STUFFED PORTABELLAS STACKED WITH GRILLED VEGGIES, and PESTO AND GOAT CHEESE CROSTINI

I’m back in Victoria visiting Little Mama, and Big Daddy (Mom is 5’ 2” and Dad is a big ol’ 6’ 2”, a whole foot taller than my mom, hence the titles).  So, I don't really call my mom Little Mama, I thought it was cute for the sake of the story, but I do call my dad Big Dadddy. Billy had to return home to earn the bacon, so Little Mama and I are shopping for dinner.  We like to eat vegetarian, she suggests portabella mushrooms.   I’m gonna be straight up with you, the Portabella rarely appeals to me as a vegetarian meal.  So often restaurants offer Portabellas as one of the few options for Veg-Heads, and they come out limp and over cooked, and quite frankly, bor-ing.  I’m about to brush her off when Little Mama declares, “Let’s stuff the mushroom”.   Now Little Mama hates to cook, but when she does cook, she’s pretty good, and she comes up with some pretty good ideas.   I’m loving this one… but ya know who’s doing the cooking. 

Now my wheels, they be a turnin’.  I’m thinking grilled veggies to place on top, making a pretty veggie tower.   We walk past the refrigerated section and I spy “Yves” vegetarian meat products (it’s pronounced Eves, those silly Canucks).  I’m marveling at all the choices when “Ground Chicken” jumps out at me.  That will be perfect for stuffing the portabellas…and I know there is a jar of pesto and some goat cheese at home.  I was going to add goat cheese to the veggie stacks, but then decided to make a pesto and goat cheese crostini intsead.

Big Daddy is a meat and potatoes kind of man, so we have devised a plan to get him to eat this healthy vegetarian dish.  We’re not gonna tell him that it’s vegetarian until he has gobbled up his entire meal.

*Make this dish omniverous by adding real ground chicken, gournd turkey, or mild Italian sausage...I'm not here to judge.

This is the Yves Veggie Ground Chicken.  It is by far my favorite brand of veggie “meat” products.

Sweat the onions, green bell pepper, celery and garlic in a medium skillet with a touch of olive oil.*If you are using real ground chicken, ground turkey, or mild Italian sausage, add that to the skillet as well.

Meanwhile to prep the portabella remove the stem.  Using a spoon gently remove the gills.

Add the Veggie Ground Chicken, bread crumbs, Italian season, sage, salt and pepper.  Stir on the heat for a couple of minutes just to heat the ingredients a little (Veggie Ground Chicken is already cooked).

Oops forgot the ¼ cup of Parmesan cheese, add that and mix well.

Brush olive oil on the outside of the mushroom.

Stuff the mushrooms with the filling.

Brush oil on the zucchinis and bell peppers, season with salt and pepper.

Place the stuffed portabellas and the veggies on the grill over medium to medium-low heat.  Remember to keep that lid closed.

When the portabellas and veggies are done remove them to a sheet pan, use one that you don’t mind putting on the grill. 

Place two slices of zucchini over the stuffed mushrooms.  Spoon a little pesto and sprinkle Parmesan over the zucchini.

Cut the peppers in half length wise, so that you have eight 1 1/2 inch strips.

Lay two strips of bell pepper over the zucchini and sprinkle with more parmesan.

**You could add some goat cheese between the layers of veggies.  I didn’t because I made a Pesto and Goat Cheese Crostini.

Leave the veggie stacks on the sheet pan, and put the pan on the grill for about 5 minutes, just to warm up.

Remove the veggie stacks to individual plates, or a platter.

Drizzle with balsamic glaze.

I decided to serve “Chicken Stuffed Portabella and Grilled Veggies with Pesto and Goat Cheese Crostini.  Look how easy...

Just slice a loaf of Ciabatta bread, or a baguette, spoon on a little pesto,

top with crumbled goat cheese,

 

and bake in a 375 degree oven for about 5 minutes, or toss them on the grill for a few minutes.

