i’ve been holding onto this recipe for a while now.   we made it over the holidays when we were back east at my boyfriend’s house.  i just haven’t found the time in my busy work and school schedule to share it with you all since i’ve been back.  but it is quite a treat!

i had never had kugel before, a traditional jewish dish, but it was one of the things that my boyfriend requested specifically upon returning home.  it is one of those dishes that just tastes like childhood and puts a big smile across your belly at first bite.  his mom showed me how to make his grammy’s original recipe, so thanks to her for sharing this family recipe, showing me step by step, and waiting patiently while i snapped copious photos.  luckily her version isn’t too sweet, compared to other recipes i’ve seen which use 2-3 times as much sugar.  i would describe it as a baked noodle pudding that is very creamy, slightly tart and sweet, and pure comfort food.  enjoy it on your next special occasion!

lochen kugel
12 oz egg noodles
16 oz cottage cheese
8 oz sour cream
1 tsp vanilla
1 stick butter
3/4 c sugar
4 eggs separated
graham cracker crumbs and cinnamon sugar to top
more sour cream to garnish

preheat the oven to 350F and put your butter in a sauce pan over low heat to melt.  then boil and drain the noodles.  wait at least 10 minutes for the noodles to cool off.

separate the eggs and whip the whites until they hold their peaks.

once the noodles are cool you can mix in the cottage cheese, sour cream, vanilla, sugar, egg yolks and most of the melted butter (save a little for the top.)  fold in the egg whites until just incorporated and pour the mixture into a greased 13 1/2 x 8 inch pan.

mix your graham cracker crumb and cinnamon sugar mixture in a small bowl (approximately 1/4th cup of crumbs, 2 tbsp sugar and 1/2 tsp cinnamon.)  sprinkle the crumb and cinnamon sugar mixture over the kugel evenly, then pour the rest of the melted butter over to finish.  cover with foil and pop in the oven.

bake for 45-60 minutes or until the center is set.

let cool slightly before slicing into squares.  serve warm with a dollop of sour cream.  you can make it ahead of time and warm it in the oven.

yields 12-15 servings

between the farmers market and chinese medical school, i get a lot of different recipes relayed to me in short little snippets – usually no more than 15 words or so.  off the top of my head i think of the sweet pickled carrots and daikon or the okra and miso marinara, both of which the farmer i work for told me about.  but there are many, many more that have found their way into my diet.

this recipe is one someone at my school gave me on a day i was looking particularly run down.  she asked “are you okay?” and when i explained that no, i wasn’t exactly feeling that great, she handed me two fresh plump lemons out of a big bag she had filled from her tree at home.  she told me “bring it home, wash it well, cut up and boil.  make sure you add honey.”  i did just that, but added a knob of ginger for good measure.

the combination of lemon, ginger and honey are really lovely this time of year.  they can soothe coughs or sore throats, settle upset stomachs, boost your immunity, and warm up a chilly body.  it is becoming quite a routine for me to make one of these in the morning.

whole lemon and ginger tea with honey
1 whole lemon
1 large thumb of ginger
about 2 c water
1-2 tbsp honey

chop up the ginger and whole lemon (peel and all) into thin slices, add to the water in a small sauce pan and bring to a simmer.  let cook over med-low heat for 15-20 minutes.  strain the liquid into a large mug and stir the honey in while it is still hot.  enjoy!

yields 1 large serving

i rarely follow recipes word for word.  i’ve been toying around with the proportions in this whole wheat apple muffin recipe from smitten kitchen, but with everything except apples.  i tried them with blueberries, pear – and now – shredded parsnip, which i got the idea for from the very gingery parsnip cupcake at four cafe.  i bulked up these muffins with some extra ground flax seed, as well as fresh and ground ginger.

i made them with some fresh blood orange mimosas, which i am surely i’m not the first person to think of, but am still proud for figuring out! when i was brainstorming beautiful ways to display the bright colors of these seasonal sweeties, this was the one that most enticed me.  for one, it is one of the simplest ways to highlight the flavor and color of the blood oranges, since you simply juice and mix with champagne.  and secondly, it can be fun to find an excuse to drink champagne before noon.

together these will contribute to a beautiful valentine’s brunch and can be prepped ahead of time.

