Ma Whats For Dinner?» mushrooms

Tasty Tidbit – Mushrooms

Alex aka Ma, What's For Dinner — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 11:00:58 +0000

I looooooooove mushrooms.

Ok, let me repeat that in case you didn’t hear me.

I LOVE MUSHROOMS!

I swear I put them in everything.

I like all kinds.

All the asian mushrooms…

Great in stir fry!

Dried mushrooms…

Awesome in risotto!

Even button mushrooms…

Fantastic on burgers!

“But Alex?” you say, “With all these mushrooms in my fridge to choose from how can I keep them fresh longer?”

I’m so glad you asked!

Keep them in a brown paper bag!

Yup, just like lunch.

Extends the shelf life like nobody’s business!

Try it.

OH! And don’t forget…never wash those bad boys in water…they’ll soak it all up.

Just give them a good wipe with a damp towel.

Thanks to Wikipedia for the great mushroom pics!

Asian Week – Mongolian Beef

Alex aka Ma, What's For Dinner — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 11:00:58 +0000

Who needs to order take out when you can make it yourself?

Make this dish next time you think of heading out to PF Changs!

It’s delish and the kids love it.

WHAT YOU NEED:

2 flank steak sliced thin

2 T vegetable oil

1/2 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup chicken stock

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup rice wine

2 t sriracha sauce

1 t sesame oil

3 T cornstarch

1 inch minced ginger

2 cloves chopped garlic

4 green onions, chopped

2 T peanut oil

WHAT TO DO:

Combine all the ingredients except the peanut oil and 2 of the green onions in a large plastic bag and allow to marinate for at least one hour.

Heat the peanut oil in a wok over high heat. When the oil is smoking add everything in the bag into the wok. Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring almost constantly. Serve over brown rice or you can jazz it up with some stir fry soba noodles and veggies!

Toss the beef on top of the noodles, voila,

Mongolian Beef Noodle Bowl!

Ready When You Are Pot Roast

Alex aka Ma, What's For Dinner — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 11:00:08 +0000

I have decided that the inventor of the crock pot deserves a national holiday to recognize their efforts and the success they bring to families everywhere. I mean what’s better than grabbing the kids before school, letting them toss a bunch of stuff into a pot and pressing a button?

You go to school…

you head off to work…

you take the kids to soccer…

pick up your dry cleaning…

and head on home…

Walk in the door and voila…

Dinner is served!

Serves: 6 Prep time: 15 minutes Cook time: 9 hours

2-3 lb bottom round or rump roast

1 T canola oil

3 large carrots, cut in large chunks

3 large celery stalks, cut in large chunks

1 large onion, cut in large chunks

1 cup white mushrooms whole

1 lb small red potatoes, halved

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 package dry onion soup mix

1 10 oz can low sodium cream of mushroom soup

½ cup beef stock

S&P

Special Equipment: Slow cooker

In a large skillet heat oil over high heat. Season your roast on all sides with S&P. When oil is smoking add meat and brown on all sides. Meanwhile add your veggies to the bottom of you slow cooker. When your meat is browned, place on top of veggies. Add in your chopped garlic, and season with S&P. Sprinkle your dry soup mix over meat and veggies then pour on your soup. Pour stock over veggies and cover. Cook on low for 8 hours.

Serve this with a side salad and crusty bread or just enjoy as is…this is a one pot wonder!

I hereby christen the 3rd week of October

Crock Pot Week!

Gather your best recipes and send them in.

If I use one of yours…

YOU WIN!!

A copy of our cookbook to call your very own. Fire up your crock pots in honor of the guy (or girl – come on now, we all know it was probably a busy mom) who created them and pay some tribute. If you can actually tell me who did invent the crock pot you win too! Well, you win mad props from me anyway!

Belleicious Pork Chops

Alex aka Ma, What's For Dinner — Mon, 04 Oct 2010 11:38:02 +0000

We love pork chops around here…well, we love all things pork around here.

It is the other white meat you know…

You want to know what I love even more than pork chops?

Pork chops stuffed with bread, veggies, and cheese!

So when I saw my girl over at Kitchen Belleicious make some beautiful looking stuffed pork chops I hurried on over to check out her dish. Hers was great and made with pumpernickel bread, romano cheese and nuts!

You all know that I suffer from a nasty case of recipe OCD so I switched things up with some corn bread and spinach.

Go have a looksie at both dishes.

You’ll be glad you did!