So Big Daddy ate every bite, then we told him our little secret.  He didn’t miss the meat at all.

Be it vegetarian or omniivorous (I’m pretty sure I just used ominivorous incorrectly), this portabella is so not boring!

Serves 4

½         cup       Onion, minced

1/3       cup       Green pepper, small dice

¼         cup       Celery, small dice

1                      Garlic clove, minced

12        oz.        Veggie Ground Chicken (about half of the package), *or ground chicken, ground turkey, or mild Italian sausage

1/2          tsp        Italian seasoning

¼         tsp        Sage

¼         cup       Fresh bread crumbs (1 slice of sandwich bread)

½         cup       Grated Parmesan cheese, divided into two

4                      Portabella mushrooms, stems and gills removed

1                      Large bell pepper, red, yellow or orange, cut each bell pepper into 4 strips.  If the bell peppers are small, use 1 1/2 peppers.

1 1/2                Zucchinis, cut the zucchini length wise ¼ inch thick slices, then cut the slices cross wise to get 8 slices.  Cut the peel off of the outside slices.

1/3       cup       Olive oil

                        Salt and pepper to taste

3          Tbsp    Pesto, store bought is fine

                        Balsamic glaze for garnish

1. In a medium skillet over medium heat, sweat the onion, green pepper, celery and garlic, in a couple of teaspoons of olive oil for about 3 minutes.*If you are using real ground chicken, ground turkey, or mild Italian sausage, add that to the skillet as well.
2. When the veggies are soft and the onions translucent, add the Veggie Ground Chicken (Veggie Ground Chicken is already cooked, so you just need to heat it), Italian seasoning, sage, salt and pepper to the skillet, stir in the bread crumbs and ¼ cup of the Parmesan cheese. 
3. Brush olive oil on the portabella mushrooms, bell pepper and zucchini, and season with salt and pepper to taste.
4. Fill the mushrooms equally with the stuffing.
5. Grill the stuffed mushrooms, bell pepper and zucchini over medium to medium low heat.  The stuffed mushrooms will grill about 10 minutes just on the one side.  The bell peppers and zucchini should be turn after about 3-5 minutes and cooked about 3-5 minutes more.  The veggies should still have grill marks and still be firm.  Remove the mushroom and veggies to a sheet pan.  Cut the peppers in half lengthwise to get eight 1 1/2 inch strips.
6. To stack the veggies on the stuffed mushrooms, first place 2 slices of zucchini on top of each the stuffed mushroom.

    **    You can add some crumbled goat cheese between the layers of veggies it you like.

    7.  Top the zucchini slices with the pesto and ½ of the remaining Parmesan cheese.

    8.   Place 2 strips of bell pepper on top of the zucchini sprinkle with the remaining Parmesan cheese.

    9.   Leave the veggie stacked mushrooms on the sheet pan and put that back on the grill for about 5 minutes, just to heat through.

   10.   Remove the mushrooms carefully to individual plates, or to a platter, and drizzle with just a little Balsamic glaze.

Serve with Pesto and Goat Cheese Crostini.

PESTO AND GOAT CHEESE CROSTINI

1    loaf       Ciabatta bread, or a baguette, slice about ½-3/4 inch thick

                  Store bought pesto

                  Goat cheese, crumbled

1. Spoon just a little pesto over each slice of bread ( don’t over do it, pesto is quite strong in flavor)
2. Sprinkle the crumbles of goat cheese over the pesto. 
3. Either bake in a 375 degree oven for 5-7 minutes, or put on the grill for 3-5 minutes.

BEEF AND CHEESE JALAPENO PEPPER POPPERS

Beef and Cheese Jalapeno Pepper Poppers, jalapeno pepper poppers, jalapeno pepper poppers., I just love to say jalapeno pepper poppers!  If it’s so fun to say, how much more fun will it be to eat?  These poppers look like they belong on the Island of Misfit Soldiers ( Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer fans get this).  They’re all lined up in neat rows, but some are hunched over or slouched, their stuffing is showing, and their hats are askew.  It’s like the trumpet called while they were deep in Dreamland and they hurriedly, but sleepily donned their garments, some even came out in their jammies (I love jammies).   They are all sweating as they are being grilled by Sarge ( Get it? ‘Cause we’re cooking these on the grill.)