parsnip muffins
3/4 c whole wheat flour
1/2 c all purpose flour
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
2 tbsp flax seeds – ground
1/4 c coconut oil
1/2 c brown sugar, with some extra
1/2 c greek yogurt
1 tsp fresh grated ginger
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1 c shredded parsnip

blood orange mimosas
equal parts blood orange juice and champagne

preheat oven to 450F

[NOTE: this muffin recipe yields a little less than most (which usually produce closer to a dozen and a half.)  this recipe made just 8, but if you need more you can double or triple the ingredients.]

take out your eggs and 1/2 cup of yogurt so they can start to come to room temperature.  and meanwhile, shred the parsnip, grate the fresh ginger and grind the flax seed to have everything ready when you start making the batter.

if you are unfamiliar with parsnips, they are a winter root vegetable that i find most similar to carrots.  they get thicker than carrots and have a very unique and pleasant bright note to them.  if you’ve never tried one you simply must!  i find larger ones are easier to deal with for purposes like these, so you don’t have to peel several small ones.  i peeled a large one and shredded it in my food processor, it turned out a little more than i needed for this recipe.

when it comes to ginger, i keep a large knob in the freezer because it keeps it fresh and makes it easier to grate (less stringy bits and no juice dripping.)  just keep in mind when you grate the frozen ginger it will be more fluffy, so you have to grate more than you think to fill up a whole teaspoon.

i find the flax is easiest to grind in a coffee grinder, leave it on for a few seconds until the seeds are very finely ground.

to make the batter, mix the coconut oil and brown sugar in a medium bowl.  the oil will need to be liquid to do this, which won’t be a problem on a hot day, but if it’s solid you can give it a few seconds in the microwave until it’s just liquified – just don’t get it too hot or it will melt the sugar and could curdle the eggs.

next mix the vanilla extract, greek yogurt and grated ginger into the same bowl – followed by the eggs.  make sure this mixture is smooth.

in a large bowl, mix together both flours, the ground cinnamon and ginger, baking soda and powder, pinch of salt and ground flax seeds.  whisk these together to incorporate evenly.  add in the liquid ingredients and mix gently just to combine.  mix the parsnip shreds in last.

the batter should be a little thick and dough-like, not watery, i’ve found this makes a fluffier muffin.

scoop spoonfuls of the batter into a muffin tin, fitted with liners.  i also sprayed the liners with a little cooking oil to help them peel out easier.  they should be most all the way full if you want a big top on your muffin.  sprinkle with a little additional brown sugar.

bake at 450F for 10 minutes, then reduce the heat to 400F and cook another 7 minutes or so.  the tops should have risen an inch or two and starting to brown.  let cool a few minutes before removing from the tin.  you can enjoy them immediately, they are best fresh, or save them a day or two in a air-tight container.

for the mimosas, juice the blood oranges ahead of time and strain to remove the seeds and pulp.  you can keep the juice in the fridge for a day or two, until you are ready to use it.  make sure to pour the champagne first and orange juice second, or it gets really bubbly and hard to fill the glass.

i don’t know much about champagne so i picked this one because it had a pretty label and looked kind of fancy – but it was only $10 so it didn’t break the bank.

enjoy any time of the day, but especially for breakfast or brunch.  these two winter treats go together wonderfully!

i was away for the holidays, celebrating in the boston area with my boyfriend and his family.  during that time we were in the process of transferring the website onto a new server and working out the kinks inherent in any major shift.  if you’ve experienced problems with the site, just hold in there, all will be fixed soon.

i worked up quite a few recipes that are currently on deck to be posted, but since it’s been a busy week back at work and school i’ll appease you for now with these drool-worthy cinnamon buns i made on christmas morning. no real recipe for them, but i loosely based them on this cinnamon swirl bread i made in the past.  just cut into pieces after rolling up (i used dental floss to great nice, clean cuts) and i let the pieces rise in a 9×9 pan overnight, covered with plastic wrap in the fridge.  i’m pretty sure i used twice as much cinnamon-sugar filling than in the original recipe, but it made them even better.  for the icing i whisked together some melted butter, powdered sugar and a little milk.

these were great on christmas morning but they are able to make any morning extra special.

i don’t usually make roll-out cookies because, well, they as just so plain.  but i’ve been seeing so many fun-shaped cookies around the blogs that i’ve been itching to make a batch myself when i was inspired by smitten kitchen‘s nutmeg maple butter cookies.  so i raided my cupboards to find the dregs of a bag of brown sugar and regular organic sugar.  i sat down to stare at them with my cup of tea in hand, when i had the idea.

