Stuffed Mushrooms

October 23, 2001

Not far from where I live there is a mushroom farm run by Meadow Mushrooms, a firm founded some 30 years ago.

The company also has a North Island farm and between them they produce an average of 120 tonnes of mushrooms a week. That's a lot of mushrooms, considering they weigh fairly lightly.

Recently Meadows' renamed three of their popular brown mushroom varieties to bring them into line with overseas growers and markets Their brown buttons are now Swiss Browns The flat browns, previously called breakfast flats and the larger BBQ flats, are now called Portabellos. The company also grows the familiar button whites.

All their mushrooms are from the Agaricus Bisporus family. The whites and browns are just different strains. They are grown in large, dark, climate-controlled rooms.

Mushrooms form a regular part of our diet and I buy them weekly. Most places now provide brown paper bags for those selecting loose mushrooms. They keep better in these than in plastic bags, though I notice Meadows have a range of pre-packed mushrooms in specially designed containers that protect the mushrooms and extend the storage life thanks to a breathable film overlay. Mushrooms are virtually guilt free in that 100g of them contain only 12 calories and only 0.2g of fat. They contain no cholesterol and have small amounts of folate and vitamins including C, B6, B12, A and E as well as calcium, iron, selenium and zinc. Zinc, they say, is good for the libido.

I arrived home the other evening to find a box on the doorstep containing some Meadows' mushrooms for me to try - some large Portabellos, some Swiss browns and a new product - canned mushrooms in a balsamic marinade. I didn't need a second invitation. The large Portabellos were soon on the dinner table.

I drizzled a little olive oil over them, and sprinkled on some Mediterranean seasoning then filled the caps with the remainder of the chive-flavoured cottage cheese I'd used for last week's bread recipe. I poked a few torn basil leaves into the cheese and then topped each mushroom with a few fresh tomato slices. I baked them in the oven for 15 minutes while our tandoori chicken drumsticks finished cooking. We had some fresh asparagus on the side, a nice easy meal. The mushrooms were delicious and would also be great done on a barbecue.

I was interested then, when I checked out Meadows' website that they had the recipe below. A little more complicated than my approach, but a nice blend of flavours all the same.

Stuffed mushrooms with ricotta, sundried tomatoes & basil

8 flat mushrooms, stalks removed
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus 1 tablespoon extra
300g ricotta cheese, or pureed cottage cheese
1 egg
1 small bunch basil, chopped
10 sundried tomatoes, chopped
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
salt and pepper
4 slices white toast bread, crusts removed and crumbed

Preheat oven to 180 C.

Cook mushrooms in 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large frypan, until softened and beginning to release their juices. Combine the ricotta, egg, basil, tomatoes, parmesan, salt and pepper and half the breadcrumbs. Pile filling mixture onto the mushrooms caps and place on a lightly greased baking tray. Mix the 1 tablespoon oil through remaining crumbs and sprinkle over stuffed mushrooms. Bake for 20 minutes then grill tops for 3-5 minutes of until golden and crisp.

Serves four as an entree.

You will find more recipes at the Meadows' website, along with some interesting information on how the mushrooms are grown.