Stuffed Mushrooms: Practically Perfect in Every Way!

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Stuffed Mushrooms: Practically Perfect in Every Way!
Recently, we had the joy of celebrating the 80th birthday of one of our Sisters. What better way to celebrate this milestone than a Mary Poppins-themed party? Beautiful table settings, colorful flower arrangements and fanciful kite decorations added to the festivities, and the food was not far behind! Among the offerings that evening was a favorite of many of our Sisters: stuffed mushrooms. Warm and savory, this appetizer is reserved for special occasions and doesn’t last long on the plate!
SERVINGS
4-6servings
CHANGE SERVING SIZE
servings
COOK TIME
20mins
PREP TIME
15mins
READY IN
35mins

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
  2. Gently clean mushroom caps by wiping black dirt off with a paper towel
  3. Remove mushroom stems, and finely dice.
  4. Coat the bottom of a skillet and sautee the garlic until tender. Add the diced mushroom stems and cook until soft.
  5. Remove skillet from heat, and set aside to cool.
  6. In a mixer or hand mixed, combine cream cheese, bread crumbs, parmesan cheese and salt and pepper. Once mushroom stems are cool, add to bowl and thoroughly combine.
  7. Grease a 9x9 glass casserole dish, and arrange mushroom caps hollow side up.
  8. Using small spoons, gently fill the mushroom caps with the cream cheese filling and bake for 20 minutes in the oven, or until moisture begins to form in the cap.
  9. Remove from oven, garnish with chive and serve alongside other hors d’oeuvres.

Stuffed Acorn Squash

Every year we rejoice with the abundant harvest of home-grown vegetables, stone fruit, apples and herbs from our gardens and this year is no exception! Last week’s Thanksgiving table featured leeks and other produce from our soil for which we are truly grateful.

This year brought plentiful squash of several varieties: butternut, spaghetti squash, and of course, acorn squash. Roasted, steamed or stuffed, this yearly addition to our table is always welcome. If you’re planning a meatless meal–or cooking for a vegetarian friend or family member–consider today’s recipe and feel free to substitute ingredients and spices to suit your preferences. Thank God from whom all blessings flow!

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Rating: 3.5
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Stuffed Acorn Squash
SERVINGS
4servings
CHANGE SERVING SIZE
servings
COOK TIME
1 hr10 mins
PREP TIME
20mins
READY IN
1 hr30 mins

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
  2. Place butternut squash in a large bowl with 3 TBSP of olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss until all the squash is coated and put on a baking sheet 1 layer deep for roasting and set aside.
  3. Cut the acorn squash in half width-wise and scoop out the seeds. Set the acorn squash on a baking sheet, brush with oil.
  4. Place all the pans of squash in the oven and roast for 1 hour until the squash can easily be pierced with a fork. Remove from oven and set aside to cool.
  5. As the squash is roasting, combine Israeli couscous, spices, and herbs in a large bowl.
  6. Add remaining olive oil to coat and salt and pepper to taste.
  7. Add the roasted butternut squash to couscous mixture and gently toss to distribute evenly in the bowl.
  8. Spoon the couscous and butternut squash into the bottom half of the acorn squash, and top with parmesan cheese (optional). Add the tops of the acorn squash and place on a platter of your choosing and enjoy!

Tomato, Peach and Basil Flatbread

Flipping through a folder of collected food photos and recipes, my eye was captured by one that looked like a pizza—and yet it wasn’t.  

Here was a  bright combination of fresh fruit and vegetables, specifically sliced tomatoes and peaches on a flatbread topped with a mixture of ricotta and parmesan cheese.  What fun! With no recipe to follow, I launched into producing it on my own until I later found it written up in the June issue of “Cooking Light.”

If you’re looking for  a fun food that’s quick, easy, tastes great and is still healthy you will want to try this. Enjoy!

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Tomato, Peach and Basil Flatbread
SERVINGS
8servings (serving= 2 slices)
CHANGE SERVING SIZE
servings (serving= 2 slices)
COOK TIME
15mins
PREP TIME
5mins
READY IN
20mins

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Preheat grill on medium high heat.
  2. Using a whisk, mix the ricotta, onion salt, oregano, and pepper in a bowl and set aside.
  3. Brush both sides of the Naan bread with oil and grill each side for 2 minutes and remove from grill.
  4. Spread the ricotta mixture evenly over the top, arranging the tomatoes, peaches and basil leaves as desired.
  5. Cut each naan into 8 slices and arrange on a plate to serve.

Caramelized Tomato Bruschetta

“Sr. Irene, you just have to taste this!” came a cry from the kitchen. One of our special event cooks had just tried out a new appetizer for an upcoming reception. I could tell from the sound of her voice she was quite happy with it.

“Be there in a minute,” I responded, unable to leave just then. The next day one of the kitchen sisters asked, “Wasn’t that new appetizer just the best?”

Oh no! How could I have forgotten? I chastened myself, vowing to get to the kitchen before the end of the day. When I finally arrived with much embarrassment and was able to locate and ravenously devour the one and only “Tasting Sample” that was left, I could only groan. The caramelized tomato bruschetta with fresh garden pesto was beyond delicious. Why oh why didn’t I get myself there the moment I was first called!