Thank-you for indulging me in my silliness, on to the serious stuff;  Jalapeno pepper poppers, jalapeno pepper poppers…

I bought this Jalapeno Pepper roasting stand for my father in-law, the June Bug, who LOVES spicy food.  He allowed me to christen it.





 

When I got to the market to get the peppers there were only 6 jalapenos left.  I saw a bag of mini bell peppers and grabbed those as well; which actually turned out great because the jalapenos were really hot, so the bell peppers were a tasty relief to the heat.  You want the jalapenos to be large, the bell peppers to be small and all the peppers to be straight.  Have a look at the size of holes in the roaster before you buy the peppers.  *Even if you are not using a roasting stand apply these guide lines.






Here are the ingredients








 Since it was the June Bug’s roaster I asked him if he would like beef or sausage, he chose beef, but either can be used.   Brown the beef in a non-stick pan with a drop of oil, the garlic, whites from the scallions, salt and pepper.  Put the beef to the side to cool while preparing the peppers.







Use the smallest paring knife to cut the top 1/4 inch off of the peppers.  *If you’re not using a roaster then skip this step, and the next 2 steps.










Use the point of the knife to cut and scoop the seeds and veins out of the pepper.  Be careful not to break the peppers.









Gently bang the pepper, upside down on the cutting board to remove the seeds.










*If you don’t have a roaster just cut the peppers in half lengthwise, and cut out the seeds and veins, leave the pepper half intact.










Now mix the cream cheese, Mexican blend cheese, browned ground beef, salsa, green part of the scallions, and cilantro in a small bowl.












Spoon the mixture into a sandwich bag and cut a small bit off the bottom corner of the bag.








Use the sandwich bag as a piping bag and squeeze the mixture into the peppers to fill them.







Place their cute little hats back on, and stand the filled peppers in the roaster.
*If using the halved peppers then fill the pepper halves and put on a platter to hold and transport the peppers.





I prepped my peppers to this point and put them in the refrigerator until we were ready to grill.  Because the poppers were cold I had to add 5-7 minutes to the cooking time.





The peppers in the roasting stand I cooked over indirect heat for 20-25 minutes, but I was missing a little char on the peppers, so I would put them over direct heat for a few minutes. 

*  The halved peppers can be grilled over medium low direct heat.  They can go over direct heat because they will cook nice and even and need less cooking time.










Here are my Misfit Soldiers, oh so endearing.  We had our these for dinner with macaroni salad, pickled cukes, and tomatoes.  Poppers are also perfect as an appetizer.






Makes 18 poppers

1     tsp    Cooking oil
1/3    lb    Extra lean ground beef, or chorizo sausage
1        Garlic clove, minced
2        Scallions or green onions, finely sliced, separate the white and green parts.
        Salt and pepper to taste
3    Tbsp    Salsa
2    oz    Cream cheese, softened to room temperature
¾    cup    Mexican blend grated cheese
1    Tbsp    Cilantro, chopped
18        Large jalapenos,  or mini bell peppers

