Brunch Sandwich

If I ever open a restaurant, it will be called Brunch.

And I will serve only brunch.

And this sandwich will be the signature item on the menu.

It sounds a lot more complicated than it actually is.

Let's break it down:

• First you'll need to roast one large portabella per sandwich you intend to make. (You can find some handy instructions in this post all about the merits of mushrooms for runners.)
• You'll need slices of tomato and avocado, too. As well as some cream cheese or Tofutti, which is what we had in the fridge.
• The french toast is just slices of sourdough bread soaked in an egg mixture and then cooked over medium-high heat on both sides until browned.
• = 2 whole eggs + 1 tablespoons Chipotle Vegenaise + 1-3 tablespoons almond milk. Whisked.
• (That should be enough to soak 6 to 8 slices of bread or make 3 to 4 sandwiches.) 

Sandwich assembly is quite easy.

Slice everything up nice + thin, then pile on to your liking.

Fold into a sandwich and cut.

You may remember back in my last waffle post that I had intended to give you a waffle sandwich recipe that was of the savory variety. Well, yes. But I never took photos. Anyway, this is pretty much THAT sandwich.

But there's more sandwich deliciousness where this came from.

Stay tuned . . .

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Food for Runners: M-U-S-H-R-O-O-M-S

It's been a while since we visited our Food for Runners series. Today I'm focusing on mushrooms solely because I've been eating a lot of them these days. At least from what I notice in my meal diaries. Man. I've been vegetarian for so long, eating a beefy grilled portabella, for example, is really like eating, well, beef!

I recently made a delicious mushroom + bean veggie burger (recipe below), which is where the photos in this post come from.

Psst: If you're catching up, we've covered tomatoes, almonds, pumpkin, cucumbers, bananas, eggs, garlic, quinoa, berries, peppers, and kale -- and included our favorite recipes from across the web.

"While full of protein, the star nutrients found in mushrooms are selenium, copper, zinc, vitamins B12 and B3." (Source)

"While meat, seafood, grains, and nuts have excellent levels of the mineral, mushrooms are the only produce that have high levels of it, so they are especially important to include in your diet if you are vegetarian, vegan, or gluten-free." (Source)

"A study by the American Society for Nutrition found that white button mushrooms may promote immune function by increasing the production of antiviral and other proteins that are released by cells while they are trying to protect and repair the body’s tissues." (Source)


Here are some of our favorite recipes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner:

Lynn's Rustic Wild Mushroom Tart
Mark & Reese's Spinach + Mushroom Omelette
Our Portabellas with Peanut Sauce
Scott Jurek's Lentil Mushroom Burgers
Kim's Crimini Mushroom Risotto
Our Stuffed Portabellas
Jolinda's Mushroom + Bean Burgers (from the photos in this post)
Justin's Cream of Mushroom Soup
Soma's Balsamic Roasted Mushrooms w/ Goat Cheese
Our Open-Faced Portabella Sandwiches
Jennifer's Crispy Old Bay Mushrooms w/ Sriracha Mayo
Maria & Josh's Kale, Mushroom, and Ricotta Calzones


I probably roast a couple of portabellas each week. The best method I've found is to preheat my oven to 400 degrees F. Scrub the mushrooms very well + then take a spoon and scoop out the ruffled underbelly and stem. I suppose this part isn't necessary if you want them chopped up, but I usually roast them whole.

Then place on a rimmed baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Place in the oven for 10 minutes // FLIP over // then roast another 10-15 minutes.

What's your favorite way to use mushrooms?

Don't forget to read up on these other healthy ingredients:

Food for Runners: T-O-M-A-T-O-E-S
Food for Runners: A-L-M-O-N-D-S
Food for Runners: P-U-M-P-K-I-N
Food for Runners: C-U-C-U-M-B-E-R-S
Food for Runners: E-G-G-S
Food for Runners: B-E-R-R-I-E-S
Food for Runners: B-A-N-A-N-A-S
Food for Runners: G-A-R-L-I-C
Food for Runners: Q-U-I-N-O-A
Food for Runners: K-A-L-E
Food for Runners: P-E-P-P-E-R-S

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Roasted Veggie + Tomato Hummus

Another kid + adult-friendly recipe today. I think you'll be seeing a lot of these as we attempt to expand Ada's will-eat list. It's not that children can't eat the same foods as adults, but -- well -- really, they can't.

