Sometimes, it doesn't work

This is a tale of a dish that had everything going for it, and should have worked. But it didn't. Why not? Who knows? It certainly was edible, but it SHOULD have been better. I have some ideas as to why it didn't work, but nothing concrete. It proves that SOMETIMES, it's best to leave things alone. I remember something Fran Lebovitz wrote many years ago, that is apt: "people have been cooking for over 3000 years. So if you ever find yourself wondering 'why didn't anyone ever think of' there's probably a reason."

I had found a very interesting , very easy recipe for mushrooms. Something new. Cremini mushrooms in a balsamic glaze, and I'm going to present that recipe below. I realized, when I read it, that while Guy and I both love mushrooms, I almost never cook them. Why? I don't really know. So I made the recipe over the weekend. Very easy, very fast. The recipe suggested them as a side dish, and I was going to serve them with our veal stew earlier in the week. Instead, I decided to combine them with some left over ricotta for a pasta sauce.

BAD MOVE. I can identify one mistake. I heated up the mushrooms, which caused them to give up their liquid, so that when I added the ricotta, the sauce just got way too liquidy. But not heating the mushrooms would not have saved things. Sitting in their glaze for several days, the mushrooms picked up a sweetness which, while not unpleasant, just amplified the "low level" sweetness in the ricotta, and made the sauce something I wouldn' t make again. The mushrooms tasted not at all like they did when I took them off the stove originally. Those were GOOD.

So, here's the recipe for a mushroom SIDE DISH. Cook them when you're going to eat them (it doesn't take long), and whatever you do, don't repeat my mistake.

If, however, you play with them and come up with something wonderful, I wanna know.

What you'll need is a pound of cremini mushrooms. You could probably use plain white ones too, if that's all you have. Sometimes, the mushrooms are somewhat big. Half them, or quarter them, whatever produces a piece that is bite sized. Put those aside, and then get your other ingredients together. Those are a mix of a tablespoon of balsamic vinegar (NOT the good stuff), 2 teaspoons of brown sugar (dark is what I used, but you could use the light stuff if that's what you have), and a tablespoon of water. Set that aside. Get a big, wide saute or frying pan, and add a tablespoon of unsalted butter, and two tablespoons of olive oil. Turn on the heat on the high side of medium. When the butter melts, toss in the mushrooms, and just under a teaspoon of salt. Stir these with a spoon, until you see no more fat. It won't take long. Mushrooms are the sponge of the vegetable world (so are eggplants), and SLURP goes the oil. Once that happens, stop stiring, and turn the heat up. Cook the mushrooms for two minutes, stir and repeat this, two or three times. Watch the mushrooms. They will begin to give up their water, wrinkle, and some will take on a nice golden brown color. It should take about six minutes. Then turn the heat to low, and add the rest of the butter. Wait twenty seconds, and then add two minced cloves of garlic, and let these cook for 15 seconds. That's all. Just smell. The garlic is amazing. Now, add the liquid, stir it into the mushrooms, and cook for twenty seconds .

Yes, we are talking seconds here, not minutes. The liquid will reduce to a glaze, and then you just want to take them out, season them with salt and pepper and eat them right away.

So there's a recipe that takes all of ten minutes to cook, and probably about five minutes to prepare. Next time, I'll make my pasta with just plain ricotta and salt and pepper, and serve the mushrooms at the side. Or, hmmmm. There are pork chops in the freezer.

I'll fix this darn thing yet. Stay tuned