Cream of Mushroom Soup

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Recipe Courtesy of Chef Marc Matsumoto
Fresh Tastes Blog, 2015

Serves 2

Ingredients:
1 Tablespoon butter
1 medium shallot, minced
One 8.5-ounce package button mushrooms, sliced
1/2 teaspoons salt
3 sprigs thyme
1/4 cup dry white wine
2 1/2 cups whole milk
2 ounces stale crusty bread, cut into small cubes
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg (optional)

Directions:
Melt the butter in a sauté pan over medium high heat. Add the shallots and sauté until fragrant and translucent.

Add the mushrooms and salt and continue to sauté until the shallots are caramelized and the mushrooms are well browned.Add the thyme and white wine and boil until there is no liquid left.

Add the milk and bread, and then turn down the heat to medium low. Simmer uncovered, stirring regularly until the bread has disintegrated (about 15-20 minutes).The soup will be very thick, but if you prefer a thinner soup, just add some more milk. Adjust salt to taste, and add some ground nutmeg, if you like.

For a smoother texture, put some or all of the soup in a blender and puree. When putting hot liquids in a blender, be very careful as the sudden release of steam can blow the lid off of the blender sending hot soup all over your kitchen.


Marc Matsumoto is the food blogger behind Fresh Tastes Marc Matsumoto is a culinary consultant Marc Matsumoto is the food blogger behind Fresh Tastesand recipe repairman who shares his passion for good food through his website norecipes.com. For Marc, food is a life long journey of exploration, discovery and experimentation and he shares his escapades through his blog in the hopes that he inspires others to find their own culinary adventures. Marc’s been featured in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today, and has made multiple appearances on NPR and the Food Network.

 

 

 

TODAY.com Parenting Team FC Contributor


Green Goddess Grilled Cheese Sandwich

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So, looking in the refrigerator, I had a motley assortment of odds and ends of ingredients, including a bag of spring greens mix with  baby spinach, some Fontina cheese, some left over goat cheese, some anchovy paste, and half an avocado. There was a shallot in there too. Hmmmm. So, what is a girl to do?

So looking at the spice rack, I spied tarragon, basil, salt and pepper. So a plan was forming  to make a Green Goddess Dressing for a salad. But then on second thought,  I wanted something a little more filling than a salad. So I began to think why not take the green goddess herbs mixed directly into the cheeses, the spring greens and make a cheese spread for a grilled cheese sandwich?

This simple sandwich came together very quickly and very easily with the use of a food processor. You can also use a blender or a sharp knife to finely chop up the ingredients.

Not you regular, every day grilled cheese sandwich, but I can guarantee that you will like it just fine, if not more.

Enjoy!

Serves 4 to 6

Ingredients:
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 oil-packed anchovy, finely chopped
1 teaspoon lemon zest (about 1 lemon)
Juice of ½ a lemon
3 Tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley
2 Tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon
2 Tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
1 Tablespoon chopped fresh basil
1 Tablespoon finely chopped shallot
1 cup mixed spring greens
½ Avocado, diced
¼ teaspoon Dijon mustard
2 ounces goat cheese, cut into smaller cubes
½ ounces Fontina cheese, cut into small cubes
½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
8-12 slices sourdough bread
1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2-3 Tablespoons unsalted butter

 

Directions:
Add garlic and anchovies to a food processor and pulse for a few seconds until it’s really finely chopped, almost like a paste (if you don’t have a food processor, you can always just chop the ingredients really well with a sharp knife on a cutting board).
Add in the lemon zest, lemon juice, parsley, tarragon, cilantro, basil, shallot, spring greens, avocado, mustard and goat and Fontina cheeses and pulse again until well blended. Transfer to a medium-sized bowl and stir in the mozzarella cheese.

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil  and 2 tablespoons of butter in a cast iron skillet over medium low heat.  Lightly brown the bread and then flip each slice over. Spread about 3 to 4 tablespoons of the green goddess mixture onto each slice of bread and press together gently.  Continue to  fry the sandwich until  the bread is golden brown. Press down on the sandwich lightly, then flip the sandwich over and cook until second side is golden brown.

Remove for the skillet and serve immediately.

TODAY.com Parenting Team FC Contributor