Fresh Pasta with Chanterelle Mushrooms

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Homemade pasta is one of those lush and comforting type of foods that I love to do on a regular basis. There is something so wonderful when my hands get to touch the wet pile of eggs and flour and feel the stickiness that through gentle movements turns into a soft ball of dough. The process gives me a child-like feeling. Like the feeling when you find yourself in the middle of an unexpected experience and your curiosity just makes you go for it. You are not sure you can do it. You are not sure why you are doing it. Yet, the doing of it brings you so much joy that you want to do it again. And again. And again. That is how pasta making is for me. I can buy an already made pasta. Dry pasta, or even fresh store bought pasta. Yet, every time I want to go through the messiness and the stickiness and the flour everywhere in my kitchen. And oh, what to do with the left over noodles? So many of them!!! It is totally worth it. Just like life itself...I can get someone else’s version of it. I can read a book about someone else’s experience – then attempt to skip some steps in order to save myself that’s person opinion on perceived struggles. Or, go and experience life myself and see how I feel about it. The bottom line is, making homemade pasta makes my heart happy and brings me joy just as life is.

As a person that cooks often I fall into my loving-this-one-recipe-to-the-end-of-life mode (quite often, lets be honest). However, I try to remind myself that I haven’t tried it all and I don’t know it all, so lets see what other people are doing in their kitchens. And fresh pasta fell into this “I am sticking with my recipe” category for me, but I broke it. I went and tried a different recipe and let me tell you that I was wonderfully surprised because the dough turned out to be soft and silky and yummy. Basically, my new favorite go-to pasta dough thanks to the lovely Rachel form On the Acre.

I met Rachel a few months ago and I loved her instantly. She is one of these passionate people who follows her heart and makes magic with every step she takes. Rachel’s love for growing her own food and making down to earth, simple and true recipes is so transparent in her photography and writing. And if I could describe her with few words it would be: honest and with a heart (all of the profits form her class went to help a friend who is adopting a child from India). Rachel thought me so many things that day in her pasta making class. How to color my pasta with vegetable paste like a tomato and kale (she made the kale paste herself from the kale from her garden!!!). How to use a pasta roller (I am that close to buy one because I got obsessed wit it by the end of class). And how to make wonderful, silky pasta dough only with 2 eggs (my staple old recipe called for 3 egg yolks and 1 whole egg...I see saving money in my future). 

So, if you are wondering what to do for dinner and want to be inspired, head to On the Acre and make this lush, velvety pasta. I guarantee you that you will find your new staple dinner recipe that makes your heart and tummy happy and will give you lots of delicious and envious leftovers for work lunch tomorrow. 

xoxo

Fresh Pasta with Chanterelle Mushrooms

Sevres 4 (plus some leftover noodles)

Ingredients

• Fresh made pasta. Recipe from On the Acre
• 6 tbsp butter, divided
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 3 cups of Chanterelle Mushrooms (about 1/2 pound), brushed clean (halved if large)
• 6 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 2 shallots, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup of white wine (rose works too)
• 2 tbsp Crème Fraiche or Mascarpone
• 1 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano + extra for serving
• 1/4 cup of shopped fresh herbs (thyme, lemon thyme, oregano, parsley, chives), only parsley or thyme works well too
• Salt + Pepper 

Directions

Fresh Pasta
Follow instructions from On the Acre on how to make the fresh pasta. 

Sauce and Assembly

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and follow the instructions from On the Acre on how to cook the pasta.

2. Meanwhile, melt 3 tablespoons butter with 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the Chanterelles, season with salt and cook, stirring occasionally until mushrooms are lightly golden, about 5 minutes. If the mushrooms are a bit dry and woody, add a 1/4 cup of water to soften them and cook until the water is fully evaporated. Place the mushrooms in a bowl and set aside. Add remaining 3 tablespoons butter, remaining 1 tablespoon oil in the skillet and the shallots. Season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and lightly golden, 2 minutes. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute. Stir in wine and cook until liquid is reduced by half, about 1 minute.