with cookies like this you don’t need much: all that is really needed is butter, sugar, flour, and some type of liquid to bring it all together.  some people use an egg or some milk to help fill out the liquid portion, but that’s where the black tea comes in.  when paired up with the brown sugar they add a very subtle but lovely touch to an otherwise boring butter cookie.

and to decorate, i made some naturally colored sugars. the pink comes from a few pomegranate seeds and the green from a leaf of baby spinach.  when the cookies are brushed with a glaze to help the colored sugar stick, these simple little cookies become just a touch more special – and perfect for the holidays.

.

start off by brewing the black tea.  i used 1 tea bag and brewed it in a small amount of water, only about half a cup.  this yielded a really subtle black tea flavor but you can brew it with 2-3 tea bags if you want a stronger flavor.  do this first so it has plenty of time to cool down and won’t melt the butter when added to the dough.

mix together your brown sugar and butter.  this is easiest if the butter is soft but you can also cut them together with a pastry cutter – mix so that the sugar is coated but small chunks of butter are fine.  add the black tea in with the butter/sugar mixture and loosely mix it in – it won’t be smooth but that’s not a problem.

in a separate bowl mix together the flour and baking soda so they are evenly dispersed, then slowly add these dry ingredient into the butter, sugar and tea mixture.  the mixture should be fairly solid, but not so stiff it can’t be rolled out.  stick the dough in the fridge for at least 15 minutes.

preheat the oven to 375F.

meanwhile set up a place to roll out the cookies, like a large cutting board or other flat surface.  sprinkle a little flour and spread it out.  do the same with a large cookie sheet, or you can cover with parchiment paper or foil.

start by rolling out half the dough to about 1/4th an inch and cut out the cookies.

bake for 7-9 minutes or until they are toasty brown around the edges.  repeat for the other half the dough, then for all of the trimmings of dough that weren’t used in the first 2 roll outs.  you can knead it back together, let it rest in the fridge and keep doing this until all the dough it gone.  the cookies towards the end will have slightly more flour incorporated but it doesn’t change the flavor too much.

when they come out of the oven let them rest for 1 minute on the pan, then at least 10 minutes on a cooling rack.

once you’ve gotten in the groove of rolling, cutting and baking the cookies you can make your colored sugars.

i did this on two separate plates with raised edges, adding about 1/4th cup of organic sugar to both.  just work the pomegranate seeds into the sugar one at a time, removing the hard inner seed with each one.  you could also do this with pomegranate juice by dropping in 1 drop at a time.  add until it is your desired color but keep in mind it won’t get too red without the sugar getting too wet, so i settled for a more subtle pink color.

for the spinach i only used 1 leaf and it gave it a good color.  because i used baby spinach it all worked in when i rubbed it into the sugar and there was nothing to remove.  you could also do this with spinach juice by adding one drop at time but not too much for sake of flavor.

to make the glaze you simply add the 2 tablespoons water and 2 tablespoons sugar and heat in a pan until bubbling.  let bubble for about 30-60 seconds and then pull from the heat.  this will make a sticky sugar syrup that when brushed on the cooled cookies will help the colored sugar stick. just be sure to be gentle with these as the sugar is held on fairly delicately.  if you put it in ziplock and let them rustle around, you’ll find as i did that the sugar has fallen off.

to customize this recipe you can swap out regular or turbinado sugar for the brown sugar, you can use replace half of the flour with whole wheat to make it a little more hardy, add in seasonings like cinnamon or nutmeg, or you can replace the black tea for any other liquid like milk or juice.  you could even replace the butter with non-dairy margarine to make them vegan.

enjoy and happy holidays!

yields 3-4 dozen cookies

i put together my recent recipe for maple cookies with marmalade glaze to submit to the Yummly Holiday Cookie Contest, but while i was at it i also submitted all of my previous christmas cookie recipes.  i don’t normally even enter contests, but i want to win very badly because the prize is a brand new 7qt KitchenAid stand mixer, which is my dream kitchen appliance.  that thing you always wish for but never actually think you’ll get.

