RECIPE: Mushroom and Caramelized-Shallot Strudel and Green Beans with Shallots

I was supposed to make this strudel as my main entree for Thanksgiving. However I simply didn't have time to do it, nor the energy. So I saved it for dinner that weekend.

Green Beans with Shallots

Ingredients

• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for the cooking water
• 1 pound fresh green beans
• 1 large shallot
• 1 to 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• Freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Bring a medium pot of cold water to a boil over high heat and salt it generously. Trim the stem end off the green beans. Peel and finely chop the shallot.

Drop the green beans into the boiling water and cook, uncovered, until crisp tender, about 4 minutes. Drain in a colander set in the sink and rinse with very cold water until cool.

Drain well and pat dry with paper towels. (The vegetables can be prepared up to this point, up to 4 hours ahead.)

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the shallot and cook, stirring occasionally, until the shallot is just golden, about 2 minutes.

Add the green beans, increase the heat to high, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the beans are heated through, about 4 minutes. Season with the 1/2 teaspoon salt and some pepper and serve immediately.

Mushroom and Caramelized-Shallot Strudel
 
Ingredients

1  teaspoon  olive oil
1 1/2  cups  sliced shallots (about 8 ounces)
 1/8  teaspoon  sugar
 1  tablespoon  water
 4  (8-ounce) packages presliced mushrooms
 2  tablespoons  dry Marsala or Madeira
 2/3  cup  low-fat sour cream
 1/4  cup  chopped fresh parsley
 1/2  teaspoon  salt
 1/2  teaspoon  minced fresh or 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
 1/4  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper
 8  sheets frozen phyllo dough, thawed
Cooking spray
 1/3  cup  dry breadcrumbs, divided
 1  tablespoon  butter, melted

Preparation

Preheat oven to 400°.

First I put the butter on the stove to melt from the heat of the oven while I cooked.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add shallots and sugar; cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Sprinkle with water; cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally until shallots are soft. Add mushrooms; cook, uncovered, over medium-high heat 20 minutes or until liquid evaporates, stirring frequently. Add Marsala; cook 1 minute.

Remove from heat, and cool. Stir in sour cream, parsley, salt, thyme, and pepper.

  

Place 1 phyllo sheet on a large cutting board or work surface (cover remaining dough to keep from drying), and lightly coat with cooking spray. Sprinkle with about 2 teaspoons breadcrumbs. Repeat the layers with 3 phyllo sheets, cooking spray, and breadcrumbs, ending with the phyllo.

Spoon 1 3/4 cups mushroom mixture along 1 long edge of phyllo, leaving a 1-inch border.

Starting at the long edge with the 1-inch border, roll up jelly roll fashion. Place strudel, seam side down, on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Tuck ends under. Repeat the procedure with the remaining phyllo sheets, cooking spray, breadcrumbs, and mushroom mixture. Brush strudels with butter.

 

Bake strudels at 400° for 20 minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes. Cut each strudel into 4 slices.

Nice. Sort of like stroganoff served with flaky biscuits. A little tang with the sour cream, sweet from the caramelized shallots, the crisp flavor of parsley.

I haven't decided whether or not I would do this one again. The strudel was a fair bit of work. Hmmmm. Woodrow really liked it. Maybe...maybe...

The green beans weren't quite as good this time. The other day I made them as outlined in the recipe, and Woodrow said it tasted like he was eating steak. However this time I didn't have enough shallots, so I just minced up onion instead. So it seemed to lack just a little something this time, but was still good.

Not a bad little dinner.