Mushrooms: Mini Pancakes with Pear Mushroom Compote and Caramel Sauce

Yeah....

Mushrooms in dessert was even trickier than cabbage. I find a handful of recipes using what were called "Candy Cap" mushrooms were supposedly have a sweet taste on their own. You can simply dip them in chocolate and call it dessert.

But, I couldn't find a good translation or anything at the market that resembled said heavenly sweet mushrooms.

So, I decided to wing it with some brown shimeji mushrooms. I cooked them with pears in a ginger pear compote recipe I found. Compote is a French way of cooking fruit with a simple syrup to create a simple jam. And I also tried to make a caramel sauce from scratch.

On top of that, I've been wanting to try some Greek Yogurt-based pancakes. So I threw it all together on a plate and called it dessert.

Unsurprisingly, I'd do it all again sans mushrooms.

Pear Ginger Mushrooms Compote (recommended without mushrooms... but, you know.)
enough 2 servings of pancakes.... make bigger as needed

1 pear dices in 1/2 inch pieces
1/2 cup of mushrooms

1 tsp of ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup water

Put all ingredients in a sauce pan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 20 minutes until pears and mushrooms are very tender. Mash lightly with a potato masher to desired consistency. Continue cooking for about 5-10 minutes until some liquid has cooked off.

You can put the warm compote in clean recycled jars. It lasts in the fridge for about 2 weeks.

(original recipe here ... in case you want good quantities of larger portions)

Caramel Sauce
yield: a little less than a cup


1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup half-and-half
2 tablespoons butter
Pinch salt
1/2 tablespoon vanilla


Mix the brown sugar, half-and-half, butter and salt in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Cook while whisking gently for 5 to 7 minutes, until it gets thicker. Add the vanilla and cook another minute to thicken further. Turn off the heat, cool slightly and pour the sauce into a jar. Refrigerate until cold.

(half of the original recipe found here)

Greek Yogurt Pancakes
serves 2 for breakfast 4 for mini desserts (or mini mouths)


1 cup Greek yogurt
7 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 Tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 whole large eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract


In a small bowl, whisk together eggs and vanilla. Set aside.
In a separate small bowl, stir together flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt.
In a medium bowl, stir together the Greek Yogurt with the dry ingredients until just barely combined (don't overmix.) Whisk in the egg mixture until just combined.

Heat a griddle over medium-low heat and melt some butter in the pan. Drop batter by 1/4 cup (or Tbsp for minis) servings onto the griddle. Cook on the first side until bubbles start to form on the surface and edges are starting to brown. Flip to the other side and cook for another minute. (Pancakes will be a little on the soft side.) They burn quickly so keep an eye on them.

(original recipe found here)

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