This is not a fancy kind of post. We can definitely dress it up around here (thanks to a phenomenal crew of contributors) but this is,essentially, the “favorite pair of sweatpants” sort of post. I’m talking about making breakfast for dinner. Any other fans out there?

As someone who has been on a personal quest for healthy menu planning in the last six months, I made a discovery this week that I think might make some of you pretty happy as well.  I was looking in my fridge, totally perplexed, one weeknight after work and a workout and had a Eureka! moment.

I, as an adult and mistress of my own menu, can absolutely have scrambled eggs for dinner but in my mind, plain scrambled eggs would be a sacrilege. Eggs are vehicles for other great food in my book. I think you know where this is going.

I had an 8 oz (pink!) till of sliced mushrooms and I wanted all of them. I sauteed that entire package with half of a jalapeno and a little red onion. Once we were good and browned, I added two fresh eggs scrambled with about a tablespoon of water and I turned the heat way down to medium-low, stirring constantly from the bottom.

What I ended up with was a creamy pile of light yellow fluff, filled with an entire container of mushrooms and some heat from that jalapeno. As with anything I intend to eat more than the recommended serving size of, I checked the packaging. The results were significantly more fun to consider than say, an entire pint of Cookies n’ Cream (ahem, not that I have any experience with that…).

I got 3 grams of fiber and a nice selection of nutrients, including well over 100% of my daily vitamin D, for all of 50 calories in mushrooms. This could vary depending on which mushrooms you pick up but raw mushrooms are always a low calorie option. Topped with a pillow of shredded sharp cheddar, it was one of the best dinners of the week and is officially on a regular rotation.

This simple side dish looks like the perfect way to add some flavor to a healthy winter meal- posted and beautifully photographed by Deseree and Ryan of Life’s Ambrosia.

Our good friend and vitamin D expert Dr. Michael Holick was the speaker of a session, “Vitamin D: Connecting Science to Health,” in which he discussed the importance of vitamin D, its impact on our health and solutions for maintaining healthy D levels. Mushrooms are on his list of recommended foods since they’re one of the few dietary sources of vitamin D (and the only natural source for vegans!). Following the session, we had the pleasure of hosting Dr. Holick at the Mushroom Council booth to greet attendees and distribute copies of his book, “The Vitamin D Solution.”

In addition to our D-lightful day with Dr. Holick, we continued to discuss the Council’s commitment to breast cancer research. For every attendee who scanned his or her badge at the booth, the Council increased its contribution to the breast cancer research taking place at City of Hope. We tip our caps in appreciation for the hundreds of attendees who helped build our “Wall of Pink” by signing tributes to loved ones who have faced the disease. We were moved by their messages and proud to watch the wall turn pink throughout the event. Check out some of the messages in the photos below.

Being the fun-guys that we are (get it, fungis?!), we toured the city for the best mushroom recipes in town. One of our favorite dishes was this grilled sashimi of chanterelle and shiitake mushrooms at O Ya. We snapped a quick pic on blackberry, but the photo doesn’t do the flavor of these mushrooms justice. You’ll have to taste it for yourselves next time you visit. Boston was incredible and we were lucky to be joined by some of our favorite food and nutrition friends. Can’t wait to catch you all in San Diego for FNCE 2011!

When I think about mushrooms, the first recipes that come to mind are usually heavier comfort dishes: hearty soups, creamy risotto, or rich pastas. With Memorial Day just around the corner, ushering in the summer picnic season, I thought I’d create a lighter dish. This Mediterranean-inspired, family-friendly mushroom salad is a hearty filling for sandwiches, perfect for a meal on the go.

I tried to include the same elements that make a good chicken salad: something sweet, something crunchy, and no mayo (personal preference). In this recipe, sundried tomatoes lend a sweet burst of flavor and will tide you over until tomatoes are in season later in the summer. (The tomatoes also add visual appeal for kids, who are often tempted by more colorful foods.)  Walnuts add the critical crunch, and you could up the protein content with some fresh mozzarella, too.

And should your picnic get rained out, you can take comfort in knowing that you’re still getting Vitamin D from the mushrooms.

When cooking mushrooms, use a large pan and try to keep them in a single layer. For this recipe, you may need to cook them in two batches.

Stir only once or twice, and cook until mushrooms are browned and just tender.

