Portobello Caprese Burgers + Free Printables

July 3, 2017 No Comments A Well Crafted Pantry

I’m a meat eater. I love, love, love me a good beef burger. However, for a variety of reasons, my family and I do try our best to NOT eat meat one day a week at least. As much as we enjoy meat, we enjoy vegetables just as much. I really thrive on creating meatless menu options for our weekly dinners. This Portobello Caprese Burger is a great substitute if you’re wanting to cut back on the meat a bit but still want something hearty and flavorful. It is also a fantastic for a vegetarian burger option at your next cookout! (Just remember to cook BEFORE cooking your meat on the grill so that you’re not giving your vegetarian friend meat drippings on their vegetarian burger!)

Portobello Caprese Burgers

Portobello mushrooms are rich and earthy. They are also fairly affordable. I substitute portobello mushrooms for beef often because it creates that bold flavor and bit of chew that beef typically gives a dish. We chose to serve the burgers with a side of grilled zucchini spears. This made for a really tasty and fairly healthy meal!

Serves 6

Ingredients for Balsamic Marinade:

Olive Oil (approximately 3 tablespoons)
Balsamic Vinegar (approximately 3 tablespoons)
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
salt & pepper

Ingredients for Portobello Caprese Burgers:

Hamburger Buns
6 Portobello Mushroom Caps whole with stem removed
6 slices of mozzarella cheese
6-12 slices of tomato (I did roma tomatoes so the burgers had two slices each, but if you use a bigger tomato then 1 slice would work.)
Fresh Basil leaves (you’ll want enough to top each burger)
Balsamic Marinade

For Grilled Zucchini Side:

5 medium sized zucchini cut into spears
Balsamic Marinade

How to Make Portobello Caprese Burgers with Grilled Zucchini Spears:

Directions for Balsamic Marinade:

Mix ingredients together in a large bowl

Directions for Portobello Caprese Burgers:

Brush the Balsamic Marinade onto each side of the clean, de-stemmed portobello mushrooms
Put on a grill, smooth side down over medium heat for 6 to 8 minutes or until tender
While the portobello mushrooms are cooking add mozzarella to your top bun and place your buns on a toasting tray on your grill or above a cooler side of the grill to toast the buns and melt the cheese. Be careful to not burn the buns.
OPTIONAL: I chose not to use any condiments on my burger because the mushroom with the balsamic marinade was plenty moist and flavorful and I’m currently watching extra calories. However, if you’d like I’d suggest using a nice garlic aioli or a really good quality mayo on the bottom bun. Topping the burger with a balsamic glaze would also be delish!
Top your bottom bun with a few basil leaves, the portobello mushroom, slices of tomato, and a few more basil leaves. Top with the mozzarella covered bun. ENJOY!

Directions for Grilled Zucchini Spears:

Toss your raw zucchini spears in the leftover balsamic marinade. If you use all of your marinade up brushing them on the mushrooms then go ahead and make some more marinade. Also, you’re going to have some seriously tasty mushrooms! 😉
Put in a grilling basket or on top of a foil lined grill. Grill until tender, approximately 6-8 minutes. (We grilled our mushrooms and zucchini at the same time and everything was ready to go around the same time.)
Serve alongside the burger. Add an optional dipping sauce of garlic aioli for a nice flavor punch.

We served these tasty little burgers with some of the Julian Hard Cider that I shared yesterday. The portobello was especially nice with the Cherry Bomb cider!

4th of July Free Printable Food Tray

I of course had to serve up my Portobello Caprese Burgers in something fun for the holiday. I created these fun stars and striped food trays to make serving these burgers a little more festive.

Directions for Use:

Click on file and save to computer
Print on white cardstock in full color
Cut around the outside of the food tray and on the dotted lines
Fold where there are white solid lines.
Glue the tabs into the panel directly to the right of the tab you are gluing.
Once complete, line your food tray with wax paper and top with food. The heavier the weight of your card stock the more sturdy these food trays will be.