1.  Add the cooking oil to a medium sized skillet and brown the beef ( or chorizo ), garlic, white part of the scallions, salt and pepper to taste over medium heat.  Set to the side to cool.
2.   Mean while, if you have the Jalapeno pepper roasting stand, cut about 1/4 of an inch off of the top of each pepper.  Use the tip of a small paring knife to remove the seeds and as much of the vein as possible from the peppers, be careful not to break the peppers.  
 * If you don’t have a stand than do not remove the tops; instead, cut each pepper in half length wise, and remove the seed and veins.
3.  In a small bowl combine the browned meat, salsa, cream cheese, Mexican blend cheese, green part of the scallion and the cilantro; mix well.
4.  Spoon the mixture into a Zip Lock bag and cut a small triangle off of the bottom corner of the bag.  Use the Zip Lock bag as a piping bag, place the cut tip into the opening of a pepper, squeeze the mixture into the pepper. Repeat with the remaining peppers.  If using the Jalapeno pepper roasting stand, then place the peppers carefully into the stand and replace the tops on the peppers, so that they look like little hats.  *If you have cut the peppers in half, then fill each half with the filling.
**The first 4 steps can be prepared in advance and held in the refrigerator until you’re ready to grill.
5.  Put the peppers in the Jalapeno Popper stand on the grill over indirect heat for about 20-25 minutes.  If you like a little color on the peppers, then place them over direct heat ( medium low heat ) for about 5 minutes, until the peppers are soft, but not charred.
   *If not using the stand, then put the poppers on the grill at medium low heat for about 10 minutes, or until the pepper is soft, but not charred.

MISS MILLIE'S SWISS STEAK

 This is the story of Miss Millie’s Swiss Steak. 
Miss Millie is Billy’s mom.  We have been visiting her and the June Bug (Billy’s dad) in Montana along with Billy’s Big Brother and sister in-law, D.D.  We typically all get together in Montana, in July or August to enjoy country life, and each others company for a couple of weeks.  It’s those couple of weeks of the year that Miss Millie loves more than any other time of year; she has all her boys at home with her.






 These are two of her boys, the June Bug and Billy!







Neither boy grew up in that Montana cabin, but there have been  weekends, Christmas’, and summer vacations spent there for over 3 decades; and home really is where family is.  Billy and Big Brother are 17 years apart in age, so they really grew up, each one, as only children, they never really lived together.  They have their own memories and stories of growing up with Miss Millie and the June Bug.  It’s funny how food brings back such memories, and one thing the boys reminisce about is their Momma’s Swiss Steak.


 Early on in their marriage, the June Bug sold, door to door, the latest and greatest in modern cooking, Lo-Heet cookware.  While the pans are long gone, the well loved cook book, circa 1954 is still on the shelf of cookbooks.



  





 This cook book holds the recipe to Miss Millie’s Swiss Steak!  She is embarrassed because the book looks old, but I tell her it just looks loved.












Millie likes to put the steak into the bag of seasoned flour before she tenderizes it.  She feels that the seasoning really gets into the meat, and who am I to question the maker of this most beloved dish.









Then she pounds the meat with the side of the saucer, even though Big Brother had bought a meat mallet for her; ‘cause that’s the way she’s always done it!  She says this meat it too thick, so pound it thinner.











Miss Millie likes to use an electric skillet to brown the meat in. 












Then she tops each piece of meat with tomato sauce…











Adds 1 tsp. of Worcestershire mixed with ¼ cup of hot water…











Sprinkles a can of mushrooms including the juice…













½ of a onion…












And the Cream of Celery soup.  She likes the cream of celery soup, because she feels there is enough mushroom flavor from the can of mushrooms.











Now cover and simmer for 30-40 minutes.













Serve over rice or mashed potatoes.








Serves 4

1 ½     lbs    Top Round, about 1 inch thick, cut into 8 equal sized pieces
2/3    cup    Flour
1 heaping tsp    Paprika
½     tsp    Garlic powder
1    tsp    Salt
½    tsp    Pepper
1 ½    Tbsp    Olive oil
¼    cup    Tomato Sauce
1    tsp    Worcestershire sauce
¼    cup     Hot water
1- 4 oz    can     Sliced mushrooms
½    cup    Onion, small dice, about ½ onion
1- 10 oz    can    Cream of celery or cream of mushroom soup

1.  Mix the flour, paprika, garlic powder, salt and pepper into a bag, or a medium sized bowl.
2.  Toss the pieces of steak into the flour and seasoning mixture to coat.
3.  Remove the seasoned pieces of meat from the flour and tenderize the meat using the ridged side of a meat mallet, or; Millie likes to use the edge of a saucer, to pound the meat to about a half inch thick.
4.  Return the meat to the seasoned flour and coat the meat again.
5.  Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium high, and brown the meat on both sides.
6.  Add the Worcestershire sauce to the ¼ cup of hot water.
7.  Top the meat with the tomato sauce, the Worcestershire and water mixture.  Cook for about 3 minutes.
8.  Sprinkle the mushrooms ( including the juice ) and the onions over the sauce covered meat.
9.  Lastly, pour the cream of celery soup over the top.
10.  Turn the heat to medium-low to low, cover and simmer for 30-40 minutes.

