I finally made it to the local park where once a week there are four market stands. The one I was eager to go to was the mushroom guy. He has organically homegrown mushrooms and wild mushrooms. As I walked up some beauties caught my eyes. I have never seen such a thing before. I asked him what they were called and he told me two names, but I can only remember one. The name I remembered was Cinnamon Caps.
I took one large clump and asked how much it was. He weighed it and said twenty five dollars. I didn't react the way I felt which was that it was a load of cash for some shrooms. But I wanted them and I asked also for some oysters which were so beautiful and fresh shitakes. He assumed I had changed my mind about the Cinnamon Caps so he asked what he should do with them. They were already in the bag. He seemed surprised when I said I want them both. Then he changed when I asked for shitakes as well. I was looking quite grubby so he must have thought I couldn't afford it. I have to admit the fifty dollars I spent altogether was probably a little much for shrooms but it's not everyday I can get them. Most stores have button and portabello. Even China town is limited.
I had been thinking lately about the Lebanese restaurant I went to when I was younger and discovered Middle Eastern cuisine for the first time. I loved it so much. The thing I really loved the most at the time was a chicken sandwich which was called Shish Ta Wook. This had a certain spice combination and a sauce from tahini. It had pickles and was nice and garlicky.
As a replacement for the chicken I am using these mushrooms. They are less watery and have a bit of a chewy texture. The stems are the chewiest.
The ends were quite woody to touch so I cut them off as we do with asparagus but I'm not sure if people cut much off or not.
Mushroom wrap ingredients
1 onion chopped
5 cloves garlic
4 tablespoons tomato paste
1 cup cashew cream ( used this in place of yogurt)
Chopped parsley
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon toasted cumin
1 teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon black pepper
The cashew cream was made another day with lemon juice, cider vinegar, garlic and nutritional yeast. It was thick so I blended it with a little soymilk to make it pourable.
After browning the onions and garlic in a hot pan, I added the mushrooms to cook for a while and get tender.
I added the other ingredients and cooked on lower heat for a while until all the flavors had been absorbed into the mushrooms.
Meanwhile I made what was supposed to be pita bread but it turned into a flatbread instead and became a wrap. I was okay with that.
I am not a bread making type but I like to make it. Staring with around 4 cups of flour I added some yeast that had been proofing in warm water and sugar until it bubbled. I added salt and a splash of oil then mixed adding flour as needed. After forming a ball I let it rise for some time before I rolled out several balls.
After browning each side, I began to assemble the sandwiches.
The meatiness of the mushrooms and the flavor really reminded me of that Lebanese chicken we used to eat.
I also made a quick tahini sauce which is a must, with tahini paste, lemon juice and garlic. I should have spread it on the bread but I forgot. No harm done. It still got in there along with some home made pickles.
The original sandwich didn't have lettuce but it had tomatoes. I just added some lettuce.
After wrapping it I put it in my little grill press to make it nice and toasty.
These were the most expensive sandwiches I ever made but it was worth it.
I think I will do this again soon with a less expensive ingredients.
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