IOTM: Cauliflower mushrooms!

[Jenise]

Yesterday at our monthly lunch in Vancouver, one of those courses that makes you almost weep with gratitude (especially for the 98 Pommard it was served with) was a fricasse of chanterelles in veal demi glace on puff pastry, and topped with a separate fricasse of a frilly little pile of something called "cauliflower mushrooms". New one to me, at least by that description--it somewhat resembled the one I know as lions mane mushroom, but it seemed more toward the putty than golden color of white. But no matter, it was SENSATIONAL. Had a lovely flavor similar to oyster mushrooms but much more robust and foresty in flavor, and a texture that was silky like a oyster mushroom but which also had in a minor way some of the resilience of a wood ear. The pieces were paper-thin, and I presume that come that way but they also could have been shaved. For me the cauliflower mushrooms were the star of the dish. Anyone know anything about them?

They're easily available around here. Knobby guys that look like little cauliflowerish golfballs. The ones you had were certainly shaved. I'll look up the Latin name and edit.

do you have a link, or a foto of this mushrooms?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cauliflower_mushroom

ahhh....

in german it is called "krause glucke"


"sparassis crispa" latin name

[Jenise]

Kraude gluck?

[laughing] Tsunami, that sounds like an infectious disease. I think I like cauliflower better. Delicious 'shrooms by any name, though, really really delicious.

[Jenise]

Thanks for the Wikipedia link, Stuart, I should have looked it up myself. Anyway, that helps a lot. Loved the taste of these and perhaps the texture even more.