Balsamic Mushroom Tartine

I am a procrastinator.

Always have been.

I drive myself (and family) crazy yet it’s one of the hardest things to change about myself. Case in point: I had one hour yesterday between appointments and picking kids up from school. I really needed to use that hour to clean my atrocious house, make something for dinner, or even fold the three piles laundry dumped on my bed. See? Lots of options to choose from. Even one of those things would have been helpful.

Here’s what I did instead: I sautéed mushrooms in butter, garlic, balsamic vinegar and fresh herbs. Then I spread goat cheese on warm sourdough toast and piled the mushrooms on top. Then I ate the mushrooms straight from pan because there was no way I was leaving any to go to waste and ran out the door to pick my kids up without one extra minute to spare.

Guess what I just spent the last three hours doing? You guessed it, all the stuff I didn’t do yesterday. I cleaned bathrooms and mopped floors and finally folded the laundry which grew from three loads to five. But now I’m mostly caught up and my reward for staying on task is to spend a few minutes here.

I, personally, LOVE mushrooms. I remember liking them as a kid (weird right?) and any time I can sneak them into a recipe, I’m all for it. I happened to have a container of button mushrooms I had intended to use for kebabs on the grill. But our life is nuts right now and a dinner that takes longer than 10 minutes to pull together just isn’t happening right now. So kebobs were out of the question but I didn’t want to waste what I already bought.

I saw a picture on Pinterest of the most gorgeous mushroom toasts and with that in mind, set out to make something. By the way, I totally get it if mushrooms just aren’t your thing. I kind of hate tomatoes and as much as I’ve tried over and over to get on board, I just can’t. So I get it. Skip this one if you hate mushrooms.

Balsamic Mushroom Tartine

• 4 ounces mushrooms (button, shitake, or whatever you can find at the grocery store)

• 1 tablespoon salted butter

• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

• 1 clove garlic, minced

• 1-2 tablespoons fresh rosemary and chives, minced

• Kosher salt and black pepper

• Goat cheese

• Sourdough bread, toasted

Use a damp rag and wipe any dirt from the mushrooms. Slice in half or chop into 1/2 inch pieces. You don’t want tiny bits because the mushrooms cook down, but at the same time, you want them to be easy to eat.

In a cast iron pan (or regular sauté pan if you don’t have one), cook the mushrooms in the butter over medium heat, stirring constantly for about five minutes. When the mushrooms are tender and have some color and crispy edges, add the garlic and cook for one more minute. Add the balsamic vinegar and stir vigorously. Turn the heat to low and sprinkle the mushrooms with salt and pepper. When the vinegar is completely absorbed by the mushrooms and the vegetables are deeply caramelized, turn off the heat. Sprinkle with fresh herbs, reserving a small amount to sprinkle over the toasts.

Toast thick slices of sourdough bread. Spread an even layer of softened goat cheese on the toast. Scoop the mushrooms onto the toasts and sprinkle with the last of the herbs. Enjoy!