Portabella Molé Tostada

Lately, we’re just loving Portobello mushrooms and all of the different ways to use them in recipes.   They lend themselves amazingly well to so many different recipes and styles of cooking.  And let’s face it, for a mushroom, they’ve got a nice meaty texture.

One of our other favorites is Molé.  We have it at one of our favorite local Mexican restaurants quite often, and I have a recipe that I usually use.  Since I hadn’t made it in a while, it was a welcome addition to this meal!  I wanted to try something different with this one, so I went in search of a new, fairly simple recipe.  I found it here, on TexasCooking.com.  It’s a simplified version of a Rick Bayless recipe, and wow–it’s rich, dark, and packed with flavor!

At first glance, it may seem complicated, but it’s not when you break it down into parts.  Plus, it makes a good amount, so it’s worth it.  The blender and food processor do most of the work.  And you can multi-task, so for instance–when you’re browning the onions, put the tomato under the broiler to char.  Then you can set it aside to cool while you soak the chilies  in hot water.    And don’t let the chocolate scare you off!  It really mellows out the sauce and adds a slight sweetness.

I made a couple of small adjustments in the recipe–I used six cups of vegetable broth instead of chicken, and didn’t have enough raisins, so I used a small amount of raisins, and made up the rest with dried cranberries.   No big difference, and I don’t think Rick Bayless will hunt me down to set me straight.

Though if he did, maybe I could convince him to whip up some food and drinks for me…hmmm…

Anyway, it seemed like a good idea to mix the two–Portobellos and Molé.  And it really was.  A great idea, in fact!   Borrowing again from RB, I marinated washed, sliced Portobellos in some onion, garlic, lime juice, cumin and a touch of salt that was whizzed up the food processor.  And since they’re like absorbent little sponges, the mushrooms didn’t need to sit in their fragrant marinade for very long.  Maybe 15 minutes or so.   Sauté them in a bit of oil until done to your liking and set aside.  Also, if you want to grill these, (which we’d have liked to do, but have been enjoying a lot of rain lately in NH), leave them whole to marinade, then go ahead and grill them.

For the tostada base, fry up some corn tortillas in just a little oil until crispy on both sides, then remove from the pan and sprinkle with coarse salt.  Layer some mushrooms, cheese (we used a Queso Blanco here), peppers, red onion–whatever you like.  Then drizzle some Molé over the top and dig in!  These would be perfect with some ice cold beer!

Again, find the Molé recipe here, and please try it!   You’ll have some leftover, for sure, but I’m positive that you’ll find other things to have it with.

Mushroom Channel Editor’s Note: Between Elle’s Post and the linked recipe, two of our favorite cooking-related icons come up. Rick Bayless (Chicago hometown pride!) and the Mexican film Like Water for Chocolate, an inspiration for all of us foodies in need of a delicious romance to have with dinner.  Don’t be put of by the subtitles it’s a classic and a great “dinner and a movie” recommendation for your Portabella Molé Tostadas!

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