Mushrooms - Plants Or Animals?

All mushrooms belong to the family of fungi, which is neither plant or animal. After continuing research there is evidence that fungi may be more closely related to animals than plants. The fungi family includes over 200,000 identified species with possibly hundreds of thousands more that have not been identified. From the tiniest microfungi such as bread mold and yeast to what is believed to be the largest living thing on earth, a Honey Mushroom that lives in the Blue Mountains of eastern Oregon that is estimated to cover over 2,200 acres and be at least 2,400 years old, the earth teems with fungi! There are many varieties used for cooking, from the common and inexpensive button mushroom to the very expensive (thousands of dollars a pound) for white truffles.

The most widely cultivated, harvested and purchased mushroom in the world is the white or button mushroom. It is low in Saturated Fat and Sodium, and very low in Cholesterol and a good source of Dietary Fiber, Protein, Vitamin C, Folate, Iron, Zinc and Manganese, and a good source of Vitamin D and many other nutrients and vitamins.

Button mushroom flavor is mild, and they tend to take on the flavor of  foods they are cooked with. They are easy to use either whole or sliced. There is a school of thought that since these mushrooms tend to absorb liquids that they should not be washed, but gently brushed off before cooking. Personally, I see no harm in washing mushrooms especially when it is remembered that they are grown in horse manure (albeit sterilized and composted). As long as they are rinsed and dried without allowing them to soak in water, there should be no problem.

The next most widely used mushroom is the Crimini, or Italian Brown mushroom.  When these mushroom grow larger they are called Portabella mushrooms.  They are actually the original mushroom that the button mushroom was derived from. The white color was developed because it was thought to be more eye-appealing. Crimini mushrooms tend to be a little more dense in texture and have a deeper flavor than button mushrooms. 

There are some basic guidelines to using these mushrooms and many other mushrooms.  If you are using them fresh, do not wash them or slice them until ready to incorporate them into the dish. If you are using canned mushrooms, be sure to drain them well.  If you are pan-frying them by themselves they will tend to soak up some of the oil so be sure to add a little more when needed. The difference in taste between mushrooms browned and caramelized with oil and/or butter and those that don't get caramelized and brown is like night and day.  Potabella caps can be pan-fried and used and eaten as a hamburger with all the trimmings for a veggie burger. They can also be stuffed with a variety of stuffings. 

There are many other varieties of mushrooms, fresh and canned, available in supermarkets. But these two basic kinds of mushrooms can take you a long way into learning how to use and appreciate this very unique, versatile and nutritious fungi.

Chocolate Coffee Cookies

Photo by Josh Goodwin

A flour-free, light and crispy cookie that's easy to make. Be sure to store them in an air-tight container so they stay fresh longer.

• 3 egg whites
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar*
• 3 TBSP cocoa powder
• 1 TBSP instant coffee
• 3 TBSP mini chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 300 degrees

Separate three eggs, put whites in large bowl. Add cream of tartar and salt, whip with mixer until soft peaks form. Slowly add sugar a tablespoon at a time, whip until firm peaks form.  Sift coffee and cocoa powder into egg white mixture and fold in. Add mini chocolate chips and fold in.

Put parchment paper on a cookie sheet, and drop tablespoonfuls of the mixture onto the paper, or fill a pastry bag and pipe approximately a tablespoon of the mixture onto the paper.  Bake for 40 minutes or until cookies get crispy.

Place on rack and allow to cool completely. 

*Cream of tartar, or potassium bitartrate, is a natural occurring crystal that forms during the fermentation of grape juice in making wine and can also form behind the cork of wine already bottled. The crystals also will form in grape juice that is chilled.  These crystals are collected and purified to be used in many culinary applications.  It is used with egg whites to help stabilize the whites, make them more heat tolerant and maintain a greater volume when they are whipped.

Oven Baked Chicken Parmesan

Chicken Parmesan is usually pan fried, loaded with cheese and a thick coating of bread crumbs. Use this recipe and bake it in the oven and save on calories and fat!

• 4 skinless boneless chicken breast halves
• Panko bread crumbs
• 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
• salt and pepper
• 2 eggs
• tomato sauce 
• 8 ounces mozzarella cheese, grated
• 2 ounces parmesan cheese, grated

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Lay chicken breast on cutting board, cover with plastic wrap and pound the breast out until it is about 1/4 of an inch thick all the way around.

Combine Panko bread crumbs, Parmesan, and Italian seasoning on a large plate. Beat two eggs until they become smooth. Salt and pepper chicken breasts, put into the egg mixture and then into the bread crumbs. Press bread crumbs onto chicken breast to make sure they stick.  Place breaded breasts onto a large cookie sheet and put into preheated oven.  Bake for 15 minutes or until bread crumbs begin to brown. Add a spoonful of tomato sauce and 2 ounces of mozzarella to each breast and bake until cheese is nicely melted. Serve with a tossed salad and a side of Risotto.