Stuffed Pork Chops

4 center cut pork chops

2 large corn muffins, crumbled

1 small onion chopped

1 1/2 cups baby spinach

3 garlic cloves, minced

1/4 cup toasted pecans

2 T olive oil

1/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated

1/4 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded

2 T balsamic vinegar

1/2 t garlic powder

1/2 t paprika

1/2 t onion powder

1 can stout beer

1/2 cup worcestershire sauce

S&P

Serves: 4 Prep Time: 20 minutes (plus 4 hours for marinating) Cook time: 25 minutes

Season both sides of your pork chops with S&P, garlic powder, paprika and onion powder. Place them in a resealable bag with your beer and worcestershire sauce. Seal the bag, place in the fridge and allow to marinate for at least 4 hours.

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Heat the olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Saute the onions until soft, about 10 minutes. Add your garlic and cook for another minute. Next toss in your spinach and let in wilt slightly, another minute or so. Season with S&P. Next toss in your nuts, corn muffins, and sprinkle in your balsamic vinegar. Cook on low for 3 minutes then add in your cheese and mix well. Remove from heat and set aside.

Remove your pork chops from the marinade. Working on the side farthest from the bone cut a large horizontal pocket into each chop. Inside each pocket fill with an equal amount of stuffing. Continue with remaining chops then lay them into a greased baking dish.

Bake at 375 for 20-25 minutes.

Enjoy with Pop’s Pasta…stay tuned for the recipe!

Fitzpatrick Pizza Party

Alex aka Ma, What's For Dinner — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 11:00:28 +0000

Oh I can feel, coming in the air tonight…

It feels like fall!

It’s coming!

This is my first fall back east in over 12 years. I’m sooooooo excited. So as the weather cools down we decided to heat up the kitchen.

You all know how we love our pizza.

Well, really, who doesn’t?

We do all kinds of pizza around here

We do BBQ Chicken Pizza

We do Grown Up Date Night Pizza

We do Pizza Puffs

We do Potato Pizza I mean we are Fitzpatricks after all

We do Muffin Man Pizzas

We even do Upside Down Pizza

For tonight I decided to use up the dough I had frozen from when I made the Date night pizza and slapped in on the pizza rock and we made pizza two ways…

Tomato

and Pesto

Both of which were great. Why? Because we topped them both with sauteed mushrooms, garlic, fresh mozzarella and wait for it…

PANCETTA!

Turns out I’m the only one who really likes the pesto. Bummer, guess I’ll just have to eat it all myself.

They’re both delicious, here’s how you make them.

2 pizza dough (you can use store bought, from your local pizza joint, or try this recipe for homemade dough here)

1/4 cup prepared pesto sauce

1/4 cup pizza sauce (try the organic san marzano sauce from Whole Foods…YUM!!!)

2 large balls fresh mozzarella, sliced into thin discs

1/4 lb pancetta cut into large slices

8 oz sliced button mushrooms

8 oz sliced portobello mushrooms

3/4 cup shredded mozzarella

4 cloves garlic chopped fine

2 T olive oil

S&P

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Heat up 1 T olive oil. When it’s hot add in your pancetta. Cook until crispy. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside. Add in an additional T of oil if needed. Toss in your sliced mushrooms. Saute until soft, about 8 minutes. Add in your garlic and cook for an additional minute. Turn off the heat and set aside.

Next stretch your dough to the desired size. We went for small pizzas. Slather one dough with your red pizza sauce, the pesto to the other. Or you can mix your sauces and get a yummy basily good tomato sauce. Sounds like another recipe brewin’… Top the sauce with mushrooms. Top each with fresh mozzarella, then shredded mozzarella. Top the cheese with the pancetta and bake each pizza for 15 minutes or until nice and bubbly.

Serve with a side salad. Trust me, there’s no leftover pizza for the next morning on this one. Yes I eat leftover pizza for breakfast. Don’t judge, always have, always will. Also eat leftover chinese for breakfast.

It’s my fave. What’s yours?

Chicken Divine

Alex aka Ma, What's For Dinner — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 11:19:16 +0000

Yes yes yes, I know that most people call this one chicken divan but this casserole is just so darn good that you just have to call it divine. I love casseroles. I love the fact that you can make them in advance, I love that you can throw anything leftover in the fridge into them, I love that dinner is ready by the time you get home from soccer practice!

I love that the weather has been cooler the last few days here in the northeast. It’s going to be our first fall here and that is my favorite time of year. It’s almost here and the kids are starting school next week. This is great recipe for your arsenal when you need to get dinner on the table fast and homework done.

