Copy Cat Mushrooms Neptune
D and I knew that for the Frenchman’s birthday, we could pretty much fix anything and he would be delighted; that is just the kind of guy he is. We pulled out some old family favourites, that we hadn’t enjoyed together for a while. Lemon Oregano Chicken is one of the first “grown up” dishes that I had ever acquired a recipe for, completely on my own. It was a very long time ago when I lived in a gorgeous vintage downtown apartment and worked two jobs: 1) the Winnipeg Art Gallery and 2) The Keg or the Keg ‘n Cleaver as it was called in those days. I suppose they dropped the latter word as it came off kind of violent.
My boss at the WAG at that time was from a famous artistic Winnipeg family and her Mom was a renowned cook. I had heard so many descriptions of dinner parties that had been thrown for Winnipeg’s artistic elite. The Lemon Chicken recipe was passed from Jan’s Mom to her and then to me. I passed it to my Mom and two sisters and I understand that everyone in our family makes it a slightly different way. J1 and J2 have recently requested it to treat a new Mom and her husband and so the tradition continues.
But as usual, I digress. Mushrooms Neptune have been a staple on the Keg menu for years and years and since both D an Sister #3 were Keg prep-cooks at some point in their careers, they both had the recipe memorized. I know that Sister #3 has included a copy of it in a family cook book that she has been writing. On the day that I was shopping for ingredients, I didn’t want to test D’s memory, so I did what everybody does now a days I suspect, I Googled it. This recipe came through the TSN website and I know that it is authentic because there has been a long standing partnership between the restaurant and the network.
So without further adieu.
- 2 T butter
- 2 c beef broth (I think D used chicken)
- 2 bay leaves
- Filling:
- 4 oz. Philadelphia cream cheese, we used low fat
- 4 oz. crabmeat
- ½ oz. green onion, finely minced
- ¼oz. Parmesan cheese, finely shredded
- Simmer mushroom caps in broth until tender.
- Drain and cool.
- In the mean time, combine all other ingredients together in a mixing bowl (or food processor).
- Filling can be put into a piping bag to fill the caps or gently spooned in.
- Bake at 450 for 7-9 minutes until golden brown.
Kath’s quote:“Nature alone is antique and the oldest art a mushroom.”Thomas Carlyle
Love-that is all.
