Cheddar Sriracha Stuffed Mushrooms: Stuffed Cookbook Review & Giveaway

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I’ve been following Dan Whalen’s blog, The Food in my Beard, for a while now. I love the way he approaches comfort food. He brings excitement and flavor to our everyday dishes. When I heard about his new cookbook coming out, I knew I had to have it.

The cookbook, Stuffed: The Ultimate Comfort Food Cookbook is genius. Pure genius. I love amazing stuff wrapped in more amazing stuff! I mean who doesn’t? Kind of similar to where I went with my kimchi dumplings. This cookbook features dishes inspired by all ethnicities. From tamales to eclairs, this cookbook has it all. It even has homemade tater tots that totally rival my nacho stuffed tots! I mean, how can you beat fish & chips tater tots? That’s just brilliant!

When the book arrived at my door, I couldn’t open the package fast enough. I knew from Dan’s blog that he dreams up amazing flavor combinations. This book just solidified my stance. Every recipe in the book looks like something work making. The Aloo Gobi Samosas are totally happening in my kitchen soon, as are the Chana Masala Stuffed Grape Leaves.

I’ve been on a bit of a Sriracha kick lately. Well, I’ve always been a fan of it, but it seems to really be getting in to everything I made lately. So when I came upon the Cheddar Sriracha Stuffed Mushrooms, I knew I had to share this recipe with you. Thanks to the amazing publishers, I’ve got a cookbook giveaway for you as well. So be sure to enter the giveaway at the bottom of this post. You can also head on over to Amazon to buy this cookbook. You won’t be disappointed.


Cheddar Sriracha Stuffed Mushrroms
 
Author:
Recipe type: Appetizer
Ingredients
  • 15 to 20 Baby Bella or Cremini Mushrooms
Filling:
  • 1 cup crushed tortilla chips
  • 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
  • ½ cup Sriracha
  • 1 shallot, minced
  • 2 jalapenos, minced (seeds removed to ease up heat)
Instructions
Make the Filling:
  1. Mix all the ingredients in a bowl
Stuff It:
  1. Clean the mushrooms and remove and the stems and ribs. Generously stuff the mushrooms with the filling.
  2. Put the mushrooms on to a baking dish
Cook It:
  1. Preheat the oven to 400. Roast the mushrooms for about 15 minutes. Serve hot.

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Nacho Stuffed Tater Tots

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This month’s Kosher Connection challenge is all about the Superbowl. What kinds of snacks do you like to eat while watching the big game? On Superbowl Sunday, we typically dine on a variety of appetizers. Last year, I vaguely recall a mix of onion rings, french fries, chicken wings and beer. I’m sure there was more to it though. This year, I’m all about finding good vegetarian snacks for the big game day.

I asked my husband what he was in the mood for this year. The first thing that he came up with was some loaded nachos. I told him that nachos were too basic and we had to do better than that!

I’ve been wanting to make some homemade tater tots for a while now. A while back, there was an article by Mark Bittman in The New York Times where he showed how to make some homemade tots. I’ve been wanting to make that recipe ever since it came out. I decided that I could stuff the tater tots with some of the typical nacho toppings.

Would it work? Would it taste good? I had to find out!

I parboiled some Idaho Russet Potatoes and then grated them along with some onions. I added some salt, pepper and corn starch to the mix, as Mark Bittman suggests.

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I processed some black beans along with some fire roasted green chiles in the food processor. I mixed up that mixture with some cheese, corn and chili powder.

I placed some of the potato mixture in the palm of my hand and then a dab of the bean mixture at the center and formed it in to a traditional tater tot shape, making sure to cover the entire center with potato.

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I fried each tot lightly and then drained it and finished cooking it in the oven. It’s best to finish the baking process on a rack over a baking sheet.

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I dipped the tater tots in a salsa-yogurt mixture.

The verdict? Definitely a fun recipe!

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Nacho Stuffed Tater Tots
 
Author:
Ingredients
  • 5 Idaho Russet Potatoes
  • 2 tsp. salt
  • 2 tsp. ground pepper
  • 1 tbsp. corn starch
  • ¼ cup corn
  • ¼ cup black beans, cooked and drained or canned
  • ¼ cup fire roasted green chiles
  • 1 tbsp. chili powder
  • 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
  • oil for frying
  • additional salt and pepper as needed
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 400
  2. Parboil the potatoes until tender
  3. Grate the potatoes in a large mixing bowl
  4. Stir salt, pepper and corn starch in to the potatoes
  5. In the food processor, process together the black beans, chili powder, cheese and chiles. Stir in the corn. Transfer to a small mixing bowl.
  6. Take a tablespoon of the potato mixture and place in the palm of your hand. Dab a teaspoon of the bean/cheese mixture and place in the center of the potatoes. Shape the potatoes around the bean mixture and form in to a traditional tater tot mixture. Repeat until you have used up your potatoes.
  7. Heat up the oil, about a 1-inch deep, in a fry pan.
  8. Pan fry the tots until browned.
  9. Transfer the tots to a baking sheet lined with a cooling rack.
  10. Bake the tots until desired crispness.

