Great for any kind of nibble party, be it book club, open house, or just hanging out with friends, mushrooms definitely deserve a place on your appetizer roster.
Mushrooms, especially mushrooms with bacon (get fancy with prosciutto, serrano, or guanciale), taste marvelous with medium bodied, earthy red wines — Pinot Noir is a natural, or try a smoky, Syrah-based blend like Secateurs from Badenhorst Family in S. Africa. Give it a try and see if you like it. While there are general guidelines to food and wine pairing, they are just that, guidelines…a great place to start exploring. Don’t be thinking there’s a “right” and a “wrong”, just relax, enjoy yourself, and figure out what YOU like. When your taste buds dance, jot down a note, so you can remember what works for you and build your wine confidence.
Thanks to my wine instructor, Jeff Morgan, for the original “Mushrooms and Serrano Ham” recipe.
Ingredients
- A ¼-inch thick slab of prosciutto, cut into small dice (approx. 3 or 4 ounces)
- 3 Tbsp. olive oil
- 3 garlic cloves, finely minced
- 1 lb. small brown mushrooms (crimini), quartered
- ½ cup Italian flat-leaf parsley leaves, minced
- ¼ tsp. sea salt and a few grinds of black pepper
- ¼ cup chives, minced
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat then add the prosciutto and garlic. Sauté, stirring constantly, until the garlic is fragrant but not brown, about 2 minutes.
- Increase heat to medium-high and add the mushrooms. Sauté until the mushrooms have released and reabsorbed the moisture in the skillet, about 7 minutes.
- Remove mushrooms from heat and stir in the parsley, salt, and pepper. Sprinkle chives over the top and serve warm or at room temperature.
