Baked Mushrooms with Walnut-Spinach-Cilantro Pesto

The name seems too long for a dish that is simple to make and easy to disappear, but it says it all.

This is more of an appetizer or snack, and I usually make it just for me as nobody else in the house likes mushrooms. They don't know what they are missing.


One quick way I like to make baby portabella mushrooms, especially in small batches as appetizer is as follows:

• saute about 2 Tbsp of finely chopped onions in some olive oil
• optional herbs - rosemary, thyme - chopped
• combine the sauteed onions, herbs, crumbled feta and pesto to make a filling
• brush the cremini or baby bella mushrooms with olive oil and cook them in a pan with stem side down
• in a minute or two, flip the mushrooms over so the stem side is up, drizzle some balsamic vinegar, splash some water, cover the pan and cook the mushrooms for about 3 to 4 minutes or so over moderate heat
• remove from heat, spoon the filling and enjoy!

Ingredients
baby portabella or cremini mushrooms woody stems removed and cleaned
finely chopped onions, sauteed
colby jack or monterey jack or any favorite melty cheese
spring onions for garnish
Walnut-Spinach-Cilantro Pesto (recipe follows) OR- any favorite store bought pesto
olive oil as needed
soy sauce, just a few Tbsp to drizzle onto the mushrooms

Preparation for baked mushrooms

1. Heat the oven to 375°F
2. Spray the cleaned mushrooms with cooking spray, drizzle some soy sauce, spoon some Walnut-Spinach-Cilantro Pesto into the cavity, top with cheese
3. Bake in the 375°F oven for about 20 minutes, checking on and off to make sure cheese doesn't burn; mushrooms are watery enough to stand upto even 400°F oven
4. Serve warm, garnished with chopped spring onions

Walnut-Spinach-Cilantro Pesto:

1 cup baby spinach leaves, loosely packed
½ cup Cilantro leaves and stem, chopped coarsely
¼ cup toasted walnuts, perhaps a little more, if preferred
½ medium jalapeno, diced
¼ cup olive oil
salt to taste

Preparation

1. Combine all but olive oil and salt in a food processor and blend to coarse paste
2. Add in the olive oil and blend to desired smoothness
3. Adjust salt to taste

Adjust the amount of the ingredients to taste, this is quite a flexible recipe