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VeganMoFo: Vegetarian Stuffed Eggplant

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There’s a farmer’s market in front of my office twice a week – on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I get so excited with anticipation as to what veggies will show up on any given day. I love being surprised as the seasons change. I especially love the colors that await me as I climb out of the subway station and over to the booths.

I recently came upon this beautiful pink eggplant. If you haven’t tried this variety, I highly recommend you do. It is more tender and has a softer eggplant flavor than other varieties. It lends itself to more recipes and doesn’t need to be treated prior to cooking to remove bitterness.

And the colors of the eggplant…love it!

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Vegetarian Stuffed Eggplant
Ingredients:

4 small pink eggplants
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 onion, chopped
5 garlic cloves, chopped
1/2 package of extra firm tofu, drained and crumbled
1 red pepper, diced
5 oz. cremini mushrooms, chopped
2 plum tomatoes, chopped
2 cups quinoa, cooked (I used the tri-color blend)
3 tsp. vegan Worcestershire sauce.
3 tsp. salt
3 tsp. ground pepper flakes
3 tsp. dried thyme
2 tsp. red pepper flakes
3/4 cup Daiya Vegan Cheese (mozzarella or cheddar would work in this)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375.

Wash the eggplants. Slice them down the middle lengthwise.

Scoop out the eggplant leaving a 1/2 inch skin all around. Chop up the scooped out eggplant.

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Heat up a large saute pan. Add the olive oil.

Add in the onions and cook for a few minutes. Add in the chopped garlic and crumbled tofu.  Cook for a couple of minutes.

Add chopped eggplant to the pan and the other chopped veggies. Cook for 5 minutes.

Stir in the quinoa, spices and Daiya cheese. Make sure everything is incorporated well together.

Taste the mixture to see if it needs additional salt or other spices.

Place the eggplant shells in a large baking pan.

Place a heaping amount of the eggplant/veggie/quinoa mixture back in to the eggplant shells.

Drizzle with olive oil and a sprinkle of sea salt.

Bake in oven for about 30-40 minutes.

Enjoy!

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veganmofo

Meatless Monday: Vegetarian Stuffed Zucchini

As I walked in to my local kosher store, I eyed the big zucchinis in crates in the entry way. At 49 cents a pound, I had to toss a few in my cart.

I usually just chop up some zucchini in to a dish – for the most part, it becomes an afterthought. I find that I often use it as a way to stretch a recipe. I decided that I wanted the zucchini to shine tonight. I had never made stuffed zucchini before. I think the last time I ate one was back in summer camp. I didn’t have fond memories. I knew I could top the vegetarian menu at camp. I am pretty happy with the way this turned out.

Stuffed Zucchini
Ingredients:



2 large zucchini
1 medium onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 package of cremini mushrooms, chopped
1/2 package of soy italian sausage, chopped
3 plum tomatoes, chopped well
thyme
basil
oregano
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, powder or shredded, plus two tablespoons
1/2 cup bread crumbs or corn flake crumbs, plus two tablespoons (can use gluten free option)
1/4 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/2 tbsp. olive oil
1 tbsp. butter
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 350.

Wash the outside of the zucchini well.

Slice the zucchini in half lengthwise.

Scoop out the insides of the zucchini. Chop the zucchini pulp and set aside.  There should be a 1/4-inch layer of skin all around. Be careful not to puncture the skin.

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Place on a parchment lined baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Place in over for around 10-12 minutes.

While the zucchini shells are baking, prepare the stuffing.

In a large pan, saute the onion and garlic in some olive oil and butter.

Add in your spices.

Add the soy sausage and mushrooms. Saute for 5 minutes.

Add in the chopped zucchini pulp and the chopped tomatoes.

Cook for another 5-7 minutes.

Remove from heat.

Stir in the cheeses and the bread crumbs, reserving the two tablespoons of each.

Taste the mixture now. Add salt if necessary.

Scoop the mixture in to the zucchini shells.

Sprinkle on the remaining bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese.

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Bake in the oven for 30 minutes.

Turn the oven up to broil and bake for another 5-10 minutes. Bread crumbs and cheese should look a little toasted.

Remove from oven and enjoy!

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