I found this recipe a couple years ago and have only made it a handful of times since, which is silly because it is delicious and easy. These ‘fries’ are crunchy and juicy (the mushroom is juicy… this is a good thing) and are the perfect vehicle for the surprize star of the show, the basil aioli. Now, I don’t want to toot my own horn, but I make some tasty mayonnaise and it is made even better with the addition of a handful of basil, some garlic, and lemon. Don’t be afraid of making mayonnaise, it’s easy and WAY better than store bought. But, if fooling around with raw eggs isn’t your thing (or if you are vegan), by all means, buy some, just don’t let anything stop you from making these!

Baked Portobello Fries with Basil Aioli

Lightly adapted from this gorgeous blog’s recipe.

Ingredients

• 1 cup of panko bread crumbs (other bread crumbs will do, I just had these on hand)
• 1/4 cup of grated parmesan cheese or pecarino
• 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/4 tsp of garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp of oregano
• sea salt and pepper to taste
• 4 portobellos
• 3 large eggs, beaten (or to veganize, use dijion mustard and no cheese… or daiya, as suggested to me by my great friend, Lauren!)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or spray it with cooking spray (I was at a friends, we made do with aluminum foil and olive oil, but I don’t recommend that).
2. On a plate, mix together the bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, crushed red pepper flakes, garlic powder, oregano, salt and pepper.
3. In a small to medium bowl, beat the eggs.
4. Cut the portobello mushrooms into 1/4″ slices.  One by one, dip the portobello slices in the beaten eggs and transfer to the place with the bread crumb mixture, being sure to coat the mushrooms thoroughly.  Place the bread crumb covered mushrooms on the baking sheet and bake for 10-15 minutes, checking on them after 10 and flipping them to ensure thorough baking.

Basil Aioli

• 1 room-temperature egg
• 1 1/2 tsp mustard (your favourite kind)
• salt and pepper to taste
• your favourite oil (remembering strong-tasting oils like olive oil will make your mayo taste like that flavour)
• 1 tbsp white vinegar (more to taste, depending on your tang levels)

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• ¼ cup packed basil leaves
• ½ tsp. lemon juice
• 1 medium garlic clove, pressed
• Pinch of salt

Directions

1. Mayo-making time! I will do a picture tutorial for this, just not today. In a tall, clean container (a jar works), put your egg yolk and a half of the egg white (discard the rest of the white). Add your mustard and some salt and pepper. Using a hand blender (easiest way by far, but you can also use a whisk or a food processer or a blender) blend the egg a bit. Slowly drizzle in oil. You will see the mayo coming together (emulsifying). Once you’ve reached a consistency and amount that you like (it will grow forever, more oil = more mayo), add the vinegar and mix it together. You may want to add a little bit more oil at this point to thicken it up a bit more, as the vinegar might loosen the mayo. Taste, adjust as needed.
2. Now that you have delicious homemade mayo, make it into aioli!
3. In a medium bowl, combine the mayonnaise, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, and salt. Stir well. Chop the basil well and add into the aioli, at this point you can hand-blend it quickly to make a nice smooth dip, or stir the basil through for big bites of basil flavour.

Ready to be baked!

Munch time!

I was over at Caelin’s for this recipe… so of course there was Jamesons.