and much to my surprise, one of my recipes was chosen as a finalist in the contest!  that means my chocolate candy cane chews have got a 1 in 10 chance at winning this thing, it all depends on your votes.

so now i need your help! you can vote here by simply clicking the “like” button and whichever recipe has the most votes by 5pm EST on December 20th will be the winner.  if that happens to be me i can guarantee lots more cookies and other treats to follow, made with a fancy new mixer.

the idea of candying an orange peel had always intimidated me.  i thought it would take too long or that i would need a candy thermometer – which i for some reason have neglected to buy all these years.  or at worst it would be a huge disaster involving burnt peels and hard candy stuck to the inside of my pans.  but the process was surprisingly easy!

it’s a great way to use those large, bulky oranges which are usually reserved for juicing because they are so fibrous.  it only takes 1 cup of sugar and some melting chocolate to transform these otherwise fairly inedible peels into a fancy candy that make perfect christmas gifts!

.

for guidance i started with some help from deb over at smitten kitchen, because her post has lots of pictures and tips she picked up along the way, but she based her post on a recipe from food network.

start by cutting the top and bottom off of your oranges and scoring a few times from top to bottom.  remove these chunks of peel all together.

slice into strips that are no more than 1/4th inch wide.

to take some of the bitterness out of the peels blanch them twice.  just bring a medium pot full of water to boil and cook the pieces for 3-4 minutes, remove, replace with fresh water and repeat one more time.

now mix the sugar and water and stir to incorporate, if the sugar does not completely dissolve do not worry, it will when heated.  add it to a medium-sized pot and start to heat.  when bubbles start to form add the orange peels and cover.

[note:  i ended up adding a touch more water (1-2 tbsp) because i was worried that the mixture did not cover the peels, but remember it will bubble up and you will stir the peels fairly frequently so it's not a problem.]

find the heat that allows the sugar water to gently bubble over the peels, i found this between medium and low heat.  cook with the cover on for 1 hour – checking and stirring ever 15 minutes.  it is very important to cover, since there is not much water you don’t want any more boiling off.  if the water reduces too much then add a little extra.  and it is important to check on them every 15 minutes, since sugar can quickly burn and the peels need to be rotated to candy evenly.

after the hour is up you’ll want to transfer the candied peels to a cooling rack fairly quickly so they don’t all stick together.  i did this with some tongs at first and before long they were cool enough to quickly fish the rest out with my fingers.

all of my sugar water cooked into the peels and boiled off so there was essentially nothing left at the end of the hour, but if you have residual liquid then reserve it as a tasty orange syrup you can use for something beverages or other baked goods.

let them cool thoroughly before covering with chocolate.

use a double boiler to melt the chocolate.  i make one from a small pot with a thin layer of water and a ceramic bowl that rests on top without touching the water inside.  bring the water in the pot to a simmer, reduce to low, cover with the bowl and melt the chocolate in the bowl on top.  the steam from below will heat up the bowl just enough to melt he chocolate, but keep the temperature low so it won’t burn.

honestly, i think the peels are best when completely covered in chocolate, but this takes a bit of work to finagle.  i started by doing with, with two forks, but it was taking way too long and making a bit of a mess.  then i switched over to dipping the peels about 3/4th of the way in and leaving them at that.  this make them look a little better i think, because you can actually tell what they are, they just don’t have as much chocolate on them.  but either way, they are going to taste good.

the original recipe used 16 oz of chocolate which would make it a bit easier.  i only used 10 oz so it got harder to cover the peels towards the end when there was not much chocolate left.  you can also use milk chocolate if you prefer.

let them cool until the chocolate is hard, on either a piece of wax paper, parchment paper or aluminum foil.  as soon as they are hardened, transfer to an air-tight container (mason jars work great if you are giving as a gift) and enjoy asap.  i find that if they sit around for about a week the chocolate starts to get that dried-out spotted look so eat them all up before that happens and have yourself a happy holiday!

yields several dozen

my kitchen activities have been adapting to the cold and windy days lately.  i’ve been making weekly pots of stew, roasting nearly every veggie, sprinkling cinnamon and maple syrup in most dishes i make and preserving the glut of citrus i’ve happened upon in the form of marmalades and candied peels.  it takes a bit more time, but when it’s dark and cold outside i don’t mind snuggling up to my nice warm stove, eagerly awaiting the toasty bites it delivers.

so when i wanted to kick off christmas baking season with a batch of cookies, i ended up with a maple cookie base, slightly spiced with ground cinnamon and ginger and glazed with a tangy marmalade icing.  these little guys make the perfect holiday snack with a lovely blend of christmastime flavors.  if you make them this size they are a lovely pairing for hot cocoa, cider, coffee or tea – but they would also be awesome in a much larger size.

