Tag Archives: rosemary

Goat Cheese–Stuffed Mushrooms

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I spent my rainy Saturday evening aboard the Mystery of the Seas, partaking in my first murder mystery dinner.  I schmoozed with everyone on board under the guise as Penny Drop, one of three ambassadress contestants.  Filtering through the crowd, I had to use my “beauty, charm and my connections to gain an advantage at any cost in the hopes of being awarded a spokesperson of the ship.”  My performance was so spectacular, I would undeniably be the front runner for the best actress Oscar Razzie:)  Sandra Bullock’s got nothing on me.

I took the invitation as the perfect reason to throw on a pretty dress and of course, cook.  A quick search on foodandwine.com for appetizers produced this one for goat cheese-stuffed mushrooms.  After scanning the ingredient list and seeing three of my absolute favorites (goat cheese, rosemary, mushrooms), I knew I had to make it.

The mushrooms, rosemary (mmm smells so good!), olive oil, bread crumbs and oh so wonderful goat cheese:

Crisping up the rosemary sprig:

A perfect example of “do as I say, not as I do.”  This is what happens when you don’t watch your breadcrumbs:

Round 2 (i.e. MUCH BETTER):

A plate of perfect appetizers so good they could kill (a little murder mystery dinner humor):

Don’t let the tiny size of these mushrooms fool you.  The creamy goat cheese atop a perfectly seasoned mushroom packs in beautiful complementary flavors in one savory bite.  Be careful…because they’re so small, it’s hard to stop reaching for another!

The dishful thinker’s tips:

  • Mushroom stems easily pop off.  No need to slice them (and when you break them off, the mushroom top creates more of a bowl shape to hold even more goat cheese!)
  • I tried to pick out the 24 largest mushrooms at the grocery store, but I’m not sure they were quite as big as they needed to be.  When it came time to stuff them with cheese, I had about 5 extra pieces leftover.  And that was even after overstuffing them.
  • Watch your breadcrumbs very closely, or you’ll end up with a burned mess like me.
  • 3 tbsp of breadcrumbs was overkill.  I really only needed 1.  But they keep well, so I’m saving them to throw on more goat cheese later.
  • These taste best while still warm (I had 2 right after I finished making them).  However, they still do the recipe justice at room temperature.

And finally, a picture of the “passengers” and “crew” of the Mystery of the Seas.  So geeky, but so fun:)

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INGREDIENTS
24 large cremini mushrooms (1 1/2 pounds), stems discarded
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon rosemary leaves, plus one 3-inch sprig of rosemary
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
3 tablespoons fine bread crumbs
6 ounces fresh goat cheese, cut into 24 pieces
DIRECTIONS
Preheat the oven to 400°. In a bowl, toss the mushrooms with 3 tablespoons of the oil and the rosemary leaves and season with salt and pepper. Transfer the mushrooms to a baking sheet, rounded side up. Roast for about 30 minutes, until tender and browned around the edges. Let cool to room temperature, about 15 minutes.
In a skillet, heat the remaining 3 tablespoons of oil. Add the rosemary sprig and cook over moderately high heat until the leaves are crisp, 30 seconds. Drain on paper towels, then strip off the leaves. Pour off all but 1 teaspoon of the rosemary oil and reserve it for another use.
Add the bread crumbs to the skillet and toast over moderate heat until golden and crisp, 2 minutes. Stir in the fried rosemary leaves and season with salt and pepper.
Gently press a piece of goat cheese in the center of each mushroom, sprinkle with the bread crumbs and serve.
MAKE AHEAD
 The goat cheese–filled mushrooms can be refrigerated for up to 1 day. Bring to room temperature and sprinkle with the bread crumbs just before serving.

NOTES
One Serving 138 cal, 11 gm fat, 3.9 gm sat fat, 5 gm carb, 0.6 gm fiber.

Giada’s Balsamic Chicken Drumettes

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A few months ago, I walked into Crate and Barrel  just to “browse,” and walked out with some new kitchen goodies, including a recipe card courtesy of Giada De Laurentiis.  I love me some balsamic vinegar, and this recipe for caramelized  chicken sounded too good not to try:

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

1/2 cup honey

1/4 cup soy sauce

5 sprigs rosemary

5 cloves garlic, halved

10 to 12 chicken drumsticks

2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds

1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Combine the balsamic vinegar, honey, brown sugar, soy sauce, rosemary springs and garlic cloves in a large, re-sealable plastic bag.  Shake and squeeze the contents of the bag to dissolve the honey and the brown sugar.  Add the chicken drumsticks to the bag and seal with as little air as possible in the bag.  Place in the refrigerator and marinate for 2 hours.

Place the chicken drumsticks on a foil-lined baking sheet.  Bake until the skin is caramelized and very dark in spots, about 30to 35 minutes.

Meanwhile, place the marinade in a small saucepan.  Bring the marinade to a boil (in order to ill bacteria).  Reduce the heat to simmer and cook over low heat until thick, about 15 minutes; reserve.  Brush some of the cooked marinade on the coked chicken.  Place the chicken on a serving platter.  Sprinkle with the sesame seeds and the chopped parsley.

Note from Giada: I like the subtle rosemary and garlic flavors.  Brushing the cooked drumettes with the reduced marinade helps the flavors along.  Also, re-moistening helps the parsley and the seeds to adhere.

Yield: 4 to 6 servings

The ingredients lined up and ready to go (minus the chicken and toasted sesame seeds)

The chicken drumsticks going for a swim in the marinade

These little sesame seeds toasted very quickly.  Keep an eye on them in the toaster oven, or you might end up with blacked seeds instead!

Yum, raw meat

Boiling and simmering the marinade made my kitchen smell wonderful–a thick atmosphere of balsamic vinegar and rosemary.  Seriously, I can’t get enough of it.

The 2 hour marinating time was perfect for a late and lazy Sunday afternoon.  It was enough time to get some laundry done (and of course, watch some “Everyday Italian” that was backed up on my DVR:))

The title of the recipe says drumettes, but the ingredient list asks for drumsticks.  Definitely go with drumsticks.  There is more than enough marinade to go around for 12 drumsticks.

The finished product.  I love the fresh, crisp smell of parsley, so I put a little more on than the recipe would dictate.

Post-dinner verdict: the chicken is incredibly moist, and even with all of the flavorful ingredients, the taste isn’t overwhelming.  Most take a subtle backseat to the balsamic vinegar (which I am of course incredibly happy about) and rosemary.

I’m curious to see how the fresh parsley holds up through refrigeration and reheating for tomorrow’s lunch.  I’ll pack a few of these up in some foil and toss them into the toaster oven at work.