Fresh Chanterelles over Fettuccine - Another MumBum Delight!

Chanterelle & fettuccine deliciousness, ready to serve family-style

During our 2016 summer sojourn to see my parents in Columbia, MO, there occurred a chanterelle mushroom frenzy, the likes of which we had never seen before or since. I'm sure in the 30 plus years mom and dad have lived on their 50 acres that there have been other years prior to 2016 where there has been a good harvest, but we hadn't discovered chanterelles yet, so have no idea if there was. A shame! The Summer of 2016, there was no way you could miss them, they were so plentiful - and everywhere! In the two summers since, it was so dry in COMO the chanterelles didn't have a chance to grow. We couldn't find even one, and, boy, did we spend a lot of time looking! We're hoping this August 2019 brings good growing weather because we all miss those fresh chanterelles like crazy! This dish was served along with the chiles rellenos that was posted yesterday.

1 - 2 T. olive oil
1 C. chopped yellow onion
2 - 3 t. minced garlic (to taste)
4 T. unsalted butter (1/4 stick)
1 lb. fresh chanterelle mushrooms, cleaned (a dry pastry brush works well)
salt (to taste)
8 - 10 oz. fettuccine
3 T. Amontillado sherry
1 1/2 C. heavy/whipping cream
BumHot to taste (mom & dad's homegrown, dehydrated, ground red pepper mix)
salt & fresh-ground black pepper to taste
Parmigiano-Reggiano, grated or shaved, to taste
parsley, chopped, for garnish if desired

Slice the bigger mushrooms into large pieces, about 1 1/2" x 1/2"; quarter the medium-size ones and leave the small ones whole - they should all be similar in size. Set aside. 

Add oil to a large skillet that's over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the onion and saute until it is soft and light golden, stirring frequently, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic and saute until aromatic, about 30 seconds. Add the butter, mushrooms and salt to the skillet and saute, stirring occasionally, until until the mushrooms are tender, about 5 minutes.

The sauteing chanterelles

Add the sherry to the skillet, bring to a boil and cook, stirring, until alcohol is evaporated. Add the cream, bring to a boil , then reduce heat just to keep warm. 

Meanwhile, cook the fettuccine in well-salted water according to package directions. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the cooking water. Add the fettuccine to the sauce, and toss to combine all the flavors, rewarm and reduce the sauce as needed. As the pasta sits, some of the sauce will be absorbed, so add some of the reserved cooking water to loosen it to the desired consistence (if needed). Season with the pepper and toss again. Taste and correct seasonings. 

Serve at once on individual plates or family style (like above photo), garnished with some cheese and the parsley. Serve with more cheese on the side. 

A very VERY large just harvested chanterelle

Yum! 

'till we feast again!

xoabb

Pizza, Please - Hold the Tomatoes

white wild mushroom pizza, no tomatoes!

My sis had a taste for white pizza, and as none of us had ever made it before, off to google we went!  I don't know what I thought a white pizza sauce would be, but I never would have guessed it began with a roux! We decided to use a flatbread/pita for the crust so mom wouldn't have to make more pizza crust, and it was almost as good as homemade because the toppings were so good! Our pizza was made with sautéed wild chanterelles and caramelized onions, and we used fresh thyme leaves instead of basil because it goes so well, flavor-wise, with the chantys. (If you don't have access to chanterelles, any other store-bought fresh mushroom will do; just remember to sauté them first.) Sorry for the bad photo, but it was only the next day, right before lunch, that I realized I hadn't taken any photos of it as it was being made! 

The throw 'n go: 

1 - for preparing the toppings

chanterelle mushrooms, cleaned (with a toothbrush, no water) and torn into pieces

onions - cut onion in half length-wise and then cut into thin slices

butter, for sautéing 

(This can be done long before you assemble your pizza - mom and I did all the sautéing in the morning - just take all out of the fridge enough before dinner so they are at room temp.)

2 - for the roux:

2 T. butter (if you need to make more, just use equal parts butter to flour)

2 T. flour

1 C. milk or 1/2 & 1/2

salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

1 garlic clove, minced

fresh thyme leaves

1/2 C. parmesan cheese

3 - for assembling the pizza:

flatbread or pita bread

mozzarella cheese

parmesan cheese

fresh thyme leaves

BumHot (or cayenne or other red pepper flakes)

Preheat oven to 450º F. 

1 - Melt butter in a pan, add the mushrooms and cook over medium-high heat, stirring often, until the chanterelles are done, about 10 - 15 minutes. Remove from pan, add more butter if needed and add the onions. Cook onions over medium to medium-low heat for around 20 minutes or so - until the onions are nicely browned and caramelized. When done, set them aside. 

2 - Using the same pan to make the roux, over medium heat (you don't want the butter and flour to brown), melt 2 T. butter and add the flour and whisk well to combine. Whisking constantly, cook for about 5 - 10 minutes. Slowly whisk in the milk, adding gradually. Stir in the remaining ingredients and remove from the heat. 

