Last Night's Dinner - Cheese Grits with Wild Mush. Ragout

[Guest guest]

This was last night's dinner. It was terrific. It came out very fancy looking,

like we were at a restaurant.

 

Tastes like polenta with a fancy mushroom sauce. Basically that is what it is.

It can be made into a vegan dish by omitting the milk in the grits and using soy

milk and using soy cheese for the grated cheddar. It was quite yummy. I served

it with a salad that had Catalina dressing. Use what you have, of course.

 

* Exported from MasterCook *

 

Cheese Grits with Wild Mushroom Ragout

 

Recipe By : RisaG

Serving Size : 2 Preparation Time :0:00

Categories : Corn Main Dishes, Vegetarian

Mushrooms

 

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method

-------- ------------ --------------------------------

1 oz dried morel mushrooms (approx. 1 cup)

1 oz dried porcini mushrooms

6 fresh cremini mushrooms -- sliced thinly

1 1/4 cups boiling water

1 tbsp olive oil

1 lg onion -- finely chopped

2 cloves garlic -- minced

1 tbsp all-purpose flour

2 green onions (green & white parts) -- chopped

salt and pepper

GRITS:

3 1/4 cups water

3/4 cup quick grits

salt

1/4 cup lowfat milk

1 tbsp unsalted butter

freshly ground black pepper

3/4 cup reduced fat cheddar cheese -- shredded

 

For ragout: Place dried mushrooms in a medium bowl. Cover with boiling water.

Top with something that fits the top of the bowl. Let sit for 1 hour. Remove

mushrooms. Squeeze out excess liquid. Drain off, and reserve, mushroom liquid

leaving sediment behind. Reserve and set aside.

 

Heat a nonstick skillet and add 1 tbsp olive oil to the saucepan. Add the onions

and cook over low heat, stirring often, until soft but not brown, about 5

minutes. Add dried mushrooms, cremini mushrooms and garlic and cook over

moderate heat, stirring until you can smell it, about 2 minutes. Add the

reserved soaking liquid. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes over low heat until the

mushrooms are tender.

 

Meanwhile, in a small bowl (a ramekin or pudding cup is perfect), blend the

flour with the butter and make a paste with it. Unocver the saucepan and add the

paste, stirring until blended. Simmer the ragout, over low heat, until the sauce

thickens. This should take about 4 minutes. Stir in 2/3 of the chopped green

onions. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from heat.

 

To make grits:

 

Place water over high heat. Bring to a boil. Add grits in a thin stream, until

incorporated. Whisk continually for the first minute or so. Then let it bubble

and simmer for a few minutes. Whisk frequently. When cooked, remove from heat.

Add milk, butter and cheese and mix well until cheese is melted and

incorporated. Season with salt and pepper.

 

To serve:

 

Place a big dollop of grits in the bottom of a bowl. Flatten it out into a nice

circle. Top with some of the ragout. Sprinkle with remaining green onions.

Dribble the sauce around the plate.

 

Serve with a simple salad and some bread.

 

If you wish, you can use some Yve's Canadian Bacon (soy based " meat " substitute

which I love) and cook it until a bit seared on both sides, chop and put around

the plate at the last moment. It really has a great smokey taste that adds a lot

of flavor to the ragout.

 

 

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RisaG

 

MK Independent Beauty Consultant

radiorlg

Risa's Food Service

http://www.geocities.com/radiorlg

Updated 03/14/02

 

 

 

 

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