Cremini Mushroom Strudel with Pesto

Last week, there was a frost in Wisconsin. The next morning, I actually turned the heat on in my car. Maybe I'm a little bit of a wimp (it still got to 57 degrees that day), but all I wanted to do all day was curl up in a down comforter and eat something mushroom-based. Because, for some reason, mushrooms solve my cold weather blues. 

So, after perusing the Internet for inspiration, I saw a recipe for a wild mushroom strudel accompanied by arugula pesto. I did not have a wide assortment of mushrooms on hand, nor did I have any arugula, so I improvised and ended up with my own original recipe. 

First, I chopped fresh herbs (using fresh herbs in this is a must, which makes it an excellent dish to make in early fall/late summer, when fresh herbs are still available at markets and in gardens). I also chopped a whole bunch of cremini (or baby portabella) mushrooms. This is not a quick recipe, but you can make it a whole lot quicker by buying pre-chopped mushrooms. I usually frown on that, but this recipe is very good and ever so slightly too time consuming. So, you know, buy the pre-chopped mushrooms. I recognize that you have things on your to do list that trump making dinner, from time to time. Or, if you're really busy and still need mushroom-y goodness, make this very quick wild rice pilaf. I digress.

This strudel recipe is also an excellent opportunity to conquer a fairly straightforward ingredient that many home cooks fear: phyllo dough. You know what I'm talking about--you eat it whenever you go to your favorite Greek restaurant and dream about being able to recreate the spanakopita at home. Maybe even baklava (okay, even I'm afraid of that recipe). But that crispy, flaky dough seems like it would take hours to work with and would be quite finicky. As it turns out, phyllo dough is super easy to work with.   Shh...let's keep it our little secret. For a video instruction of how to do it, view this handy video. My only note on phyllo dough is that if you buy it frozen (and I encourage you to do so), it has to thaw in the refrigerator overnight and on the counter for two hours after that. This is not a recipe to make on a whim. But, it is delicious and warming and somehow brings my two favorite seasons together; pesto tastes like summer, and mushrooms wrapped in delightful pastry taste like fall. This is the perfect September meal. Enjoy!

Cremini Mushroom Strudel with Pesto

By Alexandra Rogers

Ingredients

5 Tablespoons butter

1-2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

2 large garlic cloves, minced

1/4 cup shallots, diced

1 Tablespoon fresh basil, minced

3 teaspoons fresh thyme, minced

1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, minced

24 oz. cremini mushrooms, sliced

6 sheets of phyllo pastry (fresh phyllo pastry or frozen thawed)

Pesto

Recipe

If using frozen thawed phyllo pastry, you must place the frozen pastry in the fridge overnight, and remove the pastry from the fridge 2 hours before use on the day of. So, by the time you start the rest of this recipe, the phyllo dough needs to be sitting on the counter! 

In a large skillet, melt 2 Tablespoons of butter over medium heat. Once the pan is hot and the butter is melted, add shallots, garlic, basil, rosemary and 2 teaspoons thyme. Let cook for 2 minutes, stirring once or twice.

Add mushrooms (the pan will seem far too crowded, but just go with it). Saute for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until very tender. 

Remove the mushrooms from heat, and set aside to cool. Salt to taste (I used less than half a teaspoon). 

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Lightly grease a small baking sheet.

Melt 3 Tablespoons butter in the microwave (this should take a little less than 30 seconds).

Place kitchen towel on work surface and top with 1 phyllo sheet. Brush that sheet with melted butter and sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon thyme. Top that phyllo sheet with another phyllo sheet, brush with butter and sprinkle with another 1/2 teaspoon thyme. Repeat until the phyllo dough is 6 sheets high. You can find a bit more guidance on how to work with phyllo dough here. 

Spoon mushroom mixture into the middle of the phyllo dough street. Fold the longer sides over the mushroom mixture (almost like you're wrapping a present), and then roll up the dough, jelly roll style. Roll as evenly as you can, and when complete, place the roll seam down on the greased baking sheet.

Brush the top and sides of the roll with butter and sprinkle with any remaining thyme. Put the roll in your preheated oven and bake for 15-20 minutes, until golden brown all around (including the middle of the strudel). 

Let cool for 3-4 minutes, then slice with a serrated knife to serve. Garnish with fresh pesto (I used 1-2 Tablespoons/slice) and serve. Serves 4.

Garden Fresh Spaghetti

During a recent visit to the bookstore, I picked up Alone in the Kitchen with an Eggplant. The book features a collection of short essays (which end with recipes) about cooking and eating alone.