Since I started my love affair with cooking, I've gotten salt and seasonings heavy. Specifically with spice and heat. When I'd attempt to serve Ada some of our favorite foods, I'd quickly realize I shouldn't have added that 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne, for example. Or that glug of Texas Pete. Oops.

But taking the spice and salinity down a notch doesn't mean eating bland, boring foods.

I'm thinking hummus.
Does that sound good to you?

If you don't have tahini in the cupboard (likely the case over here), you can improvise.


A can of chickpeas + a few pulses of the food processor . . .


ROASTED VEGGIE + TOMATO HUMMUS

What you'll need . . . 

• 1/2 cup (heaping) roasted veggies*
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup Pomi strained tomatoes
• 1 can chickpeas, drained
• 1 tablespoon olive oil

* If you don't have roasted veggies on hand (we just eat them ALL the time), simply cut up eggplant, portabellas, bell peppers, onions, etc. into large chunks. Toss in some olive oil and a little bit of salt and pepper and roasted in the oven at 400 degrees F for around 30-40 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes until well browned.

Method . . . 

1. In your food processor, toss in your veggies, chickpeas, and olive oil. 
2. As you pulse, add in the strained tomatoes a couple tablespoons at a time until you reach your desired consistency.
3. Store in an air-tight container for up to a week (though ours only lasts a couple days!).

You may remember from the Boozy + Bold Tomato Sauce recipe that I've signed on to take the Pomi challenge. This month's mission? Using Pomi with eggplant -- I think this is a delicious combination!

Do you ever make hummus without tahini? What's your favorite mix?

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Stuffed Portabellas

Quick recipe tonight. It's packed full of nutrients, too. I mean, I try my best to cook healthfully as much as I can -- but I favor pizza, garlic knots, and more bread. This isn't a secret. You've seen our recipes. I'm damn proud of them.

But part of lowering my sugar intake is finding new foods (or, in this case, rediscovering old favorites) to fuel myself with. PS: You also spy some Orange Pan-Glazed Tempeh from 101 Cookbooks.

STUFFED PORTABELLAS

What you'll need . . .

• 6 portabella mushrooms, washed and stems taken out
• 2 to 3 cloves garlic, minced 
• 1 small cooking onion, sliced 
• 1/4 cup pine nuts 
• 2 handfuls baby spinach, rinsed 
• 1/2 cup red quinoa (already cooked) 
• 1/4 cup Greek yogurt 
• 1/4 cup Parmesan 
• 1 can white beans, drained and rinsed
• 2 tablespoons olive oil 
• Salt and pepper to taste

Method . . .

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Set aside a lightly oiled, rimmed baking sheet. 
2. In a pan over medium-high heat, add 1 tablespoon oil, onions and garlic. Cook for several minutes until glassy. 
3. Add in the pine nuts and cook for a couple minutes, until lightly browned. (Don't walk away: It will happen relatively quickly.) 
4. Turn off the heat and toss in the spinach. Mix around until wilted. Add salt and pepper as you see fit.
5. In a bowl, mix together this stove-top creation with the quinoa, white beans, Parmesan, and Greek yogurt. Set aside. 
6. In the same pan you just cooked in, heat another tablespoon oil until warm. Then toss on your mushrooms (you may need to do so in batches) and cook on each side until slightly softened (but not soggy -- you're still going to pop 'em in the oven). 
7. Then arrange your mushrooms so they are stem-side up on the baking sheet. Stuff each with an equal amount of your filling mixture. 
8. Then bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until the mushroom cap is tender. 

NOTE: If you're making these ahead of time, you may wish to refrigerate the filling and then do steps 6 through 8 when you're ready to eat.


OTHER QUINOA FAVORITES:

Smoked Chipotle Quinoa-Bean Burgers
Red Quinoa Bread
Roasted Red Quinoa Tea
In-a-Pinch Red Quinoa Chili
Quinoa Ginger Snaps
Basic Quinoa Lunch Salad


And on Writing Chapter Three, you can catch some scenes from my first Mother's Day. We visited my hometown. Ada was a doll. I'm . . . a . . . mom!