Serve over rice or mashed potatoes.

NECTARINE ( or peach ) AND FETA SALAD WITH AN HERBACIOUS WHITE BALSAMIC VINAIGRETTE

Nothing makes me feel young again like a vacation of just hanging out by the water all day, coming home exhausted and happy after an afternoon of sunning and frolicking.  Then stopping by the market on the way home for fresh picked tomatoes, corn, and nectarines and herbs.  I use nectarines so as not to be confused with Peaches and Herb!  Reunited and it feels so good, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh.  See that's what happens if I use peaches with herbs... feel free to use nectarines or peaches.




Oh, the dog days of summer…
This is the newest member of the Lindsay clan, my brother and sister in law’s puppy, Putter.  I am smitten.






It’s 90 degrees and sunny  with nothing to do but float down the Swan River on a good old inner tube.  Actually we have special tubes just for floating.  Our tubes are called the River Rat… oh so charming!  You will not see pictures of me in my tubing attire which consists of a 2 piece bathing suit for optimum tummy tanning, older than the hills river shoes which are Velcro sandals ( think Tevos ), and a ball cap to keep the sun out of my eyes because I don’t wear my sunglasses in the river.  No, I will only share with you the pretty pictures of the river.



This is not the river we tube down!  This is the McDonald River at Glacier Park.













We take the less thrilling and more leisurely Swan River.








After an afternoon of  summer fun; a simple and refreshing salad will hit the spot.  To keep the summer theme in mind I remember a Tomato Peach and Burrata salad I had seen on What’s Gaby Cookinghttp://whatsgabycooking.com/tomato-peach-and-burrata-salad-recipe/.
This salad is totally inspired by Gaby’s recipe.  All of my favorite summer produce in one bowl.  Nectarines looked best at my market but you can also use peaches, with tomatoes, corn and I like the salty creaminess of feta with all that sweet produce.




Make the vinaigrette.  The basil and parsley perk up the salad.











Often the pits are not easily removed from a nectarine or peach, so just cut down either side of the pit to remove the sweet flesh.








 Put the salad together in a large, shallow bowl or platter and serve the vinaigrette on the side, or dress the salad right before serving.  Nectarine and Feta salad is great with any grilled meat and a loaf of crusty bread.







Serves 6
For the dressing:
1        Garlic clove, minced
2     tsp    Dijon mustard
1    tsp    Honey
¼    tsp    Salt
¼    tsp    Pepper
¼     cup    Italian or flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
½    cup    Basil, finely chopped
1/3    cup    White balsamic vinegar
1    cup    Extra virgin olive oil

For the salad:

1- 5 oz.  package  Super Greens, or another sturdy lettuce such as romaine
4        Nectarines or peaches, sliced
8        Campari tomatoes, or 4 small tomatoes, cut into wedges.  About 2 cups
1 ½     cups    Corn either from frozen and thawed out, or 3 fresh ears of corn
½        Red onion, thinly sliced
4    oz    Feta cheese, crumbled

1.  In a small bowl whisk together all of the ingredients for the dressing except for the olive oil.
2.  Slowly drizzle the olive oil into the ingredients in bowl, while whisking.  Set to the side.
3.  If using fresh corn, blanch the corn in boiling salted water for about 1 minute.  Cut the corn off the cob to use in the salad.
4.  In a large shallow bowl mix all the ingredients for the salad.
5.  Either serve the dressing on the side, or dress the salad immediately before serving.