Wheat Berry, White Bean, and Spinach Sauté

Mushrooms add homerun flavor to this simple vegan dish

Need easy vegan for Meatless Monday? Or maybe for hosting vegan friends? We have just what you’re looking for.

It’s a mix of cooked wheat berries, white beans, mushrooms, and fresh spinach. Add some herbs for extra flavor, and you have a luscious main dish that everyone at the table will like.

Healthy flavor. It’s what’s for dinner.

Joe's Special Scrambled Eggs

Spinach, mushrooms, and meat flavor this San Francisco classic

This dish, beloved on the US west coast, was created at Original Joe’s Restaurant in San Francisco.
 
It looks like breakfast fare. But the dish is so hearty and filling that it may work better for lunch or dinner.

It certainly does for us, because we’re just not that hungry first thing in the morning. Plus, if you serve it for dinner, you can pair it with an alcoholic accompaniment. Win win.

Mushroom, Corn, and White Bean Sauté

This vegetarian dish makes a great main for Meatless Monday, or a terrific side dish

Looking for a simple, tasty vegetarian dish? We’ve got you covered.

This Mushroom, Corn, and White Bean Sauté has terrific flavor, is quick to prepare, and can be made largely from pantry staples. If you prefer not to go veggie, it also works well as a side dish with grilled or roasted meat or poultry.

Once you make this, we’re betting you’ll want to extend Meatless Monday to other days of the week – just so you can serve it again.

Steak with Mushroom and Wine Sauce

Make this tasty sauce ahead of time, then finish it right before serving

Need a special dinner for Valentine’s Day? We’ve got it: Succulent steak served with a rich mushroom and wine sauce.

This elegant meal is actually easy and straightforward to prepare. That means less time in the kitchen and more time at the table.

With your own special valentine.

Mushroom and Chickpea Curry

Green peas and jalapeño liven up this quick, healthy one-pot dish

Pantries and freezers: They’re the new go-tos during this involuntary staycation. Fortunately, your menu doesn’t need to suffer.

Most ingredients in this dish are things we usually have on hand. The fresh components (such as mushrooms and jalapeños) are ones that keep for a few days, so you don’t need to run to the grocery store too often.

We made this dish for a weeknight dinner. But we would happily serve it to friends for a weekend feast. When we can see friends again.

Pork Medallions in Cream and Mushroom Sauce

This classic dish is easy and company-worthy

Pork medallions (sometimes called noisettes) are small discs of meat cut from the tenderloin or boneless loin. They look fancy on the plate, but they’re easy to prepare.

Dress them up with classic cream-and-mushroom sauce, and you’ll be chef de cuisine.

Best of all, this dish can be prepared about an hour ahead of time, then finished just before you’re ready to serve.

That means stress-free entertaining. Which is the best gift you can give yourself for the holidays, no?

Chicken or Turkey Tetrazzini

This baked pasta favorite will liven up your leftovers

It’s November, so there may be turkey in your future. Which means turkey leftovers. Give them a home in this traditional pasta dish and no one will complain about eating remakes. 

And you don’t need to stop with turkey. Tetrazzini works with chicken too. Not to mention seafood and ham.

You may even want to save some leftovers and make this dish for dinner guests. That’s our favorite kind of recycling.

Chicken Cacciatore

Classic Italian, made even better with mushrooms and red bell pepper

Ready for rustic? Cacciatore means “hunter” in Italian, so the idea is to eat as you would on the trail. Or something.

We prefer to cook it in our kitchen, where we can add wine. Not to mention red sauce, mushrooms, and tasty bell peppers.  

Our version is still simple to make, though. And you can even prepare it ahead of time, then reheat it whenever.

So you won’t have to hunt around for something decent to eat.

Coq au Vin

Soothe your winter blues with this classic French recipe for wine-braised chicken

We have a foot of snow in our corner of the world. Time for comfort food! And what could be better than a meaty dish slowly braised in rich wine sauce?

Enter coq au vin, a classic French recipe. It requires some prep work, but the result is so worth it. Serve this at your next dinner party and bask in the adoring applause.

Adoration works for you, right?

Stroganoff-Style Leftover Beef

Classic flavor with roast or braised beef

Cooler temperatures are on the way in our part of the world. Cue Beef Stroganoff – it’s a hearty comfort dish that always tastes best in cold weather.

And you don’t even need to cook the meat, because you already have some leftovers on hand, right?

You can make the dish ahead of time, too. Just reheat it when you’re ready to serve for a no-fuss dinner-party treat.

Gives you a warm fuzzy feeling, doesn’t it?

Marinated Mushrooms

This make-ahead Italian-style dish is ideal for summer entertaining

During the lazy days of summer we want to be, well, lazy. But we still want to entertain. So we look for dishes that are easy to make, preferably ones we can prepare ahead of time.

Enter these Italian-style marinated mushrooms. Flavored with olive oil, lemon, and vinegar, they make a wonderful appetizer or side dish. And they taste better when made several hours ahead, or even the day before serving. They’re also delicious when cold or at room temperature – so they’re perfect for the picnic table.