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Portabellas with Peanut Sauce

My favorite Thai restaurant is in Ithaca, NY -- Thai Cuisine. It boasts the "best Thai food in New York State, including New York City," according to Getaways For Gourmets. Every Sunday, there's this amazing dim sum brunch. Basically, the staff members carry around a couple trays of freshly prepared items. Then, they allow you to choose what you'd like to munch on, leave you alone for a short while, and return again with yet another selection of small dishes.

The process goes on for as long as you'd like it to. The best part is the price -- each plate costs less than $5 (and typically less than that!).

Of all selections, I most enjoy the portabellas with peanut sauce. And now that we don't live in Ithaca, I often crave the mushrooms like crazy. So, last night I set out to create a similar dish in our own kitchen. Though I didn't have coconut milk, the results are remarkably similar to the real deal.


PORTABELLAS WITH PEANUT SAUCE (for 4)

What you'll need . . .

• 4 large portabella mushrooms, scrub and remove stems
• 2 tablespoons peanut butter (I used Justin's with honey)
• 1 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon sunflower or canola oil
• 1 tablespoon almond milk (or more, depending on your preferred taste)
• Sesame seeds
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon ginger powder

Method . . .

1. Slice mushrooms into 1/4-ish inch slices.
2. In a large pan, spray with a bit of olive oil (or just lightly oil) and set over medium-high heat.
3. Lay out mushroom slices on the pan and reduce heat to medium. Cook and gently stir until both sides are lightly browned (mostly, the shrooms will get soft and juicy). Set aside.
4. In a small bowl, use a fork to whisk together the peanut butter, soy sauce, and oil. Then add the almond milk and whisk until smooth. Add the cayenne, ginger, and sesame seeds. Stir until well incorporated.
5. Lay out mushroom slices on a plate and drizzle/top with a generous helping of the peanut sauce. Garnish with basil for extra tastiness.

Truth time: We didn't eat ours displayed this beautifully. Nope. That's all for show. Instead, we dumped a ton of the sauce onto the mushrooms and dug in immediately.


We've been on a quest to recreate many of our beloved weekend meals at home (because we go out to eat far more than I'd like to admit). We're getting pretty good at it, too -- enough that we're starting to prefer our twist on the dishes to the real thing.

So, here's my question for you: Have you cooked up any of your restaurant favorites at home? Were you extremely satisfied or horribly unhappy with the results? Leave a comment or email us at neverhomemaker [at] gmail [dot] com.

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Everything but the Kitchen Sink Dinner

What do you do when all you have in the fridge are last week's rejects? I mean, how can you make a dinner out of a few green peppers and a couple tablespoons worth of peanut butter and . . . 1 cup of coconut milk? Don't forget the 1/3 of an onion hiding in there. Oh. And there are some pieces of portabella mushrooms. Parsnips? Goodness!

Yeah. That's right. You suck up your food lust for other tasty treats and get creative with all that stuff. It's definitely the budget friendly way to go. Certainly a way to improve your kitchen cred. And, of course, is far less wasteful than letting all that good produce rot until your husband hangs his head in shame, upset you've "done it again."

Oh, sorry. That last part is all about, well, me. I do that. Often. I'm trying desperately to stop. And our quest to lower our groceries bills (which is going extremely well, thank you) has been helping out. I imagine some of you other foodies out there fall victim to the whole always-wanting-the-absolute-freshest-most-interesting-(and abundant)-ingredients, too.

This recipe should help. Just use all those ingredients up. Slather them in a fun sauce. And call it dinner.


What you'll need . . .

• 1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 1/2 to 1 large green pepper, sliced
• 1 to 2 medium parsnip, skinned and sliced
• 1/2 to 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1/2 to 1 large portabella mushroom, chopped
• 1 cup coconut milk
• 2 to 3 tablespoons natural peanut butter
• Soy sauce, to taste
• Garlic powder and pepper to taste
• Honey, again, to taste

Method . . .

1. Over medium-high heat, cook onions in a little olive oil until glassy.
2. Add in the green pepper and parsnips and cook until soft.
3. Add portabella mushrooms and chickpeas. Cook for about 3 to 5 minutes.
4. Then whisk together the coconut milk, peanut butter, soy sauce, garlic powder, and pepper. Again -- it's all to your taste. Some people like it more soy-ish, others less. You may even wish to sweeten it a bit with some honey. The key is adding it all in small amounts. Go teaspoon by teaspoon with the extras.
5. Then pour this mixture over the stir-fry and cook until nice and bubbly.
6. Serve with a gorgeous grain like red quinoa.

