Stopping by the Woods on a Fruitful Afternoon

Laura's cat threatens the harvest.

(To get straight to the cooking, go to paragraph 3.)

You know how you keep saying you're going to .... paint your bathroom, invite your aunt to dinner, take a hike in the woods? All but the most serious procrastinators eventually get around to accomplishing some of their list, even if it means moving to another house (presumably with a fresh coat of paint).

Being in the country on weekends gives us even more things to put off (double the peeling-paint bathrooms). Bummer. However, we took a spontaneous bike ride (while cleaning out the basement where the bikes live) that paid off in spades. When the road turned to muddy, rutted path, complete with bear paws, we ditched the bikes. Suddenly ... you know what I'm going to say - there was a chanterelle spotting. Small patches are not today's news, but a series of small patches make for an exciting and delicious week. We gathered from one clearing to the next, filling up our tee shirts and pockets. Jules refused to offer up his tee shirt, so we made do with Thierry's bandana. Evidently the surrounding residents - both human and furry - are not into mushrooms, so we came home with several pounds.

The stems need trimming, and can be thrown out on the back 40 to regenerate a bit closer to home (no guarantees). Go ahead and soak the little suckers if they have clingons in the gills and caps. The water becomes chantie juice which becomes the base for a sauce.

Nothing like a surprise patch to change the menu. A quick saute with some scapes, shallots, and chives, sauced with reduced chicken stock, makes a quick pasta. At this point in freshness, chanterelles are juicy enough to grill or roast. A foil pouch with parboiled chunks of potato works, with a bit of olive oil and clutch of herbs. Saute some and toss while hot over wild watercress or arugula. Got pork? There's a reason for ham, and that purpose is to serve chanterelles. If you're waiting impatiently for the canning stuff to come in - peaches, corn, tomatoes - here's a different way to preserve summer's harvest. Cook diced chanterelles in a little butter w/s&p, cool, and double-bag them for the freezer. Even better, make Sage Ravioli with Squash and Chanterelles, then freeze. Or spread cleaned mushrooms on a screen and dry in the sun (bring inside when the evening chill sets in). Dried are not fantastic from a texture standpoint, so dried chanterelles work best in a melange.

So here's a page torn out from The Mushroom Lover's Mushroom Cookbook and Primer, Workman 2000.

Happy hunting (and know the difference between a chanterelle and a jack-o-lantern!)