Category: Mushrooms

No. 630Recipe Card Posted on by — Leave a comment

Spicy Sausage Ragù

Spicy Sausage Ragù | Bijouxs Little Jewels

I know, yes you are reading this correctly, cinnamon in the sauce? Yes, this recipe is based on a dear friend’s fabulous sauce; very few people guess this secret spice. The spicy seasoning mix and Italian sausage contribute the sauce’s richness and complexity.

TOMMY’S SAUCE

Our dear friend Tommy shared this recipe with our family many years ago. I can’t tell you how many pounds of sauce have been created. Everyone from  kids to adults love this sauce. It is a unique take on spaghetti sauce. I shared it here . Unique just like the man, this sauce was created with families in mind.

SAUSAGE RAGU

Many sausage ragùs are sweet, however making the sauce with Hot Italian Sausage really kicks things up. The time spent cooking this sauce on the stove is so worth it. Put on your favorite show to binge and relax. Watch the sauce, stirring often as the sauce begins to thicken. During the last hour keep your eye on the pan, do not let the sauce stick to the bottom of the pan. Add more water if the sauce gets too thick during cooking.

SLOW COOKING

Time is on your side for flavor, so don’t rush the cooking time. This sauce is even better made the day before. Cool, refrigerate and gently reheat to serve. I like using a short pasta like rigatoni or penne with this rich meat sauce.

 

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Ginger Reishi Maitake Molasses Cookies

Ginger Reishi Maitake Molasses Cookies | Bijouxs Litle Jewels

Mushrooms in ginger cookies?? Yes, and they are strangely good, These cookie are the surprise hit of the holiday season. A tender-soft ginger cookie, spiced with molasses, turmeric and just a hint of mushroom-sounds crazy but crazy good-Ginger Reishi Maitake Molasses Cookies new in the Membership Collection.

GINGER COOKIES

Nothing says the holidays like ginger cookies. My Christmas Molasses Cookies are a staple in the season, but a new favorite has just emerged. These Ginger Reishi Maitake Molasses Cookies sound like an impossible combination, but I think they are heaven. I sampled them out to my friends and two-thumbs up! Baked with a topping of crunchy Demerara sugar, and yes, crushed dried mushtooms.

Ginger Reishi Maitake Molasses Cookies | Bijouxs Little Jewels

COOKING WITH MUSHROOMS

These cookies are from one of my favorite creative cookbooks. The innovative recipes are from Andrea Gentl. You may remember her beautiful photos and recipes from the Hungry Ghost website, now shuddered.

But you can still enjoy her lovely recipes via here at Wild Larder Journal Substack.

EARTHY MUSHROOMS

These cookies were inspired from a cookie the author tasted in India-filled with spices of fresh ginger, turmeric, cloves and mushroom powder and made with rye flour-earthy soft cookie that is all at once familiar, yet at the same time very unique. Baking for the holidays.

Ginger Reishi Maitake Molasses Cookies | Bijouxs Little Jewels

Savory the season with Bijouxs. Wishing you all a happy holiday season.

No. 606Recipe Card Posted on by — Leave a comment

Wild Mushroom Risotto

Wild Mushroom Risotto | Bijouxs Little Jewels

Where the wild things are…Wild Mushroom Risotto. Gorgeously rich with the flavors of the earth paired with the creamy comfort of Italian risotto. Little Jewel Recipe #606 from the Collection Membership-join the Collection here.

WILD MUSHROOMS

Well, not really wild, but cultivated species of the ever elusive mushroom. Pictured here are a collection from Santa Barbara farmers market, these will create a bellissimo risotto.

Wild Mushroom Risotto | Bijouxs Little Jewels

RISOTTO

If you have some fears about making risotto, fear not! It is an easy, creamy, comforting Italian dish you will make again and again. After all, it’s just rice.

There are many recipes to prepare risotto, too many to count, but Wild Mushroom Risotto is one you will want to collect. This recipe is easy, in that the mushrooms and risotto are sautéed together, keeping things simple.

This risotto keeps the mushrooms the same size as the risotto to create an even texture. Make sure you do not overcook the rice, keep a soft toothsome chew. It is ready when you can drag the spoon across the pan bottom and a trail remains. Remember the rice will continue to cook after you remove it from the heat.