One of the first essays I read in the book was by Amanda Hesser. She talked through the meal she made herself one night when her significant other was out of the house. She made a beautiful point about the fact that we often don't cook well for ourselves when we cook only for ourselves. I've definitely gotten home to an empty house and thrown a microwave dinner in more times than I can count. And that's a little funny, if you think about it, since I am obsessed with food and cooking. 

Hesser made a point that cooking a great meal for just you is a way of respecting yourself. I like this logic a lot, and so today I'm offering up a recipe that is meant only for one person (though obviously you can double it if you like) and that capitalizes on the best your garden or green market currently has to offer.

My mother taught me this combination after plucking fresh tomatoes and basil from her garden one day this summer, and mincing some garlic she'd picked up from the green market earlier that day. It is the epitome of fresh comfort food. (Note, do remove the skins from the tomatoes--it's a neat trick to learn, especially because skinless tomatoes produce a sweeter sauce, with no bitter taste coming in from the skins.)

Garden Fresh Spaghetti

By Alexandra Rogers

Ingredients

2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

4 plum or roma tomatoes, skins removed

3-4 cloves of garlic, minced

1/3 cup roughly minced basil

1 serving of your favorite type of spaghetti noodle (usually 1/8 the box)

salt to taste

grated parmesan cheese (optional)

Recipe

Bring water to boil in a medium pot. Once water is boiling, add in spaghetti and cook for several minutes, until it has reached your desired consistency. Pour pasta into a colander to drain the water and set aside.

Roughly dice the skinless tomatoes. 

Heat extra virgin olive oil in a medium chef's pan, over medium/medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot, add minced garlic and cook for 2 minutes. Then, add the diced tomatoes and stir to combine. Cook tomatoes and garlic together for about 3 minutes. Add the cooked spaghetti noodles (I used capellini) and stir to coat pasta in tomato sauce. Add minced basil and salt to taste. If using parmesan, add before serving.

Serves 1.

Pesto

If there is ever a time to make fresh pesto, it's now. Fresh basil is abundant at green markets and grocery stores everywhere, and better yet--it's cheap. Fresh pesto simply screams summer to me. Plus, it's very easy (and quick) to make, and it's one of those dishes that's sure to impress just about anybody you serve it to. Confession: I get pretty impressed with myself every time I make it.

Okay, so here's what you do. Go get yourself some basil. Grab some from your garden, green market or grocery store. You're going to need a lot of it. Note: pesto (without cheese) freezes well. If you'd like to freeze your pesto for use later in the year, simply blanch the basil leaves before putting them in the food processor, continue with the recipe and freeze the finished product in jars).

Grate some parmesan cheese--you'll need it a bit later in the recipe. Toast some pine nuts. During this step, resist all urges to turn your back. You will burn the pine nuts if you don't give them your full attention. While you work, sing along to your favorite music and think about how much you love summer.

The next step is very easy. Throw everything except the cheese into the food processor. Combine it well. Then toss it with some pasta (I like it best with Penne noodles), cheese and vegetables. Or freeze it. Or use it on a salad. Most of all, enjoy this pesto along with the last, ever so sweet, days of summer.

Pesto

Adapted by Alexandra Rogers, from Mark Bittman

Ingredients

4 cups basil leaves, washed and dried
4 medium cloves of garlic
4 Tablespoons toasted pine nuts
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups of parmesan


Recipe
In a food processor fitted with the blade attachment, combine basil, garlic and pine nuts. Scrape sides of the food processor with a rubber scraper and make sure ingredients are well combined and chopped. Add the olive oil slowly with food processor running. 


It's likely you won't use the full 1/2 cup of olive oil, so add enough to get the pesto to a consistency that is looser than paste but not overly oily. I usually use about 1/4 cup + 2 Tablespoons olive oil in total.


Turn off the food processor and dip a spoon into the pesto. Now, taste the pesto! It will taste like it needs salt. At this point, add a sprinkling of salt (far less than a teaspoon) and combine. This is the "salt to taste" step that can be somewhat confusing. When making pesto, be sure to under salt a bit since you'll be adding salty cheese later in the dish that will carry those flavors through all the way. 


Once salt is added, your pesto is ready to use. Toss with a pasta of your choice and add the parmesan cheese until thoroughly combined and serve. This makes enough pesto to cover 4-5 cups of pasta. 


You can also use the pesto as part of salad dressings or over vegetables. More specific serving suggestions will be coming your way soon!