3. When pasta is ready add the desired amount of noodles for 4 people in the skillet (you might have some leftover cooked noodles, which you can store for the next day or two to enjoy with your favorite sauce). Add a ladle of the pasta water in the skillet and toss gently to mix the pasta with the sauce. Add the cooked chanterelles, toss and let pasta cook for 2 min to let all the flavors come together. Add the Crème Fraiche or Mascarpone + the Parmigiano Reggiano and toss until the sauce becomes lush and creamy. Add a bit more of the pasta water if it seems dry. Add the fresh herbs and toss until fully incorporated. Taste and add salt and pepper if desired. Divide pasta into 4 pasta bowls and serve with grated Parmigiano Reggiano.

4. Enjoy!

Yellow Oyster Mushrooms on Melted Brie Toast

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My dear friends, may I present to you the stars of today’s recipe – the wonderfully splenderfull Yellow Oyster Mushrooms. Locally grown by this mushroom guy, which I (as well as other mushroom lovers) discovered at the farmers market and took home, before someone else did (oh, and believe me they do if I don’t get at the market early). These tiny, brightly-colored fragile beauties won my heart and their taste was even more delightful than their look. But before I cooked them, they became the models at my very own photoshoot, and oh the fun we had together.  After some time and attention, I sauté them along with some regular oyster mushrooms, garlic scapes and a touch of thyme. Then I layered them on a melted Brie toast (which itself is finger licking), and enjoyed them with a glass of chilled white wine. You may now ask what do yellow oyster mushrooms taste like, and to me (when sautéed in some butter and olive oil) they taste like crunchy and buttery crispy chicken skin (drooling already?!). And this itself, my dear friends, is something worth trying, especially if you are vegetarian or a mushroom (or a chicken!) fan.

I know that after each recipe I say that I hope you try it, but this time I REALLY hope you do try it, because I will be making it all summer long!

xoxo

Yellow Oyester Mushrooms on Melted Brie Toast

Makes 4 toasts

Ingredients:
• 7 oz. (200 gr) mixed oyster mushrooms
• 3 tbsp butter (40 gr)
• 6 garlic scapes, chopped (or 2 garlic cloves, crushed)
• 1 tbsp white wine (optional)
• 4 sprigs of thyme
• 4 slices of thick crusted bread, toasted
• 4 oz. (125 gr) good quality Brie cheese (preferably with mushroom tasting rind)

Directions:

1. Brush the mushrooms with a dry brush to remove any dirt and tear the large mushrooms into about 1-inch pieces. Heat a large nonstick pan over medium high heat, when nice and hot add the butter, mushrooms and salt. Cook for 2 minutes, stir and add the garlic scapes and the wine (if using). Cook for 1-2 additional minutes until the edges of the mushrooms turn golden brown. Add thyme leaves and set aside.

2. Heat the broiler. Cut the Brie cheese into about 1/4-inch (5-6 mm) slices. Top the toasts with the Brie and 1/4 of the mushroom mixture. Arrange the toasts on a baking sheet and place them under the broiler. Bake for 1-2 minutes, or until the Brie has slightly melted and has browned on the edges. Since ovens vary, check toasts often or you might end up with totally melted or burnt toasts.

Pour yourself a nice glass of chilled Sauvignon Blanc and enjoy!

Wild mushroom risotto

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“And it rained and rained and it rained. Piglet so told himself that never in all his life, and he was goodness knows how old–three, was it, or four?–never had he seen so much rain. Days and days and days” – Winnie the Pooh. 

Oh boy, this is how much rain we got here in Minnesota over the past few weeks. We got flooded. Literally. And what does one do after so much rain? One idea is putting rain boots on and jumping in the puddles (in my case street rivers and ponds) until happily drenched. Or grabbing a boat and paddling to work. But I had another idea for the blog, which did not involve more water...and that is mushroom picking.