"Ashley. That is a rather lax/lazy/sorry excuse for a recipe." I know, I know. The measurements are all weird. The sauce formula is far from set in stone. But I share this recipe with you, friends, to make a point. We get lots of emails asking us if it's OK to substitute this ingredient in for that ingredients. And what I want you all to know -- those of you who aren't comfortable cooking up a storm in the kitchen -- is that experimentation is more than OK, it's fantastic. It's the only way you can come up with good eats on your own.

Once you start letting go. Once you stop measuring out every little thing, you'll definitely have some awful creations on your hands. Yes. But you'll laugh about them and PRETEND you enjoy them. Other times, you'll come up with something so incredibly delicious, you'll wish you had written it down (keep that in mind -- I keep a pen and pad of paper in one of our drawers). Cooking need not be a scary venture. Instead, it's just another outlet for your imagination (and cravings) to run wild.



I'd also like to take this opportunity to publicly congratulate my brother on his graduation. He's the reason I'm posting less this week (thanks a lot, little bro!) -- all weekend was spent down in Bloomsburg, PA, sitting in the wind, waiting to hear his name be called so he could receive his diploma. So, employers: If you or anyone you know needs a college grad with a degree in marketing (and mad guitar skills -- I'm just sayin'), Ryan's your man!

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Open-Faced Portabella Sandwiches

Portabella mushrooms are like steaks to vegetarians and vegans. Am I right? And I've been craving "steak" for a while. So, last night we set out to use some of our awesome aged balsamic vinegar from Fiore in Bar Harbor, ME (that we won as part of Erin's -- Domestic Adventure -- giveaway several weeks ago). At first, we simply planned to eat the 'shrooms plain. Maybe with a few side items.

Nothing special.

But then I got the idea to make pesto and create an open-faced sandwich. We had a ton of basil, but didn't have even one pine nut. Walnuts (you know, the ones we DIDN'T buy two bags of at the grocery store the other day?) to the rescue! A couple toasted sourdough slices and a bunch of sauteed spinach later, and this sweet and savory sandwich was born.


What you'll need for four mini-sandwiches (serves 2) . . .

For the mushroom part:

• 2 large portabella mushrooms (rinsed, and take out the stems)
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 cup olive oil

For the "pesto":

• 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup raw walnuts
• 2 cloves or garlic
• pinch salt and pepper

For the spinach:

• Two large handfuls of spinach (baby or regular -- but take the stems off the regular)
• 2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil

Method . . .

1. Prepare the mushrooms. Mix together the balsamic vinegar and olive oil in a large, shallow bowl. Coat the portabellas with the mixture -- let sit for half an hour. You may want to spoon more of the mixture over the bottom side of the portabellas for optimum saturation. If you like, make more mixture. But we found we had enough. Just depends on how big your mushrooms are.
2. While you're soaking the mushrooms, prepare the "pesto" by putting all ingredients in a food processor and pulsing until incorporated. We left ours rather chunky. Then set aside.
3. You may also prepare your sauteed spinach during this time. Just heat the olive oil in a large pan until warm, then add the spinach and cook over low to medium heat until wilted and coated. Set aside.
4. Toast some sourdough bread (four slices to be exact) and set aside.
5. Then start a large pan over medium heat on the stove. Place each mushroom -- bottom side down -- on the pan and cook for a few minutes. Then flip over and continue cooking. You may wish to spoon over some more of the mixture. Just keep the heat at medium. Continue cooking until the mushrooms are soft. Then slice each in half so you have four pieces.
6. Put it all together by starting with one slice of sourdough bread. Then a quarter of your sauteed spinach. Then one of the mushroom pieces. Then a quarter of the pesto mixture. You may also top with fresh tomato or whatever else you like. Continue until you run out of ingredients.
7. Enjoy!

Have you entered our H2O Bottle Giveaway? If not -- you have until Monday, March 15th. It's just our way of celebrating reaching over 800 subscribers! Go check it out here.

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