Wild Mushroom Grits With Poached Eggs And Serrano Chile Sauce And Blue Corn Tortilla Strips Recipes

WILD MUSHROOM SAUCE

Steps:

• Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Saute shallots briefly, then stir in all of the mushrooms. Saute until tender and translucent, about 3 minutes. Pour in red wine, and simmer for 3 minutes. Stir in demi glace, and simmer for 6 minutes, or until sauce has thickened.

MUSHROOMS IN CHILE SAUCE

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the mushrooms and salt. Cover the pan and cook until the mushrooms are just tender, about 10 minutes. Drain the mushrooms, reserving the liquid, and set both aside.
• Remove the stems, slit the chiles open, and remove the seeds and veins. Cover with hot water and soak for 15 minutes, or until soft. Drain. On a hot comal, toast the chiles, making sure they do not burn.
• Crush the clove, peppercorns and cumin seed with a mortar and pestle or in a spice or coffee grinder. In a blender, place the chiles, crushed spices, and garlic. Blend until smooth, adding a little water only if necessary.
• In a large heavy skillet, heat the lard until smoking, then add the chile sauce and fry over a fairly high heat. Scraping the bottom of the pan often so it doesnt stick, cook until reduced, about 5 minutes.
• Add sufficient water to the reserved liquid from the mushrooms to make 3/4 cup. Add this, the epazote, and mushrooms to the chili sauce, and cook over a medium heat for about 5 minutes.
• Serve with rice and warm flour tortillas.

WILD MUSHROOM GRITS WITH POACHED EGGS AND SERRANO CHILE SAUCE AND BLUE CORN TORTILLA STRIPS

Steps:

• Blue Corn Tortilla Strips: Heat 2 inches of oil in a large high-sided saute pan over medium heat until it reaches 350 degrees F on a deep-fry thermometer. Add the tortilla strips in batches and fry until just crisp, about 20 seconds. Remove with a slotted spoon to a plate lined with paper towels and season with salt. Set aside.
• Mushroom Grits: Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large saute pan over high heat. Add the garlic and mushrooms and cook until golden brown. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
• In a medium saucepan over medium heat, add the remaining oil and onion, cooking until soft. Add 4 cups of the stock and bring to a boil. Slowly add the cornmeal, whisking constantly, and continue to whisk until thickened. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook until the grits are soft stirring constantly, adding more stock if needed, about 10 minutes. Reduce heat to low and stir in the mascarpone, season with salt and pepper, to taste, and then stir in mushrooms. Remove from heat.
• Serrano Chile Sauce: Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over high heat. Add the onion and Serrano chiles and cook until soft. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the cream, wine and vinegar and cook until reduced by a third. Transfer the mixture to a blender, add the spinach, honey, salt and pepper and blend until smooth.
• Poached Eggs: Bring water and vinegar to a simmer in high-sided saute pan. Break the eggs, 1 at a time, into a ramekin and carefully slide the egg into the simmering water, repeat with remaining eggs. Cook about 3 minutes until whites have firmed up but yolk is still soft. Remove with a slotted spoon to a plate lined with paper towels and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Serve immediately.
• To plate: Spoon some of the grits into a shallow bowl, top with a poached egg. Drizzle with some of the Serrano Chile Sauce, top with some tortilla strips, sprinkle with grated cotija and garnish with cilantro. Repeat with remaining ingredients.

CREAMY CHEESE GRITS AND MUSHROOMS

Steps:

• In a large pot or dutch oven, bring the water to a boil. Stir in the grits. Reduce the heat to low, cover the pot, and cook let cook, stirring occasionally to prevent the grits from sticking to the bottom of the pot. Cook until the grits are tender and the liquid has been absorbed, 20-30 minutes. Remove from the heat, add the salt, cheese, and butter and stir until melted. Cover and keep warm.
• Melt 1 tablespoon of the butter in a large skillet or braising pan over medium heat. Add half of the mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes or until golden on the bottom. Flip the mushrooms over and brown on the second side, about 5 minutes more. Remove the mushrooms to a large plate. Add another tablespoon of butter to the pan and repeat with the remaining mushrooms.
• Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons butter in the now empty pan over medium heat and add the onion, bell pepper, and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 3-5 minutes. Add the seared mushrooms and any juices that have accumulated. Add the tomatoes, their juices, and the thyme and bring to a simmer.
• In a small cup, stir together the cornstarch and 1 or 2 tablespoons of cool water to make a slurry. Add this to the pot along with 1/2 cup vegetable stock. Cook for 2 or 3 minutes more. Add the tomato paste and stir until blended. Stir in the cream, Worcestershire, Tabasco, and more stock if needed to make a spoonable sauce that generously coats the mushrooms. Heat thoroughly, being careful not to let it come to a boil. Taste, adding salt if you like.
• Serve the grits in shallow bowls topped with the mushrooms, sauce, and a sprinkle of chives.

BAKED GRITS WITH HAM, WILD MUSHROOMS AND PARMESAN

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325°F. Butter 8x8x2-inch glass baking dish. Bring 43/4 cups water and salt to boil in heavy medium pot. Add corn grits to boiling water in thin steady stream, stirring constantly. Reduce temperature and simmer grits until thick, stirring frequently, about 20 minutes. Pour cooked grits into large mixing bowl. Whisk in 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese, grated cheddar cheese and 2 tablespoons butter. Season grits to taste with pepper. Whisk in egg. Transfer to prepared baking dish. Place dish in large roasting pan. Fill roasting pan with enough hot water to come halfway up sides of baking dish. Bake until grits are firm to touch, about 45 minutes.
• Meanwhile, melt remaining 2 tablespoons butter in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add assorted mushrooms, ham and minced shallot and sauté until mushrooms are tender, about 4 minutes. Add white wine and cook until almost all liquid is absorbed, about 3 minutes. Add whipping cream and cook until slightly thickened, about 3 minutes. Stir in fresh thyme. Season mixture to taste with salt and pepper.
• Spoon baked corn grits onto plates. Top with mushroom and ham mixture. Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese and serve immediately.