In Good Health

Kathy Nichols
Friends recently sent Bill and I a gift basket containing two
pounds of exotic mushrooms. It was so much fun to explore a variety
of ways to cook them. Out of four mushroom-based meals, our
favorite was roasted mushrooms over polenta. I had never roasted
mushrooms before, and they were heavenly!
I hate to admit it, but up until a few years ago, I thought of
mushrooms as just one more delicious vegetable. How wrong I was! As
I learned more about the health qualities of mushrooms, I decided
to eat them more frequently. While button mushrooms and portabellas
are good for you, other mushrooms are even better.
Mushrooms are not vegetables at all. They are fungi, a special
type of organism that has no roots, leaves, flowers or seeds. The
spores of mushrooms are made of chitin, the hardest naturally-made
substance on earth. Some scientists suspect that mushroom spores
are capable of space travel; a few even think that some fungi found
on earth originally came from outer space!
Mushrooms have been used in Chinese medicine for more than 6,000
years. They contain a type of polysaccharide (starch) called
beta-glucans which provide a number of healthful effects. They
strengthen our immune system, lower cholesterol and help protect
against cancer. They also have a positive effect on the intestines,
decreasing inflammation and protecting against ulcers. Shiitake and
oyster mushrooms are particularly high in these compounds.
Mushrooms provide better nutrition when cooked. They are
relatively high in protein with a wide range of essential amino
acids, low in fat and high in fiber. Wild mushrooms (which grow in
the sun) are one of the few foods that is actually a good source of
vitamin D.
There is one caution with mushrooms: they contain purines which
can be a problem for individuals susceptible to gout or kidney
stones formed from uric acid. If this is true for you, it is
probably wise to limit your intake.
Not only are mushrooms useful as food and medicine, some are
being used in bio-remediation. They can absorb and digest dangerous
substances like oil, pesticides and industrial waste. If you’d like
to learn more about this, check out mushroom expert Paul Stamets
book, “Mycelium Running: How Mushrooms can Help Save the
World.”
Hopefully I’ve convinced you to take a fresh look at mushrooms.
Now we can focus on what to do with them. I often buy shiitake
mushrooms from Duncan Soldner, of Gourmet Growers, who sells them
at the Healdsburg Farmers Market. Shelton’s Market carries his
mushrooms when available; besides sourcing locally when possible,
they carry a nice variety. Don’t let the price put you off – exotic
mushrooms are light so you may only need a fraction of a pound.
Clean with minimal water; mushrooms are porous and will absorb
water, becoming soggy. Rinse them quickly or simply wipe them with
a damp cloth. If fresh mushrooms become dried out after being
stored for too long, try soaking them in water for thirty
minutes.
Our gift box came from Gourmet Mushrooms in Sebastopol
(www.mycopia.com). It included Forest Nameko, two types of
Clamshell mushrooms, Trumpet Royales and Velvet Pioppini. I had
never had any of these before!
The first night I made frittata. To sautéed shallot, I added ½
pound of mixed mushrooms (slightly chopped) and 2 cups of chopped
kale. When the greens were just barely cooked, I poured 5 beaten
eggs over the vegetables, and let it cook over low heat until the
eggs set. I put the pan under the broiler to cook the top layer. I
served it over black quinoa for a truly delicious dinner.
Our second mushroom dinner was roasted mushrooms served over
polenta. I used Tierra Vegetables fresh cornmeal for the polenta
and 3/4 pound of mixed mushrooms. What is great about this dinner
is that I can put the polenta in the oven, go to my yoga class, and
it’s done when I get home. I had the mushrooms ready and gave Bill
instructions of when to put them in the oven. By time I got home,
the whole house smelled heavenly and dinner was ready. You can find
the recipe in the sidebar or on my blog.
The third mushroom dinner was a more traditional sautéed
mushrooms over baked potato and grass fed barbequed steak. Our
fourth and final mushroom dinner was mushroom risotto. Bill makes a
good risotto, and we added three cups of chopped mushrooms which
gave it a lovely, delicate flavor. It was really good, but the
roasted mushrooms were the best!
Kathy Nichols is a Registered Dietitian and owns a nutrition
consulting business called the Healthy Habits Coach. She is author
of the CD: The Healthy Habits Approach to Mindful Eating. Visit her
web site at www.healthyhabitscoach.com.
Roasted mushrooms
over baked polenta
Start with the polenta, which cooks longer. The length of
cooking time will depend on the corn meal used. Most polentas and
cornmeal take an hour to bake. If you use freshly ground cornmeal,
it will take 2 hours. It is really, really worth it!
Baked Polenta:
1 cup polenta or corn meal
4 cups water
1 tablespoon butter
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup grated parmesan cheese
Stir the water into the polenta. Add salt and butter. Bake in a
casserole dish at 350 degrees. Stir after about 10 – 15 minutes to
mix in butter. Stir in parmesan cheese towards the last 30 minutes
of baking.
Bake 1 hour with regular polenta or cornmeal.
Bake for 2 hours if using freshly ground cornmeal (available at
Tierra Vegetables)
Roasted Mushrooms:
¾ lb. mushrooms*, sliced
1 onion, thinly sliced
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 Tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 Tablespoon red or white wine or broth
1 teaspoon soy sauce
Put the mushrooms, onion and garlic in a baking dish. Mix the
oil, vinegar, wine or broth and soy sauce and pour over the
vegetables. Stir well and bake at 350 degrees for 45-60 minutes.
Stir once or twice during roasting.
*You can make this with any type or combination of fresh
mushrooms. The exotic mushrooms in our gift basket were fantastic.
I made this again with ½ shiitake mushrooms and half button
mushrooms and it was still very good.