Oven Roasted Vegetables

An easy way to draw out the flavor of vegetables is to oven roast them. Most root vegetables cook up using this method very well. The vegetables caramelize and develop a pleasant depth of flavor. I use a variety of vegetables in combination. Some of the possibilities are:

Onions
Celery
Carrots
Sweet potatoes
White potatoes
Rutabagas
Parsnips
Turnips
Zucchini
Winter squash such as acorn

The vegetables should be roughly cut up into medium sized pieces. I don't peel white potatoes, but everything else I do peel. When using zucchini, cut them into larger pieces than the other vegetables as they take less time to cook. Put all the vegetables onto a shallow baking pan. A jelly roll pan works well. Sprinkle olive oil over vegetables and mix them well to cover. Add pepper, salt and garlic powder. Roast in a 400 degree oven for about an hour, turning vegetables over once about halfway through the cooking process, until vegetables are browned and soft.

They make a great accompaniment to roast chicken, pork or beef.

Salt-Cured Salmon Salad

Salt curing will reduce the size of the fish and concentrate the flavors. As long as the fish is rinsed very well with plenty of cool water after it is cured, it won't be overly salty in flavor.

• 1/2 lb. fresh skinless, boneless salmon fillet
• 1 cup pickling or Kosher salt
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 medium head Napa cabbage
• 1 lime
• 2 Roma tomatoes
• 4 green onions
• 1 small clove garlic

Combine salt and sugar. Place half of the mixture onto a large piece of plastic wrap, making sure to spread it out to a size as large as the piece of fish.  Put fish on top, place rest of salt and sugar mixture on top of fish. Wrap the fish with the plastic wrap and place in a large plastic bag. Place bag ont oa plate and put in the refrigerator and let cure for at least 24 hours.

After fish is cured, remove from bag and unwrap over the sink. The plastic will be full of liquid that has been leeched out of the fish by the salt.  The fish will be dry and hard when it is properly cured. Rinse repeatedly under cool water to remove as much salt as possible.  Don't skimp on the water, take your time and make sure all the salt is removed or the fish will be too salty and spoil the dish.

Mince garlic and place in the bottom of a large bowl. Chop the Napa cabbage up and place in bowl along with garlic and toss until mixed. Cut up green onions fine and dice the Roma tomatoes. Add to cabbage in bowl.  Cut up salmon into thin strips and add to bowl. Add the juice of the lime and a little black pepper, toss until all ingredients are well mixed.

Cow Pie Cookies

A simple, easy and quick recipe that makes a really good chocolate cookie. It's the perfect dessert to go with a good mess of Cowboy Beans!

• 1/2 cup room temperature butter
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 white sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup walnut pieces
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, beat together butter and sugars until smooth. Add the egg and vanilla and beat well.  In a separate bowl combine flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt. Slowly add flour mixture to the sugar and egg mixture,  mix until well blended. Fold in walnuts and chocolate chips.

Drop spoonfuls of batter onto greased cookie sheet, and bake at 350 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes. Let cookies cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing. Substitute unsalted, dry-roasted peanuts instead of the walnuts for a great taste variation. Cocoa powder is cocoa solids minus the cocoa fat or cocoa butter.

Cocoa solids hold all the chocolate flavor, are low in calories and carry all of the beneficial antioxidants that have been found to help prevent many diseases.   The solids and fat are separated by pressing, which can lead to an acidic taste tin the chocolate.  Solids that have been produced by the Dutch process are less acidic and have the traditional brown color associated with chocolate.

Pan Fried Potatoes

There's hardly anything better for a side dish than pan fried potatoes.  I like to cut the potatoes in varying thicknesses. That way there is a variety of textures to the dish, as the thinner cut will cook quickly and almost melt away while the thicker cut will cook slowly and become mealy on the inside and golden brown on the outside.

This is a great dish to cook in a cast iron skillet.  Cast iron distributes the heat more evenly and doesn't cool down as much when food is put into a hot pan.

Pan Fried Potatoes

5 or 6 medium to large sized russet potatoes
1 large or 2 medium onions
2 teaspoons garlic powder
6 pieces of bacon or Canadian bacon
3 TBSP butter
3 TBSP olive oil

Peel potatoes and onions. Slice both into varying thicknesses, keeping in mind the thicker the piece the longer it will take to cook.  A mandolin works great for this, but I use my poor man's mandolin (pictured to the left). Strictly low-tech, but it gets the job done. I have no idea where I got it, but it works quite well. It's adjustable and can slice very thin to very thick. And it may look innocent enough, but the blade on the thing is very sharp.

Heat large skillet. Dice bacon and fry until crispy. If using Canadian bacon, it won't take as long to cook.  Drain all or some of the bacon fat out of pan,put in olive oil and butter. When butter and oil have heated through, put in potatoes and onions. Cover potatoes and onions with the oil and butter by turning the potatoes.  Add garlic powder, salt and pepper, and turn over potatoes some more to mix.  Let potatoes cook over medium high heat, turn every five minutes or so. don't have the heat too high.  Really good fried potatoes can take awhile to cook, depending on the thickness of them. When potatoes start to get brown and are cooked through, serve immediately.