Chanterelle..how do you like em?

Chantarelles have been cropping up at the local markets lately. Last night, I sautéed them in EVOO with some chopped red onions. Once both the onions and the mushrooms took on brownish edges, I added some smoked paprika, some garlic and some pepper. I had some BBQ short ribs from yesterday, which were minced and added to the mixture. Then I splashed in some white wine (a Rousanne/Marsanne/Grenache blanc, I had lying around) and then added some half and half. It accompanied a simple risotto in white wine. It was glorious, I tell you.
The wine that matched perfectly was a 2008 Anderson Valley Pinot Noir, an estate wine from Toulouse Vineyards.

I do love chanterelles in risotto, but also in sauces destined for service with game birds, rabbit, robust fish, etc. If you've got a lot, they go well in salads, soups, even pies.

Mark Lipton

Sauteed in butter with s+p then mixed into scrambled eggs.
In a quiche or, better yet, souffle.

I don't like to muck around with scrambled eggs (preferring the pure egg taste) but for a composite dish like quiche I agree that chanterelles are glorious. I also love them on pizza, risotto as mentioned by Mark, or as an adornment for fish.

But I pretty much just love them and have been enjoying some great examples down here over the past few months, unfortunately drying up recently with our lack of rain.

Love them in risotto, and sautéed with Ghee and a little garlic served next to my fillet steak.

1 - don't over cook them - they don't want crisp edges, they just want to sauté to take up some flavor

2 - the best accompaniment for the delicate chanterelles is shallot, not onion

3 - I've already gone through 5 lbs. so far......

We'll be having omelets for a few weeks with them - if you freeze them individually on a cookie sheet and then bag them they last well and thaw reasonably well, though they won't be quite as good as fresh. For spicing, thyme works, a dusting of nutmeg works well, I'd be very careful with things like hot or smoked paprika as the delicate earthy apricotty aromas can be easily killed by going overboard.

Best recipe of all - throw a pound, chopped, into a couple of cups of whipping cream, and simmer until it starts to thicken and turns golden. Thyme and a dash of sherry to finish off and you have ambrosia that cam be served in patty shells with white wine or light reds - Burgs work well against the richness with their normally good acidity.

I like the idea of eggs with mushrooms. I can think of Saturday brunch right now.
Bill,
I agree about shallots. Red onions were what I had! And I really like the recipe you shared!

Darn. You folks are making me hungry.
I like chanterelles the way Fox in Socks likes green eggs and ham.

Sauteed in a little butter until juices rendered and evaporate, flame with a bit of brandy, cooled down with a bit of cream, add salt and pepper to taste and served on toast points for breakfast.

Well, I now have at least three recipes to try this weekend...thanks all. Shopping tomorrow.

I like chanterelles the way Fox in Socks likes green eggs and ham.

Those are two different books with no shared characters (or menu).

And?

[Jenise]

Sauteed in a little butter until juices rendered and evaporate, flame with a bit of brandy, cooled down with a bit of cream, add salt and pepper to taste and served on toast points for breakfast.

I'll be right over.

[Jenise]

The first chanterelle I ever had was in Switzerland, of all places. Bob and I were on our honeymoon which was combined with a business trip to Zurich, and the vendor he and his colleagues were there to finalize a multi-million dollar order with somehow discovered that the top dog's brand new wife (me) was having a birthday while there, so to hedge their bets they threw a small dinner party for 10 in which a private chef was hired to cook for us in the round windowless turret of an ancient castle high above a bend in a river that rushed water over high boulders on a warm August night. The entire experience was the most dazzling dinner of my life up to that moment, and the chanterelles were the one part of the meal that was almost as amazing as the setting. I mean everything was good, but the location was just so over the top! The chantarelles are the only course I remember: they were sautéed and served in a lightly curried cream sauce, each serving in a small individual copper pan. No chanterelle has impressed as much since (what could?)--but oh, I keep trying.

A favorite creation of my own for chanterelles substitutes chanterelles for shitakes in oyster sauce, and finished them with a dusting of crushed macadamia nuts. Great when served Chinese style with a number of vegetable stir fries and fried rice.

I'm doing a dinner Saturday. Doing chanterelle, chopped endive and shallot tarlets in a lemon verbena custard dusted with nutmeg to serve with bubbly.

Will let you know how it works out.

The first chanterelle I ever had was in Switzerland, of all places. Bob and I were on our honeymoon which was combined with a business trip to Zurich, and the vendor who he and his colleagues were there to finalize a multi-million dollar order with somehow discovered that the top dog's brand new wife (me) was having a birthday while there, so to hedge their bets they threw a small dinner party for 10 in which a private chef was hired to cook for us in the round windowless turret of an ancient castle high above a bend in a river that rushed water over high boulders on a warm August night. The entire experience was the most dazzling dinner of my life up to that moment, and the chanterelles were the one part of the meal that was almost as amazing as the setting. I mean everything was good, but the location was just so over the top! The chantarelles are the only course I remember: they were sautéed and served in a lightly curried cream sauce, each serving in a small individual copper pan. No chanterelle has impressed as much since (what could?)--but oh, I keep trying.

While I was preparing my meal, our two dogs walked into the kitchen after a rumble in the backyard, with dirt all over them and my teenage kids were having their usual 5 pm argument whileI stood in the kitchen contemplating my life and wondering how the heck everything got here. It was still a nice dinner though

About a month ago, in a market in Helsinki...

IMG_2242 small.jpg

Apropos of nothing, really, we happened to blunder upon Pfifferlinge (chanterelle) season when in S Germany in late July/early August. This culminated when we hit our Gasthaus in Freiburg and found a page of their restaurant's menu devoted to an all-Pfifferlinge multicourse menu.

Mark Lipton

Did you drink wine from Pfaffenheim with your Pfifferlinge menu? And were they Pfifferlinge Zubereiten made from Pfifferlinge Einfrieren....Gawd! Can you think of any othert language that is as prolix by very nature?

At least my favourite German food/season is straight forward - Spargel forever!

I was also in Germany in late July through mid August and ate pfifferlinge at least every other day. Much better than spargel season!

Did you drink wine from Pfaffenheim with your Pfifferlinge menu? And were they Pfifferlinge Zubereiten made from Pfifferlinge Einfrieren....Gawd! Can you think of any othert language that is as prolix by very nature?

At least my favourite German food/season is straight forward - Spargel forever!

No, Bill, nor did we have any Pfeffernusse whilst there (though some Pfeffer did adorn our Pfifflinge-laden dishes). And, no, German is renowned for its prolixity, as the nomenclature of organic chemistry attests to every day. BTW, how can you possibly take wine-killing Spargel over wine-friendly Pfifferlinge? Unthinkable!

Mark Lipton

Actually, a dish of steamed spargel with lemon and butter goes very well with dry sparkling whites - unless you are one of those guys that doesn't go in for Sekts.....oh, sorry that was another thread.

sauteed in butter with minced shallots, then sherry or a good Italian or Spanish brandy to deglaze the pan...ending with some heavy cream, salt and white pepper. Served over toasted cracked wheat bread. It doesn't get any better.

sauteed in butter with minced shallots, then sherry or a good Italian or Spanish brandy to deglaze the pan...ending with some heavy cream, salt and white pepper. Served over toasted cracked wheat bread. It doesn't get any better.

Sounds very good - but to make it even better., what abouit some diced sauteed bacon added.....