Baked Dish with a Blend of Various Mushrooms

Baked Dish with a Blend of Various Mushrooms

Recipe Remix:

A scrumptious dish, midway between a stuffing and a gratin, flaunts an enigmatic identity. Toasted cubes of baguette transform into a delish ally for sautéed cremini and chanterelle mushrooms, as well as rehydrated porcinis. A sumptuous Cambozola cheese sauce, a delightful mix of Camembert and Gorgonzola, drizzles over the top, and the whole shebang bakes until bubbly. Serve up this sinful casserole alongside a beefy slab of steak or a zesty greens medley.

This scrumptious recipe earned its spotlight in our Fall Ingredients recipe gallery.

• Yield: 4 to 6 hearty servings
• Difficulty: A cinch and a half
• Total Time: 1 hr 45 mins

Recipe Goodies (15)

• 1 oz dried porcini mushrooms (about 1 cup), halved if oversized
• 2 cups boiling water
• 4 oz French bread, cut in chunks 3/4-inch in size (approximately 3 cups)
• 3 tablespoons unslatched butter, with extra for the baking dish greasing
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 8 oz chanterelle mushrooms, the stems snipped and halved or quartered if large
• 8 oz cremini mushrooms, stems trimmed and split if large
• 1/3 cup minced shallot (from about 1 medium shallot)
• 3/4 teaspoon finely snipped thyme leaves
• 1/2 cup dry white vino
• Salt, kosher
• Fresh black pepper, ground
• 1 large egg, gently battered
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 6 oz Cambozola cheese, chopped in bits (rind included)

Preparation Scoop

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F, positioning a rack in the center. Grease a shallow 2-quart baking dish with butter; set aside.
2. Stash the porcinis in a medium heatproof container. Pour in boiling water and allow them to soak until they soften, approximately 12 minutes.
3. Arrange the bread chunks on a baking sheet and toast until golden brown, around 10 minutes. Transfer to a large mixing bowl and set aside.
4. Heat the measured butter and oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until the butter starts to froth. Infuse the skillet with the chanterelle and cremini mushrooms and cook, stirring infrequently, until the mushrooms have discharged their liquid and turned golden brown, about 8 to 10 minutes.
5. Toss in the shallot and thyme, mix well, then cook for 1 minute. Carefully transfer the soaked porcinis to the pan (mindful not to disturb the gritty sediment), and stir to combine. Continue cooking until the shallots have become soft, around 1 minute more.
6. Pour in the wine, scrape up any blackened bits, and cook until the wine has almost fully evaporated, about 1 to 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
7. Ransfer the mushroom jumble into the bowl with the toasted bread cubes (leave the skillet), add the egg, and stir to blend. Measure 1/2 cup of the reserved mushroom liquid, ensuring you bypass the sediment, and get rid of the excess. Incorporate this liquid into the bowl and mix well. Plop the mushroom-bread mixture into the prepared baking dish and spread it around evenly, setting it aside.
8. Return the skillet to medium-low heat, pour in the cream, and bring it to a simmer. Whisking intensely, incorporate the cheese bit by bit, enabling it to melt before adding the next one. If the sauce breaks while whisking, fix it by sprinkling in cornstarch 1/2 teaspoon at a time and adding more cream splash by splash while continuing to whisk. The sauce should start to bubble, thicken, and smooth out again. Season with salt and pepper to taste and pour it evenly over the mushrooms and croutons. Bake until it browns and bubbles profusely, around 15 to 20 minutes. Serve immediately.

Culinary Companions (Optional)

For a New York Strip worthy of this scrumptious casserole, consider its flavor and texture. This exquisite steak complements earthy mushrooms like a well-oiled machine. Here's how you might prepare it:

Sizzling Strip Steak

Ingredients:

• 2 (12 oz) New York Strip Steaks, 1.5 to 2 inches thick
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 2 tbsp oil with a high smoke point, such as vegetable oil
• Optional: mushroom cream sauce (similar to the one described above)

Preparation:

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F.
2. Salt the steaks generously.
3. Heat the oil in a large skillet over high heat. Sear the steaks for 3 minutes per side.
4. Transfer the skillet to the oven and cook for about 10-12 minutes, or until desired doneness.
5. Relax and wait before slicing.

Mushroom Cream Sauce (Adapted above):

• Ingredients: 8 oz sliced mushrooms, 1/4 cup diced onion, 2 tbsp butter, 1 tsp fresh thyme, 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard, 1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce, 1/2 cup beef broth, 1/4 cup heavy cream, cold butter.
• Instructions: Brown the mushrooms and onions in butter. Add garlic and thyme, cook briefly. Stir in mustard and Worcestershire sauce. Integrate the broth, then let it simmer and reduce. Add the cream and cold butter.

Alternatively, for a more supple option, a Round Steak prepared in a similar mushroom sauce (see another recipe [2]) could be another fantastic sidekick. However, the New York Strip steak makes a superior pairing due to its ability to maintain its texture against the robust flavors of the casserole. You can't go wrong either way!

• This mushroom and Cambozola cheese casserole, a blend between a stuffing and a gratin, showcases excellent nutrition, especially when paired with a hearty recipe such as the Sizzling Strip Steak, providing a balanced meal.
• The Sizzling Strip Steak, prepared with high smoke point oil, kosher salt, and an optional mushroom cream sauce, offers a flavorful creditline to this sumptuous casserole, enhancing the earthy flavors of the mushrooms.
• In absence of a suitable creditline, a round steak could be an alternative sidekick for the casserole, offering a less textured option, but the New York Strip steak, with its ability to maintain its texture against the robust flavors of the casserole, is a superior pairing.

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