Stilton Stuffed Mushroom

As you can probably see from my posts, we enjoy our steak, arugula and mushrooms. It's one of those things that isn't broke, and I don't stray away from the flavors much. However, I really liked this mushroom cap. I took large crimini mushrooms and sauteed them for about 15 minutes in a small amount of butter. I then added some english stilton bleu cheese to them and covered it so the cheese would melt down a bit. It was a perfect savory bite to complement the chianti we were drinking with dinner.

Here it is on the plate with the strip served over arugula:

I've got an App for that

This past Christmas I was given three (yes, three) mushroom related gifts. Black truffles, truffle salt, and grow your own crimini's. It caused me to reflect on not only who I was, but who people thought I was. It turns out, there isn't much hiding behind my love of mushrooms. I used the chanterelles two nights ago for one of the best apps I have ever made.

I split the mushrooms in half and sauteed them in butter and added a pinch of salt at the end. I then plated them with one of my favorite cheeses, Cypress Grove Humboldt Fog. I added lavender for a touch of freshness (which really elevated the dish) and dotted some of my good and thick aged balsamic. I'll be making this again soon...

Gravity Fills

Fall. The changing of the season is marked by the turning of leaves and the retreating daylight hours. But it is also a good reminder to occasionally look straight up, in hopes that something delicious may fall and smack you in the face. While some people begin to hunker down for the impending winter, I prefer to venture out and see what sort of ripe fruits (and accompanying nuts) are crashing to the earth.

Living in Chicago makes it difficult to scavenge for these items on my own so I put a lot of faith in a small assortment of local markets to offer me the best of the season. On a trip out last week, I found a few Red Bartlett Pears and Granny Smiths that looked to be Right at the peak of their pickin'.

Around the same time, I was also tasked with watching Murphy, Dylan's seven pound Jack Russell Terrier. Naturally, for my service to Murph and my diligence in picking up his poop, Dylan had me over for a nice dinner to give thanks.

Not wanting to show up empty-handed, my first thought was to simply take the fruits of fall along with some walnuts and a few cheeses as a starter. While searching for some cheese in the South Loops Pannozo's Italian Grocery, I also came across some amazing (life-altering) speck. The Eckhouse family was in from Iowa and giving out samples of their La Quercia cured porks. Of the three items I tried, the speck was the hands down winner, though all of the products that these two foodies from my home state are making were outstanding.

With fruits, meats, nuts, and cheeses in hand, I went home and went to work. Rather than take the separate items and put them on a plate, I wanted to make a little wrap that encompassed all of these great items into one or two bites. With that, the Harvest Wrap was born.

The appetizer includes:

-A Parmigiana cracker, baked with Thyme and Rosemary

-Sliced Apples & Pears

-A Candied Walnut secured with some Bleu Cheese

-Wrapped in that addictive Speck

-Garnished with Thyme and Rosemary sprigs

We also made a cutting block where you could pick and choose from the individual components or grab one of the wraps. Dig it.