Mushrooms and Mistakes, Oh My!

Yesterday I wanted something tasty and interesting for lunch.  I was bored with the usuals, you know, peanut butter, hummus and veggies, cereal, etc.  I thought I'd make myself a little plate of pasta with sauteed mushrooms for a change.  There was what I thought to be just enough eggless pasta left in a bag in the cabinet for me without having to open a new bag or box, and we have had a carton of mushrooms sitting in the fridge for awhile now.

I popped the pasta in a small saucepan of water.  I know, I know.  Start lecturing me now.  You're supposed to give the pasta plenty of room to swim and you're supposed to salt the water because it's the only time you can season the pasta itself.  I've heard it countless times on the Food Network, that channel is always on in this house.  But, I'm a nut for saving water and not using a bigger pot than I really have to.  I'm also a nut for using as little salt/sodium as possible.  High blood pressure, heart disease, obesity, you name it and somebody in my family probably has it.  I might be a little crazy about the salt thing, but every little bit adds up.  Plus, I've never really tasted the difference between salted water pasta and plain water pasta.  *Shrug*

While the pasta boiled, I sprayed a frying pan with cooking spray (I also try to use as little oil as possible because I'm trying to trim the waistline.  I know you need oil in moderation so I usually save it for dinner and things like hummus.)  I dropped in the mushrooms and let them sizzle away in their own juices.  Mushrooms are fantastic that way.  You can get mushrooms nice and browned and deliciously sauteed with no oil at all because they always let off so many of their own juices.  Yum yum yum!  I sprinkled some garlic and herb seasoning on them and some red pepper flakes.

Note to the pantry keepers of the world:  Keep your seasonings up to date.  In this house, we use until it's gone.  The stuff we use on a regular basis is gone before it goes bad or goes bland, so we never really noticed how old some of our herbs and spices were until we started getting creative and using new recipes.  Those red pepper flakes?  They came from our old house and we've been living in this house for over six years now.  I could not taste them.  We need some new flakes.  I've been buying new stuff little by little, but spices are not cheap!  Giving a house warming gift or bridal shower gift?  Give SPICES!

Anyhow, my lunch was delicious, except a little oil could have helped.  That, and the little bit of pasta I thought I was making ended up being enough for two servings...and I ate it all.  Uh oh.

I think I get more joy out of cooking these dishes than eating them sometimes.  That's why I had to take a picture of my beautiful mushrooms.

I bought wheat flour yesterday so I could make a scone recipe that's been lingering on my invisible to-do list of recipes for a long time now.  It's a soda bread scone from Vegetarian Times magazine.  I didn't tinker with the recipe other than using dried cranberries instead of currants.

At least I didn't think I was tinkering.

Until I put the scones into the oven.

And realized.

I used the 1 tsp. measuring spoon instead the 1/2 tsp. measuring spoon for the cinnamon, baking soda, and coarse salt.  Oops.

Despite that nearly fatal mistake, they came out quite tasty.  They are just barely sweet as soda bread should be and are quite good for you, too.  I got 15 out of the recipe instead of the 6 it said I would get because we have a mini scone pan here that I used.  That might also contribute to the texture.  They're a little chewier and crispier on the edges than I imagine they might have been had I used the correct amount of baking soda and perhaps cut down on the baking time for large scones.

But have no fear.  They are being eaten.  Mmmmmm.  This morning I had one with peanut butter on it.  I love peanut butter.  Peanut butter and I have a special relationship.

I suppose my "book" review today will be the magazine, Vegetarian Times.  I've been a subscriber for about a year now and I absolutely love it.  It's for lacto-ovos and vegans alike.  Not only is it chock-full of great recipes that I've even tried successfully on my omnivorous parents, but the health and beauty articles are a bonus.  I try to push the health articles on my parents all the time to their chagrin.  There have been articles about digestion and joints and whatnot that I found fascinating but I get the feeling they push off reading them because they come from a vegetarian magazine.  I read the articles out loud to them if I'm feeling pushy enough.  I'm a fabulous daughter that way.  They can't wait for me to move out.

Anyhow, if you need a good resource that comes to your mailbox on a regular basis, I highly recommend VT.