.

preheat the oven to 350F

in a medium bowl add together the butter, sugar, maple syrup, cinnamon, ginger and vanilla extract.  mix together with a hand or stand mixer to get it very evenly mixed.

add in the egg and loosely stir it in.

in a separate, larger bowl sift together the flour, baking powder and salt.  slowly add this into the wet ingredients by stirring in with a larger spoon – you don’t want to use a mixer because it will make the gluten in the flour too sticky.  if the dough is still a little too loose when you add the dry ingredients in, you may need a little more flour.  add in a small spoonful at a time until the consistency is slightly stiff and it begins to hold together.

scoop evenly sized amounts onto a cookie sheet that is either covered with parchment paper or sprinkled with flour.  it is easiest to get evenly shaped pieces of dough if you use a small cookie dough scoop.

bake for 15 minutes, but check on them about 10 minutes through.  they are done when slightly brown around the edges.

when you take them out let them cool on the tray a minute so they set in shape.  then transfer them to a plate with a spatula to cool further – they must be thoroughly cooled before glazing or it will melt right off.

once all the cookies are baked and cooling, mix together the glaze.  i used a hand mixer for this to help make it easier and to break up any clumps of powdered sugar, but you can sift your powdered sugar and mix together with a spoon just as well.  if you find the glaze is not thick enough you can add extra powdered sugar, which should make up most of the mixture.

you can add the glaze by spooning small amounts on each cookie, but i used a silicone brush to make it a bit easier.  i ended up with extra so you can either find other baked goods to slather it on, or attempt to adjust the recipe to make even less.  once the glaze sits for an hour or two it hardens and makes it much easier to transport or even wrap up and ship off to loved ones!

i realized only after the fact that this maple cookie base would make an amazing chocolate chip cookie.  if i get around to trying that i’ll let you know how it turns out!

enjoy!

yields about 2 dozen small cookies

i’ve been wanting to make a pie lately, perhaps in the spirit of thanksgiving.  but i’ve been craving the savory variety and wanting them small enough to be hand-held.  i had two large leeks i knew i wanted to use and my instinct was to mix them with some type of strongly flavored cheese – which ended up being kashkaval, a hard sheep’s milk cheese i got at the armenian market near my house – but you could easily substitute cheddar.

when meditating on what the final ingredient should be, the common denominator between sauteed leeks, cheddar-like cheese and flaky buttery pie crust seems to be apple, which just happen to be another seasonal favorite.  these ingredients come together into the most delightful blend of savory and sweet, with a crispy crust, soft buttery filling and just a hint of melty cheese.  you can use this same recipe to make a full-sized pie, but these miniature versions are great for individual servings, not to mention adorable.  they are the perfect party appetizers (especially for a tea party) but they are also a convenient snack to pack for work or school.

begin with the crust, you can make it a day ahead if you have plastic wrap to cover and refrigerate it.  it’s really easy to make the crust in the food processor, just add all ingredients except the water and pulse a few times until the butter has broken up into little pieces.  if you don’t have a food processor then use a pastry cutter or break up the cold butter with a large fork.

after processing, transfer the mixture to a large bowl and prepare your ice water.  use a cup that is at least 8 oz and fill with water and a few ice cubes.  i ended up using 3/4th cups of ice water (12 tablespoons) but you may use a little more or less.  add ice water into the dry mixture tablespoon by tablespoon, stirring between each one.  just as the dough comes together and sticks, press it all together into one ball and let it sit in the fridge for about 10 minutes.

meanwhile you can get started on your filling.  cut up the leeks first.  i usually remove the green portions and roots, then cut them top to bottom so i can clean out each layer and get rid of any dirt or grit – which i seem to find in most all leeks.

then slice the leeks about a 1/4th of an inch thick and heat up a pan over high heat.  melt the 2 tbsp butter, add the sliced leeks and stir until incorporated, then turn the heat down to medium.  cook the leeks like this for 15 minutes, stirring every few minutes.