A savory twist on a summer classic, this bruschetta is a great way to enjoy both fresh garden tomatoes and basil!

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Caramelized Tomato Bruschetta
SERVINGS
8-12servings
CHANGE SERVING SIZE
servings
COOK TIME
20mins
PREP TIME
15mins
READY IN
35mins

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
  2. Slice the tomatoes into 1/3 inch slices, brush with olive oil and sprinkle with salt, pepper and sugar.
  3. Place on a cookie sheet or sheet pan and roast in the oven until tomatoes turn a light to medium brown and the sugar is visually caramelized.
  4. While tomatoes are roasting, brush the flat bread with oil and spread the pesto overtop, then sprinkle with parmesan cheese.
  5. When tomatoes are finished, carefully remove them from the pan and arrange on top of the pesto and cheese. This is a delicate process as the tomatoes are likely to fall apart after roasting.
  6. Serve with a drizzle of balsamic reduction and enjoy a taste of summer!

Baked Cauliflower Pie (sformato di cavolfiore)

​With the holidays​ just​ around the corner, you might be looking for a new and unusual crowd-pleasing side dish to wow your guests. This is one of my favorite vegetable dishes, introduced to me by Tessa Kiros in her wonderful cookbook: Twelve: A Tuscan Cook Book. She introduces the readers to the twelve months of Tuscan cooking and seasonal ingredients. When I’ve served at our mission house in Tuscany, I would cook through this book and this recipe became one of our house favorites. As Tessa says, “pastry-less baked vegetable pies are very common and are made with various vegetables depending on the season, such as green beans, artichokes and spinach.” You can also use broccoli in place of cauliflower.

We just served this last night for the opening to our Gregorian Chant Retreat and received great compliments. This would make a lovely addition to your Thanksgiving table. If you want to make it gluten free, just substitute gluten free flour for all purpose flour in the the béchamel sauce.

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Baked Cauliflower Pie (sformato di cavolfiore)
SERVINGS
6servings
CHANGE SERVING SIZE
servings
COOK TIME
30-40mins
PREP TIME
20mins
READY IN
55mins

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 3​50 degrees/ Wash the cauliflower and trim away the hard stem. Put it into a pot of boiling salted water and boil for about 10 min. or until it has softened.
  2. Meanwhile, make the béchamel​ ​​sauce:
    1) Melt butter in a small, heavy saucepan over medium heat until foaming. Add shallots (if using) and sauté 2 minutes. Do not let brown.

    2) Reduce heat to low, add flour, and whisk until smooth and raw taste is cooked off, about 1 minute. Gradually whisk in milk. Add bay leaf and cook until just thickened, stirring often, about 10 minutes.

    3) Stir in nutmeg and salt. Season with ground white pepper. Cool sauce slightly. Discard bay leaf before using.
  3. Drain the cauliflower and​ chop it up finely or roughly puree it. Put into a bowl and mix in the eggs, 2 cups béchamel​,​ parmesan cheese, a grating of fresh nutmeg, and salt and pepper to taste, adjusting if necessary. Mix well with wooden spoon.
  4. Butter an oven dish or loaf pan and sprinkle with half of the breadcrumbs to line the pan, shaking away the excess (use gluten free breadcrumbs if making gluten free). Pour in the mixture and sprinkle the surface with the remaining breadcrumbs.
  5. Bake for 30-40 min. in the hot oven, until the top is golden and slightly crusty. Serve warm.

Fairy Tale Eggplant Fans

This lovely and simple dish can be made with any size of eggplant! The inspiration for this dish came from a Facebook recipe video (with Russian directions) shared on Facebook by Peter Jermihov, the conductor for the recently released All Night Vigil, a collaborative recording between our choir, Gloriæ Dei Cantores, and members of three additional choirs. Facebook and Pinterest offer a wonderful way to connect with friends and to find recipes from different countries and cultures.

At this time of year, our garden is bursting with mini eggplants. Earlier in the season at planting time we received a donation of seeds for this specialty vegetable and it has indeed been a bumper crop. This dish can be prepared with a single eggplant for a personal size serving, or in a cast iron or ovenproof dish for a family as you see below. You may enjoy watching the video below which offers three additional ways to serve eggplant. Although the directions are in Russian, the pictures are universal! Once you have made the dish, you may want to share your picture with your Facebook fans and friends!

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Fairy Tale Eggplant Fans
SERVINGS
4servings
CHANGE SERVING SIZE
servings
COOK TIME
25mins
PREP TIME
15mins
READY IN
40mins

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Heat oven to 400 degrees F.
  2. Starting at the thin end of the eggplant, slice each eggplant into 5 or more slices, leaving the eggplant connected at the top, to make a ‘fan.’
  3. Place several tablespoons of oil in the bottom of the skillet or dish and arrange the eggplant in a pinwheel pattern (see photo!).
  4. Slice buffalo or regular mozzarella thinly and place between each eggplant slice.
  5. Slice tomato thinly and add that to the mozzarella between each eggplant slice.
  6. Sprinkle salt and pepper over whole dish. Fresh basil (chop or chiffonade) can be added here if desired.
  7. Drizzle olive oil over the dish.
  8. Sprinkle shredded parmesan over entire dish.
  9. Bake at 400 for 15 - 25 minutes or until eggplant is soft and cooked through.