Wild Mushroom Croustades
I’m excited to present a Thanksgiving Challenge guest post by Valentina K. Wein of the lovely blog Cooking on the Weekends. Valentina knows her stuff, people – she had her own catering business, ran Sur La Table’s cooking program in Santa Monica and was a contributing recipe writer to the Los Angeles Times, Food Section. She now works as a recipe developer, and you can always find her Cooking on the Weekends.
This is the second recipe in my Healthy Thanksgiving Challenge. Be sure to take part, and while you’re at it, enter to win one of three great cookbooks!
While Thanksgiving is a huge feast, it’s still lovely to have hors d’oeuvres to serve friends and family before the main course. Often times, the “feast” doesn’t make it to the table for a while after everyone arrives. (At my house, anyway.)
This is a wonderful heart healthy, Vegan Thanksgiving hors d’oeuvre!
It’s the cooking technique in this recipe that brings out all of the rich, deep earthy flavors of the mushrooms. Each bite is hearty and oh-so-delicious!
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Coat the bottom of a large sauté pan with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and place it over medium-high heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook until the onions are caramelized, about 15 minutes. Add the thyme, the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil, and mushrooms. Turn the heat to low, and add the sherry. Then turn the heat to high and deglaze the pan with the sherry, scraping any bits of onion and mushrooms off the bottom of the pan, and back into the mixture. Cook for another 5 minutes or so. Season with a bit of salt and pepper. Cover and set aside. Cut the baguette into thin slices (about 1/4 to 1/2-inch) and place them on a baking sheet. Toast them in the preheated 375 degree F oven until they are beginning to turn golden. Add 1 to 2 tablespoons of the mushroom mixture on top of each toast. Serve warm with a bit of fresh thyme on top. Makes about 1 dozen
1 cup thinly sliced brown onion
2 medium-sized, finely minced garlic cloves
1 tablespoon finely chopped, fresh thyme, plus a couple extra sprigs for garnish
1-1/2 pounds fresh, mixed wild mushrooms, washed, dried and roughly chopped (I used Shitake, Maitake & Oyster)
1/4 cup dry sherry
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1 medium to large French baguette
Prep Time: 25
oh that looks so good!!!. alas i don’t know of any source for fresh mushrooms – would you have any suggestions on how to find some? i’m assuming online doesn’t work due the freshness and the prohibitvie (at least for me) cost of having it shipped quickly. thanks.
Jacquie, may I ask where you live? I’m a good sleuth and I’m sure I can pinpoint a source for you! At the very least I’m sure a supermarket carries shiitake and oyster mushrooms, which woul be delicious. You can also order cool mushroom growing kits online!
sure cathy – i live in westminster md. and while i have looked for shitake and oyster mushrooms in the local grocery i haven’t seen any fresh ones. let me know if you find anyplace. thanks.
I’m such a HUGE mushroom fan this is a the perfect dish! (Actually saw it over on Huffington Taste vegan thanksgiving recipes and had to come check it out!) Shitake and Oyster mushrooms are just amazing!
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WOW! It looks so yummy! I will definitely try this one for thanksgiving! BTW – I found a great vegan wine at Whole Foods Market, it is called “Deccolio Prosecco” and it will be great aperitif to the holiday dinner.
chanterelles work with this recipe?
Of course, chanterelles should be amazing!
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Made this dish, cooking it with dry vermouth instead of sherry, and received many compliments – even from people who don’t normally enjoy mushrooms!
[…] Wild Mushroom Croustades […]
I made these as one of my Thanksgiving appetizers and my family loved them. The flavors sent my taste buds wild! Thank you for this recipe. It made its way to the top of my appetizer list.
Awesome, glad you liked It!