you can take this time to peel and slice the apples.  i used two different kinds and sliced them very thin.

once the leeks have cooked, add in the sliced apples and cooking wine, turn the heat up to high.  cook like this for 5 more minutes, stirring every minute or so.  the wine should completely cook off so there is no liquid in the pan.

transfer the mixture to a large plate to cool down, because you don’t want to put hot filling into a pie crust, it will melt the butter before it gets in the oven.

if your cheese isn’t already shredded then take a minute to do so.

cut off half of the crust dough and roll it out on a large floured surface.  roll it out as thin as you can with a rolling pin, and let it sit in the fridge another 10 minutes or so.  i found i could fit my whole cutting board right in the fridge, but if you can’t do that you can roll it up in some wax paper or parchment paper.

preheat the oven to 350F.

if you are ready to assemble some pies you can use a small bowl or a large mug to cut out circles, or even use a cookie cutter for a custom shape.  pile some filling on one side, topping with a little bit of shredded cheese (don’t overfill!) and lay the another piece of crust gently over.  you can seal the edges by crimping with your fingers or do as i did, press together with a fork.  prick a tiny hole in the top with a knife so the filling can vent.  if you want them to have a shiny finish then you can brush them with an egg wash.

bake for 40 minutes, in 2-3 batches.

let cool a few minute before enjoying, but they are best when warm right from the oven.  they store well for two days or so, just keep in an air-tight container outside of the fridge, and toast to re-heat.  they are great for a little snack or savory breakfast pastry.  if you serve them as an appetizer at a party you can double or triple the dough recipe and make a variety of fillings – would be great stuffed with sauteed mushroom, sun-dried tomato, ricotta cheese, roasted pumpkin/squash or garlicy greens.

yields 12 hand pies

stuffed mushrooms are such a simple thing, yet strangely enough i don’t think i have ever made them myself.  i have enjoyed other people’s versions, with spinach and garlic, brown rice or bread crumbs, stuffed with goat cheese, cheddar or gruyere.  there are so many ways they can be served it’s hard to go wrong!

i scored a glut of mushrooms from the armenian market down the street today, i think because they will be closed tomorrow for thanksgiving they had to get rid of a lot all at once.  so i got a 3 pound bag for only 99 cents.  i knew i would use some for my stuffing tomorrow, but had to come up with a few other recipes to use them up quick, and this one proved simple and fast.  they are great as an appetizer to dinner or served at a party, enjoy them for any of your upcoming holiday get-togethers.

some people don’t wash their mushrooms, but i always wash mine.  just run them under a little cold water, separate the stems from the caps, and let the caps drain facing down on a piece of paper towel.  save the stems and finely chop them.  these add a lot of flavor to the stuffing mixture.

chop the onion – you can use any color (brown, red or white) i used a white one, medium sized.  mix together the chopped onion and stems, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and add a touch of fresh thyme leaves.  saute with the olive oil over high heat for about 5 minutes.  the onion and mushroom should start to soften.

then add in the cooking wine (i use sherry but any kind will do) and let cook down another 3-4 minutes.  cut the heat and remove from the pan, spooning into a medium bowl to cool.  after about 5 minutes you can mix in the pesto, farmer’s cheese and broccoli.  i used mostly the florets of the broccoli, pretty finely chopped into small pieces.  and i didn’t bother steaming the broccoli since they will cook in the oven.

for pesto i’m always making my own using this basic recipe.  i sometimes replace the almonds with other nuts like hazelnuts, walnuts or pine nuts.  and i often swap out the greens for anything else available.  i’ve made it with fresh parsley, kale, spinach, chard, and of course basil.  you can make a ton ahead of time.  it freezes well and goes well with almost anything: pasta dishes, sandwiches, with eggs or used simply as a dip.

preheat the over to 375F.

mix the ingredients together and flavor with a bit more salt and pepper, taste to make sure it’s just right.

take your dried mushroom caps and stuff them with the stuffing mixture.  you can do this with a small spoon, pack it in tightly and pile it on top a bit.

spray or brush a cooking sheet with a little oil and place the mushrooms on it.  bake for 40 minutes, and in the last 10 minutes top with a sprinkle of parmesan cheese and crank the heat to 400F.  let cool for a few minutes after they come out of the oven, but enjoy soon there after since they are best still warm.

yields 16 mushrooms