving a ½-inch border uncovered, then sprinkle with Fontina cheese. Slide the dough onto the heated stone, or place your baking sheet or pizza pan into the oven. Bake until the crust is golden brown, and cheese is bubbling, 8-12 minutes. Remove from the oven, slice and serve.

Source: Inspired by BJ’s Restaurant and Brewhouse

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Spinach-Artichoke Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms

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artichoke, breadcrumbs, cream cheese, garlic, portobello, sour cream, spinach, vegetarian

When I first tried spinach-artichoke dip, I wasn’t a huge fan. I think I just wasn’t a big fan of artichokes. But thankfully, tastes change every 7 years or so and I have since come to learn that even if I don’t love the dip, I love the spinach-artichoke combo whether it be on pasta or pizza, and even on mushrooms! This recipe has been circulating a lot of blogs lately, and it caught my eye every time. When I finally saw portobellos were on sale, I knew what I wanted to do with them! And thankfully, I had everything on hand already once I got the mushrooms. This is a very simple recipe, and there is something elegant seeming about stuffed portobellos. You can dress them up or dress them down, as needed. We even had stuffed portobellos at our wedding, and they were so good! I actually preferred that over the steak I requested, they were that good! But the point is, these spinach-artichoke stuffed portobello mushrooms are awesome and you should definitely make them soon!!Spinach-Artichoke Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms
Yield: 4 servings

3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
4 garlic cloves, minced and divided
4 medium portabello mushrooms, stems and gills removed
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
3 tablespoons sour cream
2 teaspoons fresh thyme, divided
Pinch of red pepper flakes
10 ounces frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
1 (13.75 ounce) can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
½ cup Panko breadcrumbs
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

In a small bowl, combine 2 tablespoons olive oil and 2 cloves minced garlic. Brush the insides of the mushroom caps with the mixture and season with salt and pepper. Arrange the mushrooms in a single layer on a baking sheet, oiled-side up. Roast until just tender, about 8 to 10 minutes. Use a paper towel to blot up and accumulated moisture in the mushroom caps.

Meanwhile, combine the cream cheese, sour cream, and 1 teaspoon thyme in a medium bowl. Stir in the spinach and artichokes and season with salt and pepper.

In another medium bowl, combine the Panko, Parmesan cheese, 2 cloves minced garlic, 1 tablespoon olive oil, and 1 teaspoon thyme.

Spoon the artichoke mixture evenly into the mushroom caps and sprinkle generously with the breadcrumb mixture. Bake 10 to 12 minutes, until the crumbs are golden-brown and the filling is hot. Serve immediately.

Source: Slightly adapted from Pink Parsley

Grilled Portobello Mushrooms with Tomatoes and Mozzarella

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mozzarella, portobello, tomato

The weather is finally how it’s supposed to be with summer right around the corner. It went from rainy and stormy to being HOT! With temps near the mid 90’s, I find myself eating lighter meals, and trying to avoid hot foods. Grilling is a great option to keep the heat outside, which makes these grilled portobello mushrooms perfect. They are topped with a cool caprese salad, which is a very popular Italian combination of tomato, mozzarella, basil, and olive oil. These are another perfect dish from Giada De Laurentiis, and are great as a vegetarian main dish or as a vegetable side dish.
Grilled Portobello Mushrooms with Tomatoes and Mozzarella

4 large portobello mushrooms (about 5 inches in diameter), stemmed
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
Salt and freshly ground pepper
½ teaspoon minced garlic
2 ripe tomatoes, cut into ½-inch pieces
8 ounces fresh water-packed mozzarekka, drained and cut into ½-inch pieces
¼ cup chopped fresh basil

Prepare a charcoal or gas grill for medium-high heat. Brush the portobello mushrooms with 3 tablespoons olive oil, coating the top and bottom of the mushrooms, then sprinkle with salt and pepper. Grill until the mushrooms are heated through, about 5 minutes on each side.

Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, combine the remaining 3 tablespoons of olive oil, garlic, tomatoes, mozzarella, and basil; toss to make sure everything is coated evenly. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

To serve, place each hot mushroom gill side up and spoon the tomato salad atop the mushrooms, dividing the salad equally among the 4 mushroom caps.

Source: Giada’s Family Dinners by Giada De Laurentiis

Portobello Fettuccine

Tags

fettuccine, pasta, portobello, vegetarian

Whenever I see portobello mushrooms on sale, I feel a need to buy them. I then need to figure out what to make with them. When tomatoes are in season, I have my go to recipe, but I had some mushrooms on hand and the tomatoes didn’t look juicy or sweet enough. I started searching online for some different options and came across this recipe. It had pasta, which was a plus, along with cream and cheese… an even bigger plus!

Freshly shredded Parmesan cheese is a must, otherwise the cheese will not melt properly. I learned this the hard way in multiple attempts to make fettuccine alfredo with pre-shredded Parmesan, and I always ended up with lumps of cheese disspersed in a slightly cheesy sauce. Portobello mushrooms have a very bold mushroom flavor. They meld wonderfully with this alfredo sauce, which helps to slightly diminish the strong flavor without washing it out, while the wine helps to add an additional layer of flavor.

Portobello Fettuccine

1 pound fettuccine
6 ounces portobello mushrooms (2 mushroom caps)
¼ cup butter
3 garlic cloves, minced
½ cup dry white wine
1 cup whipping cream
1 cup milk
1 cup (4 ounces) freshly shredded Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon coarsely ground pepper
½ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian flat-leaf parsley

Prepare pasta according to package directions; drain.

Remove brown gills from undersides of mushroom caps using a spoon, and discard gills. Rinse caps thoroughly; dry mushrooms then cut into ½-inch pieces.

Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat; add mushrooms and garlic, and sauté 5 to 6 minutes or until tender. Add wine and boil until most of the liquid has evaporated.  Stir in cream and milk. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; reduce heat, and simmer, whisking constantly, 10 minutes. Stir in cheese, pepper, and salt; stir constantly until cheese melts and mixture thickens. Stir in 2 tablespoons parsley. Serve over hot cooked pasta.

Source: Adapted from Southern Living