3 -  Coat the flatbread with your roux.  Sprinkle mozzarella over the top of that. Then cover with the mushrooms and onions, as little or as much as you want. Sprinkle that with some thyme leave and then sprinkle on your desired amount of mozzarella cheese. Add some parmesan, a few more thyme leaves and BumHot. Bake until all is nice and bubbly and beginning to brown, about 15 - 20 minutes, depending on the thickness of your bread (we like it as thin as we can get it) and the amount of topping you have. Serve your pizza with parmesan on the side. 

~~~

YUM!

'till we feast again! 

xoabb

Venison + Blackberries + Sage = Delicious

venison medallions on a blackberry-sage red wine reduction sauce
(adapted from a Moira Hodgson recipe found in the New York Times Food Pages)

As you may know, we've had an alarmingly huge chanterelle and blackberry harvest here in MO this year and have been desperately searching for new ways to use them, and have even considered paying folks to come take some of the harvest off our hands!. So...

I only ever get to have venison when I'm here in COMO (but, in the last year,we've enjoyed it a time or two at home in Norwalk as family friend, Katie, has been sharing the venison her brother hunts, with us), and in my parents freezer was a nice hunk of venison tenderloin that mom said we should have while I was here. So, off to Google I went to find out if venison and blackberries ever even go together. Yup, they do! There were several recipes out there that married the two together, and the one that sounded the very best was the one I found on the New York Times Food Page. That recipe also called for fresh sage, and as mom and dad have a huge sage plant out their side door, the triple pairing was perfect!

The not so much throw 'n go:

To serve 3 folks:

For the sauce:
1 C. dry red wine (we used cabernet sauvignon)
1 medium red onion, chopped
2 C. fresh blackberries (or blueberries)
1 C. strong veal/chicken/beef stock (we used a cup from a roasted chicken - delicious!)
2 T. unsalted (always unsalted) butter
salt & fresh ground black pepper to taste
1 - 2 T. honey
6 - 10 fresh sage leaves

For the medallions: 
1 lb. venison tenderloin, cut into 6 uniform slices/medallions
1 T. grape seed or olive oil
1 T. unsalted butter

The steps:

1. To make the sauce, combine the wine and onion in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Cook until the liquid is reduced to about half a cup. Add the berries and return the liquid to a simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the berries are soft and falling apart, about 15 minutes. Add the stock and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce is reduced and coats the back of a spoon, about 15 more minutes.
Strain the sauce and return it to the pan. Whisk in the butter, one tablespoon at a time. Add the salt, pepper and honey and steep for 15 to 20 minutes, or until ready to use - keep warm. (Remove the sage leaves just before serving.)

2. Season the venison medallions with salt and pepper. In a large sauté pan, heat the oil and butter to nearly smoking. Carefully place the medallions in the pan and sauté for 3 minutes, being careful not to crowd the pan. Turn and sauté to medium rare, about 2 more minutes.

3. To serve, spoon sauce onto the center of your serving plate, placing 2 medallions in the center of each plate. Serve your other sides around the medallions. If you have extra sauce, serve it on the side.
YUM!

Our meal:

venison medallions w/a blackberry-sage red wine reduction sauce

basmati rice

sautéed chanterelle mushrooms

green salad w/cucumbers and homemade vinaigrette

homemade bread dipped in the pan juices

Deliciousness all around!

~~~

YUM!

'till we feast again! 

xoabb

Chanterelle Gold Dust

chanterelles that we picked, cleaned, dehydrated and then pulverized making...
Chanterelle Gold Dust!

I've lamented about our blackberry overload (dad has officially been forbidden to pick any more blackberries - and that also goes for cucumbers and tomatoes), and now I must lament about our chanterelle overload...

Mom and I have thus far collected 5 (!!!) pounds of chanterelles from the woods around my parents home. We've had them most nights for dinner - sautéed, stir-fried, thrown into pasta, you name it, we've done it! So...mom read an article about dehydrating chanterelles and then pulverizing them. Thus, that's what we've been doing. The end result is beautiful, and their aroma is simply sublime! We've looked at the few recipes posted online and we're going to try a few of our own over the next two weeks I'm here.  Tomorrow we are off to Walmart to get some small jars so I can take some of this magic dust back to my CT chef friends! Whether sprinkled in soup, in sauces or in something else, all I can think of is YUM!! Oh, and here are some recipes we're going to try: Trout w/chanterelle dust, chanterelle dust gravy, and maybe this chili.

from this...the dust happens (before the cleaning/gleaning):

The gleaning/cleaning of the chanterelles by the MumBum

Notice the ~Roger~ drink at the ready:

Mama Mushroom and her ~baby~ 

not really, but the photo makes MumBum happy

Beware Brynnly, James! 

Chanterelle Gold Dust coming

Your way! Create soon!

~~~

YUM!

'till we feast again! 

xoabb