Saturday, May 13, 2006

Mushroom Mania


From Button to Portobello to Shitake and more. They are all there for the picking. It's enough to infect any occasional epicure with mushroom mania.

That wondrous hoard of juicy mushrooms can be found, not in some wooded field in a faraway land but right in the heart of Bukit Panjang at the NTUC Fairprice.

My pick, a punnet of Cremini for $3.20 and another of Portobello for $3.50.

Here's what I made with them for lunch.

Cremini and Portobello Spaghetti with Sun-dried Tomatoes

5 Cremini and 5 Portobello sliced
4 cloves garlic minced
2 teaspoons capers (salt washed off)
1 anchovy mashed
2 teaspoons tomato paste
2 medium tomatoes diced
10 slices sun-dried tomatoes chopped
1 teaspoon fresh rosemary
200 gms spaghetti
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper and parmesan to taste

Cook the spaghetti in salted water for about 8 minutes till al dente. Drain and keep the spaghetti warm. Set aside some of the water.

Fry garlic in olive oil for a minute, add tomatoes and let it cook for about 5 minutes. Stir in tomato paste, sun-dried tomatoes and capers. Add mushrooms and cook for about 2 minutes. Add the anchovy, rosemary, and salt and pepper to taste. Add the spaghetti to the sauce, stir and turn off the heat. If the mixture is dry, add a few spoons of the spaghetti water. Divide into plates, grate parmesan over the spaghetti and serve immediately.

I also made soup to go with the spaghetti.

Mushroom soup with Baby Cai Xin, Cherry Tomatoes and Wolfberries

3 Cremini
3 Portobello
100 gms Baby Cai Xin
10 Cherry Tomatoes
A handful of Wolfberries
2 Cups water
1 teaspoon white Miso
A few drops Sesame Oil
A dash of Pepper

Add Wolfberries and Cherry Tomatoes to the water and bring to a boil. Simmer for about 5 minutes. Add mushrooms and bring to a boil again. Then add Cai Xin and boil for a minute. Dissolve Miso in the soup, turn off the heat and add sesame oil and pepper.
Transfer soup to a bowl and serve hot.