Mushroom

When I first started cooking professionally in 1979, even getting fresh button mushrooms was exciting. These days, portobello mushrooms, and any number of other exotic varieties, are practically an everyday item. When it comes to portobellos (which, mercifully, have remained fairly inexpensive), you can buy just the caps, but I like to buy whole mushrooms so I can use the stems to “beef up” the stuffing. Any favorite stuffing recipe will work here, but this spicy Italian sausage mixture is my favorite because it provides the perfect counterbalance to the earthiness of the mushrooms. Serve this with a simple tomato sauce, lemon butter, or just a drizzle of good balsamic vinegar. Sautéed broccoli rabe and a twirl of angel hair pasta turn it into a complete meal. Bring on the chianti!

You can’t come to the French Quarter without being seduced by a rich, bubbling crabmeat gratin. This is my take on the traditional New Orleans dish—it’s luxurious and surprisingly simple to prepare. For the most elegant presentation, serve this in individual gratin dishes as a lunch or a first course for a special meal. This gratin gets added flavor and crunch from the topping, a Spicer staple.

For years, I would eat eggs only as an excuse to have bacon and hash browns. And then I made this discovery—the French method of slow cooking. The results of this technique are so good, I’d be perfectly happy to eat the eggs plain, without embellishment, but in this version I still get my potatoes and bacon. This dish requires patience: it’s tempting to turn the heat up and finish the eggs quickly, but if you do, they will lose the creamy, custardy consistency that elevates this dish beyond breakfast. Try these eggs as a first course before something simple and light, such as a vegetable or chicken sauté, or grilled fish or beef. You can also serve them for brunch, with fresh fruit or a green salad.

The sauce for this dish can be made a day or two ahead (keep the bacon separate) and refrigerated. Gently reheat as the pasta boils; add the bacon to the sauce during the last few minutes of heating.

Like the asparagus tart that’s a harbinger of spring (see page 69), this mushroom-topped variation is a crowd-pleaser. It makes a lovely dinner, or, when cut into bite-size pieces, a perfect hors d’oeuvre for a cocktail party.

Quinoa adds protein as well as a chewy texture to this meatless main dish. The heat of the cooked quinoa and mushrooms helps wilt the spinach; the dressing and feta pull this warm salad together.

Mushrooms, acorn squash, and rosemary lend a woodsy taste to roast chicken. We used cremini mushrooms, but regular white button mushrooms can be substituted.

Browning the chicken seals in the juices and keeps the inside moist and flavorful. This recipe can be made with pork cutlets instead of chicken. For an earthier flavor, substitute shiitake, cremini, or wild mushrooms for the white mushrooms.

Think of these as open-faced Mexican sandwiches, topped with grilled summer vegetables, tangy feta cheese, and fresh tomato salsa.

We like this steak served with sauteed mushrooms and polenta, but it would also be great with a green salad or Parmesan Steak Fries (page 83). And since it’s made with commonly available ingredients, you can enjoy it year-round.

In this recipe for a popular Chinese dish, an egg is stirred into the simmering soup to form tiny ribbons. For more flavor, add a teaspoon of toasted sesame oil just before serving.

This is a very safe (and, of course, tasty) pasta dish guaranteed to please those less adventurous eaters. It is also good for you less-experienced cooks. It really is simple to make and almost impossible to ruin.

Here we came up with a new way to do ravioli with wonton wrappers. It’s quick and simple but looks impressive and tastes like what you’d get in a five-star restaurant. The ravioli are sautéed in butter and sprinkled with Parmesan cheese. It does not get much better than that. Serve it with (what else?) green salad and some rustic Italian bread like ciabatta.

I had never tried quinoa before testing this recipe, and my verdict is that the grain with the funny name is good. The combination of vegetables and quinoa is so delicious that I would be happy with a big bowl of just that. This is even better though, because stuffing it into the onion makes an awesome and impressive dish.

I’ve always loved pot stickers, but I was skeptical when we decided to try a vegetarian version. We got it right on the first try, and that doesn’t happen often. Your meat-eating friends won’t even care that these are vegetarian, because they’re pretty darn good dumplings, if I do say so myself.

This version of lasagna is really unbeatable, with lots of mushrooms, spinach, and cheese. Use no-cook (or no-boil) lasagna noodles so you don’t have to cook them beforehand—they absorb the liquid in the filling and cook as the lasagna bakes. If you’re having people over, you can assemble it in advance and keep it in the fridge until you’re ready bake it. Serve it with a big salad and garlic bread, and you can practically feed your whole neighborhood.

You’re probably skeptical about how such a standard meat and potatoes dish as shepherd’s pie could be made vegetarian, but it can definitely be done. This dish is great comfort food—white beans and veggies baked bubbly hot with a golden mashed potato crust.

No one can deny the comfort food factor associated with a steaming hot pot pie with its crispy crust and delicious sauce. Even if your mom never actually made one for you from scratch, at least she probably bought you frozen ones on occasion. Our version is made with lots of vegetables, and it’s a treat for meat eaters and vegetarians alike.