“A Fungus Among Us” Flatbread

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The wife and I live in a geographic location very famous for mushrooms. It has its pros and cons. We have grown used to the fresh smell of manure on any day at any time. However, we have also come accustomed to cheap-ass mushrooms that have great flavor. We are so spoiled. Or so we thought.

We heard a random knock on our door this weekend and I opened it to one of my wife’s former co-workers with a box full of shitake and oyster mushrooms. We thought we were mushroom snobs before with our $2.50 5 pound bags of white, portabella, and crimini mushrooms. But this took it to a new level. “Just let me know when you run out,” she says. Oh…we will. Clearly, you’ll be hearing more about mushrooms in the coming weeks. Tonight was an easy one – a quick yet sophisticated flatbread.

“A Fungus Among Us” Mushroom-Balsamic Flatbread

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Ingredients

  • Shitake and Oyster Mushrooms (any will do – but these do have great flavor w/the balsamic)
  • Balsamic Glaze
  • Flatbread (homemade or store bought)
  • Julienned Red Onion (to your tasted and amount of flatbreads)
  • Mozzarella Cheese
  • Romano Cheese
  • Roasted Garlic

Cooking

Preheat oven to 375 or directed temp.

  1. Put freshly roasted garlic down on the flatbread (spread if you wish) and top with the onion
  2. Sprinkle fungus throughout the flatbread evenly.
  3. Sprinkled mozzarella and romano evenly on top
  4. Cook in the oven for 10 minutes or directed time
  5. Drizzle balsamic glaze on top like a damn pro

If you really like it crispy, pre-bake the flatbread before putting all the toppings on and then bake again. Goes well with a nice big glass of your favorite red wine. This meal is an EASY way to make a nice dinner after work in little time. One flatbread was actually pretty filling for me and I would definitely have it again. Reheats well for the next day’s lunch as well.

The Endless Road Trip: Salt and Straw

We’re no strangers to crazy ice cream flavors here at ES, and let’s be real—in this brave new dessert world where salted caramel sundaes and olive oil ice cream have become the norm, a chef putting something insane inside your cone is not really newsworthy. HOWEVER, when I heard there is an ice cream shop in meat-mad Portland serving bone marrow ice cream, clearly I was there in a New York minute.

The bad news: Salt and Straw did not have the bone marrow flavor in stock on the day I visited, but really for the very best reason possible: they were waiting for cherry season to start, so that they could make a bone marrow-black cherry ice cream. Obvi.

The good news: I had enough friends with me to order up a smorgasbord of outrageous flavors: honey balsamic strawberry with cracked pepper, sea salt with caramel ribbons, coffee-bourbon, blue cheese and pear (!), honey-lavender, blood orange, and blueberry with key lime marmalade. All head-over-heels amazing. the sweet-and-savory balsamic-strawberry-pepper took top honors for me.

The better news:

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Cocktail O’Clock: Tequila + Balsamic

Who says tequila is made for margaritas only? This sweet and savory summer cocktail mixes the hard stuff with fresh strawberries, basil, lime juice and — for an extra foodie touch — balsamic vinegar. We approve.

Corzo Italian Sipper

1 ¼ oz. Corzo Silver
2 strawberries
1 sprigs of fresh basil
4 drops of balsamic
1 oz. Fresh lime juice
2 oz. distilled water
2 packets of Splenda or similar or 1 oz Agave Nectar

Serve over the rocks in an 8 oz. glass

Method: In a mixing glass muddle fresh strawberries and basil, add the rest of the ingredients with ice, shake 20 times and serve in a rocks glass with fresh ice. Garnish with a fresh spring of basil.

Find more summer-y cocktail ideas in Endless Cocktails.

Top 10 Things to Eat Before the End of the World

It’s no secret that May 21, 2011 is Judgment Day—the end of the world—as so eloquently articulated (or do we mean ridiculously predicted?) by Family Radio Worldwide’s Harold Camping. Here at ES, we think the best solution to eminent annihilation is to indulge at one of our favorite foodie destinations. And if some of us survive, at least it’ll be easier to get a reservation.

10. English Pudding All Night

The stickiest way to finish up your time on Earth is at the  Three Ways House Hotel in Gloucestershire, England, where they have created the Pudding Club, an “end of the world” experience where you can indulge in a tasting of no less than seven puddings, from oriental ginger to jam roly-poly, and even stay the night in a pudding-themed bedroom. Talk about going out with a bang.

9. Salt-Baked Fingerling Potatoes with Bacon Butter and Anchovy Mayo

Chef Megan Johnson at Elsewhere Restaurant in New York City has created a deceptively simple dish combining the best of all things fatty, starchy, salty and creamy—all the palette pleasers you’ll miss when forced to live on dirt and ants if you’re lucky enough to survive.

8. Mexican-Style Street Corn with Cotija Cheese and Ancho Chile Powder

Austin’s La Condesa restaurant not only serves up more than 100 varieties of blue agave tequila (an essential for pre-Judgment Day partying), but also offers this signature south-of-the-border street corn side dish. If the world really were ending soon, we’d start covering every vegetable we eat in cotija cheese and chili. (Photo: Shelly Roche)

7. East Mountain Pork Live Paté

A beautifully decadent house-made paté is accompanied by onion confit and rye toast at Mezze, a classic bistro and bar nestled in the Berkshires with views straight to heaven. (Photo: Gregory Nesbit)

6. 1949 Chevalier-Montrachet Maison Leroy

Our bomb shelter of choice would have to be the St. Regis Deer Valley’s wine vault, stocked with more than 1,000 different rare labels. Acclaimed sommelier Mark Eberwein recommends popping one of these 60-year-old whites for your last night on earth. (Photo: My Wines and More)

Next: Top 5 Things to Eat Before the End of the World