mushrooms

We Had Snow Today

It wasn’t much, just a few flakes here and there, but still snow. In south central Alabama. And there were some hardy souls out there camping in tents. It is going down to around twenty degrees tonight, but these guys are here for the hog hunt.

I didn’t even want to be out there long enough to do the site checks. I talked those guys for a few minutes. They said they didn’t think they would be able to get here because the roads were bad in Birmingham, 90 miles away. They’ll be here for four days to hunt wild hogs and deer.

fallen trees on the roadside, dead trees, hollow tree — A hollow tree that the forest service cut down next to the road.

While I was out and about today, I saw this interesting dead tree that the forest service cut down so it wouldn’t fall in the road. It was hollow, and had a lot of moss and mushrooms growing on it.

hollow logs, dead trees, firewood, fungi, lichens, moss, alabama — This was just so beatiful to me

I got out of the truck so I could take a closer look. I love the way mushrooms and other fungi look up close:

mushrooms, fungi, moss, lichens, dead wood, forest scene, forest service — Fungi growing on the dead wood of the hollow logs

PC260047 — Fungi on hollow logs in Alabama

You just have to take the time to look for the beautiful things along the way, even if it is cold out there.

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Gluten Free Mushroom and Sausage Fritatta

Karen · 1 Comment

The folks over at Peanut Butter Etouffee are hosting a recipe challenge called The Second Annual Peanut Butter ´Etouffee Pullet Surprise The recipes entered into this contest must contain eggs. And, as always, recipes I post must be gluten free. This one fits both requirements. As you can see, it was served on some of my finest dinnerware:

Most days I try to include some veggies in most of our meals, including breakfast. Our favorite breakfast menu is fritatta with grits. I try to vary the ingredients in the fritatta to keep from eating the same thing day after day. Here is one of our favorite combinations:

Mushroom, Potato, and Sausage Fritatta

2 small red potatos
½ medium onion, chopped
½ cup sliced mushrooms
¼ lb pork sausage
1 tablespoon butter
3 eggs
salt and pepper to taste

Peel and dice the potatoes. Place in a microwave proof dish with a couple tablespoons water, cover, and microwave for 8 minutes, or until soft. Drain

Crumble up the sausage and cook until browned in a large skillet with a lid. Remove sausage from pan, and drain off the grease. Melt the butter in the pan. Add onion and mushrooms and sautee until onions are clear. Add potatoes and sausage, and sautee one minute more. Add salt and pepper to taste. Crack the eggs into a bowl and scramble well. Pour eggs over meat and vegetables in the pan, cover with the lid, and turn heat to low. Cook for two minutes, then turn heat off. Let sit another 5 mintues before serving. This serves two hungry adults.

Other vegetables we like to add are asparagus, zuchinni, yellow squash, bell peppers, fresh green beans, or broccoli. You can also substitute ham, bacon, chopped roasted pork, leftover roasted chicken, or smoked sausage for the pork sausage. Just use whatever you like. The possibilities are endless.

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Gluten Free Italian Stew Recipe

Karen · 1 Comment

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A couple of years ago when I was anticipating a visit from my vegetarian daughter, I was looking for a good vegatarian recipe to make for dinner. The recipe I found for Italian Mushroom Stew looked very good, and believe me, it is very yum! I have altered the original recipe a bit, because Jim and I are not vegetarians, and we do like the flavor that a little bit meat adds to this dish. If you don’t eat meat, just leave out the sausage, the mushrooms will have a flavor all their own. This is of course, gluten free.

8 oz white button mushrooms, slice half, finely dice the other half
8 oz portabella mushrooms, chopped
2 Tbs. olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 cup diced celery
4-5 cloves garlic, minced (I use a whole head of garlic, but we love garlic)
1 Italian sauage, remove the casing and crumble up (about 1/4 lb)
2 16 oz cans stewed or diced tomatoes
1 can water
1/2 lb. fresh or frozen greenbeans, cut in 2-inch pieces
1 tsp. dried basil (I use more, use your discretion)
1 tsp. dried italian seasoning
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Sautee the mushrooms, onion, celery, and garlic until the onions are clear. Add the Italian sausage, and cook until the sausage is browned. Add all the rest of the ingredients, bring to a boil. Turn down heat, cover and simmer for an hour. Serve over rice or pasta.

To go with this delish stew tonight, I made some bread sticks from a prepackaged mix from Chebe. They were ok, but could have been better if I cooked them just a bit longer. With this mix, you add two tablespoons of oil, 2 eggs, and 1 cup of cheese, and then knead the dough with your hands until it is smooth. It reminded me of making sausage balls with Bisquick back when I still ate wheat, so I am thinking I might try making some sausage balls next time just to see how they turn out. Hmmmm…

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