When I was young, at our cabin in the mountains, and after days and days of rain, mushroom picking is what we did with my dad. We would wait a few days after the rain and if we were lucky enough to get several sunny days, we would get armed with baskets, bags, even huge burlap sacks (I am not kidding, my dad was pretty serious about mushroom picking), and we would be on our way to the mushroom kingdom.

When I first moved to the United States all the houses and the yards reminded me of my cabin. The idea of mushroom picking stayed with me, but the nicely trimmed and magazine perfect American lawns were not exactly the best place for mushroom picking. And it is not that I didn’t try – I did...and yes, I ate those mushrooms. But the result was a bit unexpected and quite unpleasant...

Since then I decided to go mushroom picking at my co-op only. They have such a good selection that to me, it is almost like mushroom picking in the forest. 

So today’s recipe is for a wild mushroom risotto. I picked blend of a few kinds of mushrooms that appealed to my taste, but feel free to use or experiment with mushrooms that are available to you. If you are lucky enough to get a farmers’ market around you that offers wild, hand-picked mushroom, you should take advantage of it and get mushrooms from there. The flavor would be superior. 

When cooking the mushrooms, use lots of butter and cook each kind separately. This way each kind will cook evenly.  Make sure you don’t overcrowd your pan with mushrooms and season after they are done. Salt releases the water from the mushrooms and you don’t want boiling mushrooms in the pan. I used both lemon juice and lemon rind in the risotto, which makes it very fresh and flavorful. At the end I added some fresh thyme, an herb that I find to go very well with mushrooms, but if you wish, you can use parsley instead.

Enjoy, and let me know how it was.

Wild Mushroom Risotto

Serves 2 (main course), 4 (side dish)

Ingredients:

• 7 tablespoons butter
• 1 lb fresh wild mushrooms (portabella, crimini, shiitake, hen of the woods, oyster)
• 2.5-3 cups low sodium chicken broth
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 small leek, finely chopped
• 3/4 cup arborio rice
• 1/4 cup white wine
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1/2 lemon, zested and juiced
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus additional for serving
• Black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme

Directions:

1. Clean the mushroom by gently brushing or wiping the dirt from them. Remove the end part of the stems. Slice the large mushrooms, quarter the medium ones, halve the small mushrooms or leave them whole if tiny-tiny.

2. Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a heavy/cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1/3 of the mushrooms (same kind or size if possible). Sauté the mushrooms until tender and lightly brown, about 3-4 minutes by stir occasionally to avoid burning. Transfer the mushrooms in a medium bowl, sprinkle with salt and mix well. Repeat the same step with the remaining 2 batches of mushrooms and the 4 more tablespoons of butter.

3. Bring the chicken broth to simmer in a small saucepan. Keep warm. Add the olive oil in a medium sauce pan over medium-high heat. Add the leek, sprinkle with salt and saute until soft, about 2 minutes. Add the rice and cook until the edges begin to look translucent, about 1 minute. Add the wine and garlic and stir until the liquid is absorbed, about 30 seconds. Add 1/2 cup of the chicken broth and stir until most of the liquid is absorbed, about 1 minute. Repeat 2 more times by adding 1/2 cup of the chicken broth each time until the rice is cooked halfway through. Add the mushrooms and stir. Continue with the remaining broth by adding 1/2 cup each time until almost absorbed before adding more, until the rice is cooked but firm to bite (al dente) and creamy, about 7 minutes. Stir the remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons of butter, lemon zest and juice, Parmesan cheese and thyme.

4. Remove from the heat and let it stand for 5 minutes. If risotto seems sticky you can add 1/4 cup of chicken broth to loosen the texture. Taste and season with pepper and salt if needed.

5. Serve the risotto immediately by dividing it between 2 bowls. Serve with a small bowl of grated Parmesan for topping.