Creamed Mushrooms

This morning, the hubby said he wanted steak and potatoes. It's just one of those days. Sometimes a man just wants a big hunk of meat and some taters to eat along side. I get it. But that doesn't mean it has to be a plain steak. Creamed Mushrooms would go very nicely on top or along side any beast.

  I love creamed mushrooms. I remember the first time I had them, I asked my dad what he did to the mushrooms to make them so amazing - he said "Nothing. It's just mushrooms and cream." I ate the whole dish.

   I have since added a couple complimenting flavors, and this dish is still one of my most favorite ways to eat mushrooms.  As most of my dishes are - this is fast, easy and delicious.

Here's what you'll need:

A whole mess of mushrooms. (I have a little over a pound here I think. They cook down a lot, so this was just enough for tonight's meal, with no left overs - but we do have family of 6 . . . 5 that can eat solid food.) This is the part where I remind myself that even though these fungi look remarkably similar to the poisonous ones that used to grown in the front lawn of my childhood home, these ones are o.k. to eat.  My mom must have scared me pretty good, warning me about the mushrooms in the yard, if I still have issues with mushrooms all these years later. Good job mom. :)

Any mushrooms will do. I prefer Portabella's or Criminis, but today I'm using white button mushrooms. I cleaned them, and then snapped off the stems.

Then sliced them into 1/4 inch slices.

When they are all cut, you'll have a huge pile of mushrooms.  You'll be thinking, "Do I really need all this?" Yes, you do. Once you taste it, you'll wish you made more. Think of it cooking like spinach - it starts out as a lot, but then cooks down to just a little.

I put a couple tablespoons of butter in a pot.  And because mushrooms are little sponges and like to suck up fat, I put a little olive oil in the pan too (Not too much. You don't want your mushrooms to be greasy later.)

Put the mushrooms in the pan, and cook on high. Nothing else. Just the mushrooms, fat and high heat.

When the mushrooms start to cook down a little, you can add the thyme (about 1 1/2 tsp).  I can't wait until my fresh thyme is big enough that I can use some straight from my garden. For now, it's dry thyme fresh from my jar. (Rub the dry herbs between your hands before adding to the pan. It releases more of it's flavor.)

Still, on high, I let the mushrooms do their thing and start on the aromatics. I need 1 clove of garlic and about 1/4 of a medium onion. (Yes, I'm using the same knife and cutting board as I did for the mushrooms. It's not like I'm dealing with raw meat here; and I don't like to do dishes. You'll just have to look at my dirty cutting board with me.)

I dice the onion and minced the garlic.

I added them to the mushrooms - see how nice and brown they are now?

When the onions are soft, I add 1 cup of cream, and about 1 tsp of salt. I also grind in some fresh black pepper.


Still on high, I bring the mixture up to a boil. Reduce to medium and continue to boil. It will get thicker . . .

and thicker . . .

and thicker until you can see the bottom of the pan. Turn off the heat. You don't want to go anymore, or the cream will separate and you will have a big greasy mess. (I almost took mine too far.)

Now just put it in a bowl and enjoy. Or . . .

You can serve it over your big hunk of meat. My husband took this picture of his dinner plate. That's a NY Strip Steak under his mushrooms, served along side steamed and buttered cabbage, Hot Mess Potatoes and an Accidental Butter Roll. Yum Yum!

Here's the recipe:

Creamed Mushrooms

1 pound of mushrooms, cleaned, stemmed and sliced

2 Tbsp of butter

1 1/2 tsp dry thyme

1/4 medium onion, diced

1 clove of garlic, minced

1 cup of cream

1 tsp salt

freshly ground black pepper

Melt butter in a large skillet, and add mushrooms. Cook on high until brown. Add thyme, onions and garlic. Cook until the onions are soft. Add cream, salt and pepper. Boil on medium heat until the mixture has thickened. Serve warm as a side dish or over steak or chicken.