Cookin' With Leo

By Leocthasme

Well I guess my Dear Sweet Italian Fairy Godmother had been sniffing corks or was off somewhere unknown to even herself, when she dropped by one warm afternoon, while I was enjoying a cool one. She emphatically insisted that she had a brand new Italian recipe for me. But when I realized what she had imparted, I was inquisitive.
“Are you sure this is Italian?” I asked.
“Ya’ betcha’, Caesar fed it to all his concubines and other assorted house guests,” she asserted.
“Well, tell me Dear Sweet Italian Fairy Godmother, what the hell cave or whatever place in Ancient Rome did he ever find any mushrooms as big as what you are telling me are needed here?”
“Caesar never find antting but Gaul, but when he was fighting Huns there, he finds great big mushrooms out in Flanders Fields”.
“Come on, Dear Sweet Italian Fairy Godmother, you’re spoofing me, Caesar never got that far north”.
“Sure did, but I dug them up and planted them in the cool Gladiator basement dressing rooms of the Coliseum”.
“Boy that sure is a tall tale Dear Sweet Italian Fairy Godmother, you are taking after me now, and as long as I have known you, you have never lied to me. This story is a whopper. First of all you can’t plant mushrooms, they just pop up”.
“Yep, that’s what I done, brought ‘em back from Flanders Fields and made ‘em pop up only in the Coliseum, dat big place for big mushrooms”.
“OK ,OK, you Tall Tale Teller, you sure got me beat on this one, but give me the rest of the recipe so I can tell all my waiting readers, it just might be good”.
“Sure is good, and it’s Italian too”.
And with that comment she was off to wherever. And now I am at last outdone by my Dear Sweet Italian Fairy Godmother, who claims this to be an Italian recipe and also claims she never tells tall tales. Who knows?

So, let’s just say this is her best yet.

And here is what you will need:

4 huge Portobello mushroom caps, cleaned.

12 small sundried tomatoes.

2 tablespoons Olive Oil.

2 tablespoons Balsamic Vinegar.

¼ cup grated Parrmesan Cheese.

How to do it.

Place mushroom caps, tops down, in a nine inch square microwavable dish, top each with three tomatoes. Drizzle with oil and vinegar, and sprinkle with the cheese. Microwave on high about 4 minutes, or until heated through. That will give you 4 nice servings of ‘Italian’ Stuffed Mushrooms.