Serendipity wrote:

> We had bbq rib eye steaks (rare & med. rare) that really smelled good
> cooking as the snow fell! Vegetables included steamed red potatoes,
> steamed baby asparagus, and sauteed portabello mushrooms. The meal was
> quite good!

SOUNDS good!


> On the issue of portabellos: This time I tried them sliced and sauteed.
> There wasn't a real noticable taste difference from reg. mushrooms. DH
> didn't notice anything other than the larger size. A follow-up to one of
> my kids revealed they didn't notice a remarkable taste difference but
> portabellos are higher in nutritional value than white mushrooms. What am
> I missing? Is this worth spending extra money on? I thought I was
> supposed to be getting a different flavour!

Marketing hype: Portobello mushrooms are merely cremini mushrooms all grown
up. They might be a little woodier in texture, but they'll still have
essentially the same flavor. Cremini mushrooms *do* have a slightly fuller
flavor and firmer texture than white mushrooms, but many people wouldn't
notice the difference unless the two were tasted side-by-side.

(Now you've got me thinking about mushrooms! If you can find chanterelles,
THEY'RE worth the extra money! And I had some butter-cooked sugar snap peas
with morels recently which were to die for. Think I'll go out soon and buy
some enoki mushrooms, then see what direction inspiration leads me...)

Bob