Mediterranean Mushroom Salad Croissants
Makes filling for 4-6 sandwiches

For the salad:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pound cremini mushrooms
1 1/2 ounces (1/2 cup) sundried tomatoes
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
6-8 leaves fresh basil

For the dressing:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon pomegranate balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon sea salt
fresh ground black pepper

For the sandwiches:
4 large croissants
1 cup baby spinach

1.  Heat olive oil in a large skillet or sauté pan over medium low heat.

2.  Clean the mushrooms gently with a damp paper towel. Cut in half lengthwise, then cut halves into quarters. Smaller mushrooms can simply be quartered; you want pieces about 1/4-inch thick.

3.  Cook the mushrooms until browned and tender, about 10 minutes, stirring only once or twice. You may want to cook them in two batches, as they’ll brown better in a single layer.

4. While the mushrooms cook, coarsely chop sundried tomatoes, walnuts and basil. Place in a mixing bowl.

5.  Whisk together the dressing ingredients in a separate small bowl, set aside.

6. Combine cooked mushrooms with the tomato, walnut and basil mixture. Add dressing and toss gently to combine. Let rest 10 minutes for flavors to meld.

7. To assemble sandwiches, slice croissants in half. Arrange a handful of spinach leaves on bottom half, then top with a generous helping of mushroom salad. Place second half of croissant on top, slice in half, and wrap up to go. Enjoy!

Editor’s Note: This recipe is vegan, simply change the suggested croissant service for a favorite vegan bread or a bed of mixed greens.

Nature’s Hidden Source of Vitamin D Why is Vitamin D so important to our health? Is the sun the only source of Vitamin D? The Seattle PI answers these questions in their latest post and shares an alternative way to find Vitamin D when we’re limited on sun exposure. The post even includes a recipe for ginger shiitake rice adapted from Gourmet Magazine. Yum.

15 best (and worst) foods for immunity It’s officially cold and flu season—so how are you keeping yourself healthy? Have you thought about how  your diet may make you a germ magnet? MSNBC listed the 15 best and worst foods for your immune system based on their germ-killing abilities. Check them out and stay healthy everyone.

Seriously Meatless: Wild Mushroom Stuffing Thanksgiving is a week away! If you’re having food safety concerns or stressing over making a meal that’ll please a crowd of both vegetarians and omnivores, check out Serious Eats’ stuffing. It’s made outside of the turkey and serves up to 8 people.

Recipe ideas that use your Thanksgiving leftovers Some say that the best part of Thanksgiving is the leftovers. If you find yourself with plates of extra food after the holiday, check out My San Antonio’s ideas for what to do with those leftovers. It’s recipes for using up turkey, potatoes, cranberries and stuffing which sound just as delicious as the original meal itself!

Cold and Flu? Not You! RedBook knows how to dish out some interesting ways to boost your immunity against the flu. Germ-fighting foods, laughing and dancing are among some suggestions that we can all incorporate into our lives. Specifically, we were interested in how Shiitake mushrooms, which contain Lentinan, a carbohydrate found in these tasty shrooms, may boost cells’ response to infection.

Culinary Confidence -  Mushroom Dip perfect for holiday tables Preconceptions about food kept Beth Flaherty of the StarNews from eating mushrooms for years. Then she got with it. We find her basking in her love of mushrooms suggesting a dip for the approaching holidays. Check out the various mushrooms used for this dip which calls an “economical, delicious and a real crowd-pleaser at parties.”

Celebrating Mushrooms It’s Fall! How are you celebrating the season’s produce and flavors? Mushrooms — plentiful this time of year — bring out the earthy and hearty flavors of any dish. Marilyn Campbell reassures us that most types of mushrooms are wine-friendly (yay), easy to use for meatless meals like the “steak” sandwich recipe she provides and she shares basic tips on how to clean and keep mushrooms fresh.

Eat these foods and feel better Perhaps you’re already up to your neck in tissues kind of sick. Though foods alone can’t make you feel better, they sure do help when they’re as tasty as the list created by Detroit Free Press. Strawberries, salmon and mushrooms’ “superhero”-like qualities may be just what you need to “save your life” according to author Dave Grotto. Check out the full list and a meal idea that may be the trick for feeling better.

Meat off the menu as Windsor Castle goes vegan Countless royal banquet have been held in Windsor Castle with plates of chicken, apple-stuffed pigs and more throughout its history. On November 3, that all changed when a banquet for 200 guests including leaders of nine different faiths with all types of dietary requirements met for a celebratory lunch. The feat of putting a menu together was quite tricky for Xanthe Clay who decided to use the scrumptious Portabella to “save the planet.”