Tonight’s dinner is brought to you by a grocery store magazine.  Well…  they came up with the concept, anyway…

I received a copy of the Wegmans magazine the other day and one of the recipes that caught my eye was a Mushroom Flan.  It just sounded like something I would like.

The recipe as printed serves 8 people.  Even the way we eat, that was excessive, so I cut it way back, substituted asparagus for the gourmet mushrooms and used 10 oz souffle cups to bake them.

They came out great! The browned and lightly-crisped top and edges contrasted perfectly with the light, creamy, melt-in-your-mouth interior.  It almost floated off the plate.

Here is the Wegman’s recipe.  I made about a third of this.

Mushroom Flan

  • 2 Tbsp Olive Oil, divided
  • 1 pkg (5 oz) sliced shiitake mushrooms
  • 1 pkg (8 oz) Sliced Baby Bella Mushrooms
  • Salt and cracked black pepper
  • 1 tsp chopped Fresh Thyme
  • 2 Tbsp White Wine
  • 4 cups Heavy Cream, divided
  • 1 pkg (4 oz) Gourmet Blend Mushrooms
  • 3 Large Eggs
  • 1 Tbsp Cornstarch

You’ll Need: 8 (3 1/2-inches each) ramekins, nonstick cooking spray, rimmed baking sheet, food processor
Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°.

1. Add 1 Tbsp oil, shiitake and baby bella mushrooms to skillet on HIGH. Cook, stirring, about 5 min, until mushrooms are golden and no moisture remains. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

2. Reduce heat to MEDIUM; add thyme and wine. Cook 1-2 min, until wine is reduced to almost dry. Add 1 cup heavy cream. Cook, stirring, 6-8 min, until mixture is thick and reduced by two-thirds.

3. Transfer mushroom mixture to food processor; puree until almost smooth (some mushroom bits should remain). Transfer to large bowl; refrigerate until chilled, about 1 hour.

4. Wipe skillet with paper towel.  Add remaining 1 Tbsp olive oil and gourmet mushrooms to skillet on HIGH.  Cook, stirring, about 4 min,  until mushrooms are golden. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside.

5. Spray ramekins with cooking spray and place on rimmed baking sheet. Spoon gourmet mushrooms into bottoms of ramekins, portioning evenly.

6. Make custard: Whisk together eggs, remaining 3 cups heavy cream, and cornstarch into bowl. Add to cooled mushroom mixture. Season with salt and pepper. Divide custard evenly among ramekins.

7. Bake 45-50 min, until knife inserted 1-inch from edge comes out clean and tops are lightly browned and custard is set. Serve in ramekins or cool about 15 min to unmold. To unmold, run knife around inside edges of ramekin. Cover ramekin top with small plate; invert. Invert again onto serving plate.

Chef Tip(s):
# Can be made a day ahead and refrigerated. Reheat in 350 degree oven 20 – 25 min.
# Can be baked in 3-quart shallow (at least 2-inches deep) baking dish directly on oven rack for 50-60 min or until knife inserted near center comes out clean.

This is something that is going into the repertoire.  There are a billion-and-one variations that can be made with this.

The main course was a veal marsala.  Veal scallops dusted with a mixture of flour, sage, garlic powder, salt, and pepper.  About 4 oz mushrooms, sliced and a half-cup of marsala to deglaze the pan.

When the wine cooked down, I added about a cup of chicken stock and then about a half-cup of heavy cream.  I let it boil until it was thick.

Served over noodles…

I used veal stew meat for the scallops.  Just pounded them thin.  They were about half the cost of pre-cut scalloppini…