Download your Free Printable 4th of July Food Tray

Have a fantastic 4th of July holiday tomorrow! Stay safe and have fun.

A Well Crafted Pantry

4th of July Drinks with Julian Hard Cider

July 2, 2017 1 Comment A Well Crafted Pantry

To me there is an art to pairing drinks with meals. However, I’m pretty easy when it comes to drinks too. I enjoy a lot of different items and a lot of different pairings. Some of my favorite types of beverages to serve happen to be beverages that pair well with many different foods and are pretty friendly. Hard Cider is one of those types of beverages. Every year I head out to the Portland Apple Festival mainly for the opportunity to taste a bunch of local and delicious ciders. I tend to think of Hard Cider in the fall, but was pleasantly surprised at how summer-friendly they can be when Julian Hard Cider sent me an array of ciders to try out for the upcoming 4th of July holiday.

This post is in partnership with Julian Hard Ciders. All opinions are my own. For more information about sponsorships on this blog visit my policies page.

4th of July Drink Ideas

With names like “Cherry Bomb” and “Apple Pie” these hard ciders were pretty much made for an Independence Day celebration, don’t you think? But, even if the names weren’t perfect for a 4th of July party then the sweet and tart flavors make for a refreshing and easy to pair beverage solution. The ciders are made without added sugar and are sweetened with 100% juice.

The Julian Hard Cider flavors include: Cherry Bomb, Apple Pie, Harvest Apple, Black and Blue, Pearanormal, and Razzmatazz.

My three favorites for 4th of July pairings include the Cherry Bomb, Apple Pie, and Black and Blue for refreshingly sweet pairs to some of my favorite foods to eat at an outdoor BBQ.

Julian Hard Cider: Cherry Bomb

The Cherry Bomb was sweet and tart both with BIG notes of cherries. This was my favorite of the ciders mostly because I’m obsessed with cherries this time of year. It is made with the traditional apple cider and Montmorency Cherry juice. I think this cider would pair nicely with some BBQ ribs or brisket. It could even be paired well with a juicy burger topped with a roasted red pepper and garlic aioli.

Julian Hard Cider: Apple Pie

The Apple Pie hard cider tastes just like fall to me. The crisp bite of a juicy apple with notes of cinnamon, brown sugar, and nutmeg. Why do I like it for 4th of July if it tastes like fall you ask? Well, easy… is there anything more American than apple pie!? This would pair well with a hot dog piled high with sauerkraut or grilled onions. I’m personally going to serve the apple cider with our yearly Crab Boil. I think it will be great with the flavors of crab, sausage, and corn on the cob!

Julian Hard Cider: Black and Blue

Blackberries and blueberries make this cider fruity and bold. Maybe it is the name of this cider… but, I’d pair this with a big burger topped high with bacon and blue cheese. Blueberries and blue cheese just belong together. I’d also pair this one with steak. Mmmm… grilled steak.

Other ideas for 4th of July Beverages:

Need some other beverages to serve alongside your hard cider this holiday? My favorite summer cocktails include:

Spiked Cherry Limeade
Herbal Gin and Tonic
Cherry Sangria
Lemon Ginger Drop Cocktail
Spiked Ice Cream (without an ice cream maker!)

Of course, you don’t want to serve only alcoholic beverages. Make sure you have some infused waters on hand to keep everyone hydrated!

A Well Crafted Party

Free Fourth of July Printables

July 1, 2017 No Comments A Well Crafted Party

I tend to like a nice laid back event for summer parties because it is typically too hot to do much. However, I still want my laid back events to look intentional and put together. Printables are the easiest and most cost effective way to do that in my opinion. Over the years I’ve created some fun “Red White and Blue” printables in honor of Independence Day. My favorite Fourth of July printables are below.

Get your favorite printables for free and prep them this weekend for a fantastic 4th of July holiday party!

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