Plus they taste really good! Kind of addictive, actually. Magic mushrooms, you might say.

Wine-Braised Beef Short Ribs

Served over mashed potatoes, comfort food at its finest

Spring may be coming, but it’s still plenty chilly in our part of the world. So we’re not putting away our braising pot just yet. And what better than braised beef short ribs to chase away the last days of winter?

After a few hours luxuriating in a rich wine sauce over low heat, the meat becomes soft, yet retains its toothsome character. And the rich flavor is succulent beyond belief.

Best of all, this dish tastes better cooked a day or two ahead, then reheated. So it makes perfect party food.

It’s so good your guests will applaud. Or even better, request seconds.

Pasta with Zucchini and Mushrooms

Alfredo sauce and prosciutto make this rich dish sing

It’s still zucchini season in our part of the world, but cooler weather is strolling in. So we’re starting to enjoy richer dishes – like this one. It’s an all-time favorite of ours.

We particularly like to share this pasta dish with friends. Few can resist its creamy, cheesy goodness.

So don’t be surprised if your guests ask for the recipe. You have our permission to share it with them.

Mushroom and White Bean Ragout

This make-ahead dish is perfect for Meatless Monday—and fancy enough for Saturday night company

We often eat meatless at our house. Many vegetarian and vegan dishes pack so much flavor, we never even notice the absence of meat.

This mushroom and white bean ragout is a good example. Portobello mushrooms offer plenty of “chew” and savory flavor. White beans add protein. Dish it up over polenta or noodles, and you have a one-dish dinner. Best of all, you can make this ragout ahead of time—it reheats beautifully.

We’ve served this dish to company, and it always gets rave reviews. So be prepared to take a bow.

Cream of Mushroom Soup

A perfect starter for festive winter meals

December means parties, entertaining, and festive events all around. So we need to whip up some guest-pleasing delights—especially if we’re hosting big dinners.

Main courses always seem to sort themselves out, but what about starters? We want something hearty (to take the edge off those winter appetites). Something out of the ordinary, too—but not difficult to make.

So how about cooking up some homemade Cream of Mushroom Soup? It’s rich and delicious, but not time-consuming.

Once you try it, you’ll never go back to the canned stuff. Ever.

Italian Celery and Mushroom Salad

Pecorino Romano perks up this fresh and healthy delight

Looking for a dish with crisp, sunny flavor—one that can make you forget winter’s gloom? This classic Italian Celery and Mushroom Salad is just the thing.

Mushrooms and celery always play nicely together when dressed with olive oil and lemon juice. But mix in some Pecorino Romano cheese, and look out flavor explosion!

This salad takes just minutes to make. So it’s perfect for a weekday meal. But it’s also delectable enough for a weekend dinner party. Don’t you just love it when recipes are that accommodating?

Shaved Artichoke and Mushroom Salad

Welcome Spring with this Fresh-Tasting Raw Salad

Artichokes need some taming before they’re kitchen ready.  That’s because they’re actually thistles.  The mature plant has an inedible choke and sharp thorns.  So we need to trim them.

Then we need to cook the artichokes before we consume them.  Usually. 

Would you believe you can eat artichokes raw?  Well, you can, although you have to prepare them properly.  Which means slicing them thinly (i.e., shaving them) so they’re easy to eat.
 
Why bother, you might ask, when a cooked artichoke is so delicious served with melted butter or Hollandaise Sauce? Well, because it’s nice to have variety. Besides, you’ve never really tasted an artichoke until you’ve eaten one raw — the flavor has a whole ‘nother dimension.

Toss a shaved artichoke with some mushrooms, lemon juice, and extra virgin olive oil, and you have a salad fit for royalty.

That’s you, right?

Boeuf Bourguignon

a/k/a Beef Burgundy, This Classic French Dish Is Perfect for Fall Entertaining

Julia Child introduced the US to Boeuf Bourguignon in the 1960s. Until then, the few Americans who knew about the dish had encountered it in a French restaurant or on travels abroad.

Then we saw Julia cook it on her PBS television show, The French Chef — and we were smitten! It was so exotic and delicious. And once you got past the fancy French name, it was really nothing more than beef stew. Boeuf Bourguignon instantly became the entertaining dish in the 60s — and for a decade or two beyond.

It seems to have fallen out of fashion in recent years, which is too bad. Because you can prepare most of it a day or two ahead, and then finish it when you’re ready to serve — perfect for entertaining.

Spinach Salad with Hot Bacon Dressing

This Easy Classic Takes Your Game to 11

This year, summer has been slow to arrive in many parts of the United States.  We’ve had some cool spring temperatures — prime growing weather for spinach.  Though hotter days are coming in now, there’s still time to fix a few more spinach salads before the season passes by.

If you haven’t paired spinach with hot bacon dressing for a while, now would be a great time.

And if you’ve never tried this combo, prepare to take your taste buds to 11.