I served the risotto in my favorite bowl handmade by a friend back home when I lived in Pasadena, great memories! Cheers.

 

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Mushroom Ragu

Mushroom Ragu | Bijouxs Little Jewels

This ragu is bursting with mushrooms and complex umami flavors, this may become your new Sunday sauce–Mushroom Ragu No. 595 in the Collection, another Little Jewel from the Kitchen.

MUSHROOMS

A vegetable based ragu so rich you will never miss the meat. Mushrooms are the key along how they are cooked, no rush here. This sauce is a great weekend project, perfect for Sunday Supper. Although this is a meatless sauce, the complex flavors beguile the diners. How can there be a ragu without meat? The answer is the richness from mushrooms, along with some traditional and not some not-so traditional ingredients.

L’ARTUSI, NYC

The recipe has been on the menu from day one at L’Artusi, and it is said there would be an uprising if it leaves the menu. Gargenelli pasta with mushroom ragu, ricotta salata. So loved, it can be ordered via Goldbelly here. Of course, although it relies on humble ingredients, all the parts must be just right for the sauce to come together. I followed the chef’s tips, such as brushing the mushrooms with a paper towel, avoiding any extra water. (I was one of those cooks who purchased a mushroom brush, but it is lost in the drawer of my food tools). Looking at this upgrading to improved mushroom brush.

RAGU INGREDIENTS

I have made this recipe a compilation of recipes, resulting in what I think is just a dandy mushroom ragu. Besides the mushrooms, the other cast of characters in this sauce are easy to find and work with in the kitchen. Onion, tomato paste and pasata, along with sauce favorites cream, butter, cheese and wine-what’s not to love. Ingredients such as Sicilian oregano, Red Boat fish sauce and mushroom broth are a some of the unique things you may not have on hand, but an easy order from Amazon.

SERVE THE SAUCE

I enjoy the ragu over polenta, Bob’s Red Mill makes an organic one, again Amazon, the stores don’t seem to carry their organic one. This umami-rich sauce is a winner over creamy-dreamy polenta. Also a great sauce for your favorite pasta.
Your new Sunday sauce from Bijouxs Little Jewels from the Kitchen.

 

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Paley’s Place Sausage & Mushroom Ragú

Paley’s Place Sausage & Mushroom Ragú | Bijouxs Little Jewels

The Pacific Northwest Paley’s Place , a recipe and cookbook that are both little jewels- Paley’s Place Sausage & Mushroom Ragú-No.552 The Recipe Collection

PALEY’S PLACE

After 26 years the Portland iconic restaurant closed in 2021. Left behind is a classic cookbook filled with recipes from Vitaly and Kimberly Paley. I have a million cookbooks but this one is special and filled with recipes and stores from the beautiful Pacific Northwest. It looks like a happy place no doubt. I found  my copy on Amazon.

Paley’s Place Sausage & Mushroom Ragú | Bijouxs Little Jewels

PALEY’S PLACE PORK RAGU

This recipe caught my eye. The spices in the sauce as very similar to my Baked Ziti with Sausage. A very memorable recipe from my No. 1 Family and Friends Cookbook.  Cinnamon is the spice that adds the ‘can’t put my finger on it” it’s delicious but what is it? 

The thinking comes from chef Vitaly Paley and unexpected flavors from his visit to Istanbul with his Turkish wife. He was able to infuse things from eastern Mediterranean, and Ottoman Empire flavors. There is so much to learn from the world cuisines, which is what keeps me cooking, always learning.

In his book, he shares his spice blend for making the pork sausage, which is quite simple and worth taking a look at. This recipe via 177MilkStreet uses bulk Italian Sweet Sausage as a short cut. I used the short cut however, I included a dash of paprika, ground fennel and ground star anise, which are the spices he used for his sausage recipe. The sauce is light but packed with flavor the perfect pair with a wide pasta such as Pappardelle.

Paley’s Place Sausage & Mushroom Ragú | Bijouxs Little Jewels

Cookbooks become the vessel to store all our food memories Little Jewels from the Kitchen.

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