I wanted to come up with something a little different for this Meatless Monday post.  I had read several other blog posts and recipes for mushroom burgers and thought that with a little twist they would be great as a Meatless Monday salad.  Back in January I attended the Fancy Food Show in San Francisco and one of the great products I came away with were some croutons from Olivia’s Croutons and I thought instead of using them as a straight-up crouton I could use them as a binder for the mushroom cakes.  My thought process was to make them more like a crab cake instead of a dense mushroom patty.

Unlike the traditional ‘bella mushroom patties where a whole mushroom cap is used in this recipe the mushrooms are chopped very fine.  When combined with the veggies, croutons and pecans you end up with a very light cake.

The cakes are also probably a little to crumbly to grill on their own.  Using a grill basket made it easy to grill them and get a nice char on them.

I plated the mushroom cake with a spring salad mix and a little ponzu vinaigrette.  It worked pretty good.  The flavors melded well with the mushrooms.  I used just a plain button mushroom because I didn’t think with all the other flavors it would really matter much.  After cooking these I don’t think using a more expensive mushroom would really make much of a difference.

The next day I used one of the leftover mushroom cakes as a burger.  With some nice colby cheese and warmed on the grill it made a great burger.  The mushroom flavor even stood up to all the “extras” you put on a burger.  I’m not sure how many times I’d make these, but for those people who are less inclined to eat beef these might make a regular appearance on the menu.

Meatless Monday Mushroom Cakes

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 pounds mushrooms, very finely chopped
• 1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups leek bulbs, finely chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 cups Olivia’s Multi-grain Croutons, crushed into bread crumbs
• 2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 3/4 cups  toasted pecans, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons Tamari Soy Sauce
• 2 tablespoons Hoisin Sauce
• 1 teaspoon ginger, minced
• 1 teaspoon tumeric
• Salt & Pepper to taste

Directions:

In a hot skillet toast the chopped pecans until they are golden brown, set aside.  If you have not purchased toasted sesame seeds, toast them as you did the pecans.

Add olive oil to the skilled and saute the chopped leeks, ginger and garlic until softened.  Place all ingredients in a large bowl and mix throughly.  Form into patties.  Place patties on a baking sheet, lined with parchment or wax paper.  Chill formed patties in the refrigerator for at least two hours.

Grill the cakes/patties on a medium to medium hot grill until slightly charred and warmed all the way through.  The goal is to cook the mushroom without drying them out.

Serve immediately.

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I love meat.  There’s just no getting around the fact that for many people meat is BBQ.  Over the past year or so I’ve been trying to expand my grilling horizons with some Meatless Monday dishes and the mushroom tacos were both easy to fix and quite filling.

All you need to do is slice and remove the seeds and veins from two poblano peppers, slice some red onion.  Also remove the gills from a couple portobello mushroom caps and cut them into large, thick slices.

Place all the veggies in a bowl and drizzle them with a little olive oil.

Place them on the grates and grill them until done.  Don’t worry about the darkness of the poblanos.  Once the veggies are done rough chop them and put them in a bowl. Sprinkle with a little cumin and cover while you heat the tortillas.

When the tortillas are done fill them with the veggie mixture and your normal taco toppings.  I used a little cilantro and some salsa.

Simple…simple…simple!  Give them a try.

Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2011 Larry Gaian

Ingredients:

• 4 Portabello Mushroom caps, cleaned and gills removed
• 2 Red Bell Peppers, seeded, de-veined, roasted and sliced
• 8 Fresh Basil Leaves, hand torn.
• 4 oz mozzarella cheese, thinly sliced
• 4 or 8 tortillas

Instructions:

Rub the bell peppers with a little olive oil and roast them over a hot grill (either charcoal or gas grills will work). It only takes a couple of minutes so watch them. Don't be afraid to char them.

Place the hot roasted bell peppers in a plastic bag. The steaming of the peppers will make it easier to remove the skin. Once the skin is removed, thinly slice the peppers. If you do the peppers first they can steam in the bag while you grill the mushrooms.

After you clean the mushroom rub it with a little olive oil and put them on your grill for about 4 to 5 minutes per side. After they are done, remove from grill and let them cool while your peel and slice your bell peppers. Once cool thinly slice the mushrooms.

I used a cast iron griddle for heating the quesadillas. Place a tortilla on the griddle and place some mozzarella cheese on each one. A lttle roasted bell pepper on top of the cheese.

Next the thinly sliced mushrooms. Don't forget to add the basil. Cover with a little more cheese and another tortilla.

Add some salsa, avocado and spanish rice and you've got a filling meal without meat.

You can cut down on carbs by using one tortilla and just folding it in half.