Portobello Mushroom Burgers and Fennel 'fries'

Doctor: "No more red meat for you!"
Husband: "But I want a burger"
Me: "I can make a veggie burger or a turkey burger."
Husband: "Nooooo, veggie burgers are icky corn"
Me: "... You like mushrooms, though."

Mats:
2 Portobello Mushroom caps, stems and gills removed (scrape them gently with a spoon, they'll fall right off. Just don't gouge too deeply)
2c red cooking wine
1 shallot
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
Burger buns, toasted

Remove the stems and gills from the mushrooms. Gently wipe the caps with a damp (wet it and wring it out) paper towel to remove any dirt.
Using a fork, gently prick the mushrooms all over, topside and underside. You're looking to just break the skin, not pierce it deeply.
Lay the mushrooms underside up in a shallow baking dish.
In a small saucepan, combine the red wine, minced garlic and minced shallot with 1/4 tsp salt and 1 tsp dried thyme. Bring to a full boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 5 minutes.
Pour the red wine mixture over the mushroom caps. Cover the baking dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours.

After 2 hours, discard the excess marinade and grill the mushrooms for 5 minutes. I used my pannini maker and set the lid so it was *just* touching the tops of the caps. You don't want to squish them.
Toast the burger buns, place the mushroom caps on top with any 'fixings' you like - I put slices of tomato and some baby spinach on them.

Fennel 'Fries'
Mats:
3 Yukon Gold potatoes
2 tsp Fennel seeds
1 tsp garlic powder
3/4 tsp salt
1 Tb olive oil

Heat the oven to 400.
Wash the potatoes and slice into thick chunks. I went for something that looks like steak fries - about as long as my finger, 1 inch wide and 1/2 inch thick.
Toss the potatoes, fennel, garlic powder, salt and olive oil together in a large baking dish. Spread the potatoes so they're only a single layer deep.
Bake at 400 for 35 minutes or until the potatoes are easily pierced with a fork.