Serves: 8 Prep time: 30 minutes Cook time: 40 minutes

10 ounces steamed broccoli

3 large boneless chicken breasts

1 T olive oil

1 10 ounce can cream of mushroom soup

8 ounces buttom mushrooms, halved

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup light mayonnaise

1/2 cup light sour cream

2 t. fresh lemon juice

1/2 t. curry powder

1 can sliced water chestnuts

S&P

1/2 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese

1/2 cup french fried onions

4 strips bacon chopped

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Season your chicken breasts with olive oil and salt and pepper. Bake for 25 minutes. Meanwhile heat a small skillet over medium heat. Add your chopped bacon and saute until crisp. Remove and allow to drain on a paper towel.

While your chicken cooks, assemble your casserole. In a 13×9 pan arrange your broccoli on the bottom. In a large bowl combine soup, milk, mayo, sour cream, mushrooms, lemon juice, curry powder, water chestnuts. Stir to mix well and season with salt and pepper.

Once your chicken has finished cooking remove it from the oven and slice it into thin strips. Arrange the chicken over the broccoli. Pour the soup mixture over the top of the chicken and broccoli. Top with cheddar cheese and fried onions. Cover with foil and bake on 375 degrees for 30 minutes. Remove foil and sprinkle with bacon and cook uncovered for an additional 10 minutes. Serve with brown or white rice and enjoy!

Down home baked pork chops and rice

Alex aka Ma, What's For Dinner — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 12:28:24 +0000

What’s your favorite kind of recipe after a long day out with the kids? I’ll tell you mine…one that takes me less that 5 minutes to throw together then toss it into the oven so it can do all the work for me. This is one of those recipes! Fast, easy and oh so delicious.

Yesterday we were out at the local pool and waterpark with some friends. We ended up staying a little late and by the time I hustled everyone past the 900 ice cream trucks who line the perimeter and enduring the endless screaming about how it’s sooooo unfair that everyone else gets ice cream before dinner and I’m the meanest mommy in the world, etc. We made it home and tossed this puppy together, threw it into the oven, and wrangled everyone upstairs for baths and what not. By the time we were done washing off all that chlorine dinner was almost ready. Woo hoo! Love me some good ol’ casseroles that are a whole dinner in one.

Serves 4 Prep Time 5 minutes Cook Time 1 hour

2 T unsalted butter

1 cup long-grain uncooked white or brown rice

4 bone in pork chops

1 cup broccoli florets

1 cup sliced mushrooms

1 10 oz can beef broth

1 10 oz can reduced fat cream of mushroom soup

1 small onion sliced

1 green pepper sliced

S&P
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. In a medium skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the rice and saute until nice and toasted, about 5 minutes.

Toss your broccoli and mushrooms into the bottom of a 9×13 casserole dish. Pour the rice on top of the veggies. Season the pork chops with the S&P and place them on top of the rice.

In a bowl combine the soup and 1/2 of the beef broth, mix well. Pour the remaining broth over the rice. Place the onion rings and green pepper over the chops and season again with S&P. Pour the soup/broth mixture over the top. Cover the dish with aluminum foil and bake for 1 hour. Serve the pork chops on a bed of the rice with Roasted Brussell Sprouts.

What is your favorite quick and easy casserole?

Italian Cheeseburger Macaroni

Alex aka Ma, What's For Dinner — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 14:00:28 +0000

As many of you know, the hubs favorite food on the planet is Hamburger Helper. Seriously, he loves it. His favorite of all time is the Cheeseburger Macaroni. And when I cook up a meal for him and he really loves it he always asks me with love sparkling in those beautiful green eyes of his, if this is in fact, Hamburger Helper. It’s his equivalent of a 5 star rating. Isn’t he cute? Anyway, since all my boys love that creepy oversized white glove so much I thought I’d toss together an italian version of their favorite meal. Give it a go, it’ll be your favorite too!

Best thing about this dish is you can make it in advance and leave it in the fridge to take out and make when you get home after a long day at the playground and everyone is hungry and tired and you don’t feel like cooking because the dog pulled out the trash can and now you have to clean the kitchen and still give everyone a bath and dinner and all you want to do is pour a big glass of wine and watch who Ali chooses on The Bachelorette and dinner is the last thing on your mind…not that I would know anything about that. This is totally hypothetical, I’m just saying.

