There’s Fungus Among Us
Mushrooms, specifically. We both hated mushrooms. And now we both like them (dare I say, love?). I don’t know if I encountered many mushrooms growing up – though I think my mom threw a can of them into meals here and there and used cream of mushroom soup for some casseroles and such. I was always very diligent about picking them out. They were brown and slimy and that’s just gross.
A few years ago we were at Snowshoe Mountain skiing with some friends and we stayed in this big beautiful house for 3 nights. Some of the group left after 2 nights, which left 8-9 of us. Scott, who is an amazing chef spent hours in the kitchen making us this incredible meal while some of us went night skiing, some of us stayed in the house drinking, and some of us when night skiing and drinking (at the same time). I don’t remember the entire meal, but the main part was prime rib and with mushrooms in a sort of gravy. I wasn’t sure I’d like the mushrooms, but they looked good and Scott slaved over the meal, so I decided to try them – and I loved them! There was one bad thing about the meal, Scott got a migraine as soon as he finished cooking and had to go to bed – so he didn’t even get to taste how good it was!
I emailed him for a recipe when we got home – he doesn’t use recipes because he’s that good, so he just gave me an explanation of what he did with them. I’ve made them once or twice since then (never as good as his), but the ones I made on Monday were really good. Lo finally said he thinks he may like mushrooms. Even though I’ve made mushrooms many different ways since that trip and he eats them every time without complaint, he was never ready to admit that he actually likes them. This time I made them to serve with Salisbury steaks that I got for free with a coupon at The House of Meats in the Anderson’s (sign up for their newsletter to get an email with the meat sales and a coupon each week). Otherwise I wouldn’t have bought Salisbury Steak – I don’t even know what is in them, so I didn’t have high hopes, but they were pretty good. As for the mushrooms, this is what I did (approximately):
Mushrooms in Gravy
1 container of mushrooms, sliced (whatever type you prefer – mine were baby bellas)
1/3 stick of butter
1 carton of beef broth (though stock is preferred)
1 clove garlic, minced (or some shakes of garlic powder)
Couple of dashes of worcestershire* **
Fresh herbs if you have some (I had rosemary, Scott recommended sage)
Salt and pepper and any other spices that you’d like
A few handfuls of fresh spinach if you have it
Melt the butter in a skillet. I always use cast iron. Add the mushrooms and stir around to coat with butter. Let mushrooms sauté for a few minutes until they start to release their juices. Add garlic, if using (if fresh, let it cook for about a minute). Pour in broth/stock until mushrooms are a little floaty (his words). Add any spices or herbs and worcestershire. Bring to a simmer and let the liquid reduce down to where it’s more like a sauce. Add a few handfuls of fresh spinach, if using, and cover skillet until spinach is just wilted. Add salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste and serve.
*I think I also threw in some Spicy A1 that I’m trying to use up
**I cannot pronounce Worcestershire unless I really concentrate. I usually pronounce it like “wor-chester-shire. And then Lo laughs at me.
Sorry, I forgot to take a picture, but mushrooms in gravy with Salisbury steak isn’t very pretty anyway. But it was GOOD. Lo ate his for breakfast one morning (I told you he eats whatever for breakfast). Here’s a pic Lo after he Sonny Bono’d on his skiis at Snowshoe. He was ok, but it could have been BAD.