Italian Cheeseburger Macaroni

Serves: 6 Prep Time: 20 minutes Cook time: 30 minutes

2 T olive oil

1 lb ground beef

½ large onion, chopped

1 can diced tomato

1 clove garlic, chopped

8 oz mushrooms sliced thin

½ T dried oregano

1 t dried red pepper flakes

1 lb whole wheat penne pasta

3 T butter unsalted

3 T all purpose flour

3 cups whole milk

1/2 t fresh grated nutmeg

2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese

1 cup shredded swiss cheese

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Set a large pot of water over high heat to boil for your pasta. In large skillet heat olive oil over medium high heat. When oil is hot add in onions and mushroom and sautee until soft. About 6 minutes or so. When they are soft add in garlic, season with salt and pepper and cook for anadditional minutes. Add in your ground beef and cook until brown, about 5 minutes. Once meat has browned toss in the tomato, oregano, and red pepper flakes. Season again with S&P and allow to simmer for about 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a large saucepan melt butter over medium high heat. Whisk in flour and cook for 1 minute. Slowly whisk in milk, and bring to a gentle boil, stirring constantly. Once the milk has thickened add in nutmeg and season with S&P. Reduce to medium low heat and melt in cheddar and swiss cheeses. Allow to cook on low for a few minutes.

When water is boiling season water with salt and add pasta. Note package cooking time and reduce by 2 minutes, the macaroni will continue cooking in the oven later. Once pasta is cooked, drain and return to pot. Toss the penne with cheese mixture.

Spray a baking dish with cooking spray and pour half of the pasta mixture into the bottom of the dish. Spoon the Italian burger mixture over the top in an even layer. Then cover with remaining pasta. Top with additional cheddar cheese if desired. Bake at 375 for 30 minutes and enjoy!

Healthy Veggie Mmmmmarinara Sauce

Alex aka Ma, What's For Dinner — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 11:03:21 +0000

As you’ve all heard before we are a family of dippers. I love to dip and it seems I have passed this on to my kids. My family used to laugh at me when I was a kid because at dinner time, whether at home or at a restaurant, I was always surrounded by 7 or 8 little ramekins filled with various sauces, dressings, and all sorts of yummy dippables to dunk. My boys have taken that up as well and so we’ve devised a healthy marinara sauce for them to dunk into. It’s perfect for topping your pasta, dunking bread or bread sticks, fresh veggies, or even some fried mozzarella or zucchini. Be sure to make a lot of this one, freeze it to keep on hand! You won’t believe how good this tastes with so many veggies inside

2 T Extra Virgin Olive Oil

2 cloves garlic

¼ c chopped onion

¼ c chopped red pepper

¼ c chopped carrots

¼ c chopped mushrooms

1 28 oz can san marzano chopped tomato

1 ½ T dried Italian seasoning

S&P

1 box linguine, spaghetti, whatever floats your boat

In a large pot or dutch oven heat the oil over medium high heat. When the oil is hot add onion, carrots, and mushrooms. Sautee until veggies are soft and onions are translucent, about 7-9 minutes. When your veggies are soft add the garlic to your pot. Cook for 1-2 minutes stirring often. Sprinkle in S&P and your Italian seasoning. Stir. Pour in tomatoes and stir to combine. Bring your sauce up to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Simmer for 20 minutes then puree your sauce so it’s smooth. You can use a hand blender, a food processor, or a stand up blender.

Be sure to make this one in large quantities. You can double or triple this recipe and keep it in the fridge for up to a week or freeze it in ziploc bags so you always have a healthy marinara sauce on hand for pasta, or veggie dipping!

If you’re here from the Tuesday Follows, welcome welcome! Be sure to leave us a note to let us know you were here so we can return the favor. Now, what can I get ya to nosh on?

Chicken Marsala

Alex aka Ma, What's For Dinner — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 11:00:27 +0000

The hubs almost fell off the chair while eating this one…It’s so good. I love chicken, it’s so versatile and quick cooking. I love to have 101 chicken recipes up my sleeve. Check out this fail proof method to bring your kids to the table. Only two of mine eat the mushrooms though, but I keep trying!

1/4 c flour for coating

S&P

4 skinless boneless chicken breasts pounded thin

2 T olive oil

2 T butter

8 oz container baby bella mushrooms quartered

3/4 c Marsala wine

1/2 c chicken stock

In a shallow bowl mix together the flour and season with S&P. Coat chicken pieces in flour mixture, set aside for about 10-15 minutes.

Set a large skillet over medium high heat. Melt butter in oil over medium heat. Place chicken in the pan, and lightly brown each side, about 4 minutes each. Remove chicken and set aside under some tin foil to keep warm. Add mushrooms to the pan and season with S&P. You can add a bit more olive oil if it’s looking a bit dry. Pour in wine and allow the alcohol to cook out for about 2 minutes. Add chicken stock. Bring to a boil and then knock it back to a simmer. Slide the chicken back in and allow to simmer for 8-10 mintues. Serve over pasta or potatoes. Make a lot. This is a hit!

What is your go to chicken dish this summer?