TALE OF TWO SQUASHES..

DELICATA AND CARNIVAL SQUASHES

"It was the best of times, it was the..." wait a minute, it could never  be the "worst of times" when we have such fresh, beautiful produce to prepare and eat! What was I thinking?!


Delicata Squash, is just that, delicate. It is relatively petite in size, light in color and markings, and the skin is thin (for a squash, that is). The flesh is also a little lighter in color and density. The flavor is delicate, too, but delightful! Probably the best squash for "people who do not like squash". It is best when baked or roasted, I think.

Carnival, on the other hand, is more dense, heavier and sometimes larger. It takes longer to cook and is more dry. It is good for cutting into chunks and sauteeing, but it's beautiful markings and shape call for baking too!


These two are, of course, not the only types of squash, in fact they are probably more similar to each other than different varieties of squash, such as Acorn, Butternut or the "grandaddy" of  squashes, Hubbard. Their skins are hard, flesh dense and orange. The list goes on: the squashes are a large and interesting family! 

A Trio of Squashes, Kabocha, Delicata and Carnival

Hubbard, which I love to use for soup, was once a near disaster for me.  Youth is wonderful! You act on impulse and then actually have the energy to cope with your folly.  

I was planning a lovely buffet for a group at a conference center and wanted a spectacular presentation for the soup course. Hubbard Squash, of course! It can be HUGE!! and what a beautiful way to serve soup! So I blithely ordered a giant from the produce purveyor.

First of all, it took two of us to carry it into the kitchen. Secondly, we knew instantly that there was no way our kitchen knives would carve into this ROCK sitting on the counter. The soup was made and lunch was on in about an hour. Fortunately, it was lunchtime  and the maintenance crew was available. We put in an emergency call and they came, saws, chisels and hammers in hand! 

After they cut, ( and we bowed in gratitude!), we scooped the seeds, forever, but finished in time to present our beautiful, natural soup tureen, the Hubbard Squash.  Great idea, but never again. I think that is why they make ceramics that LOOK like vegetables!

The following is a lovely, light fruity recipe for baked stuffed Delicata.

FRUIT STUFFED DELICATA SQUASH

1/4 Granny Smith or other tart apple variety

1/4 pear

1/2 cup cranberries, halved or chopped

2 tablespoons sliced almonds

3 tablespoons Panko or fresh toasted breadcrumbs

2 tablespoons maple syrup

1 tablespoon butter

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Cut squash in half and scoop out seeds. Place in baking pan with a little water and cover with foil. Bake for 15- 20 minutes until softened.

Turn the oven to 450 degrees.

Meanwhile make stuffing. Cut the apple, and pear into small pieces and cut or chop the cranberries. Add the nuts, syrup, breadcrumbs and mix in the butter with your fingers.

Stuff the squash halves and bake for about 20 minutes until browned.

 

  A note on the maple syrup. Use Grade B is possible. It is less expensive and has more flavor. 

The second time I made this, I did not have pears or almonds, so I used a little pineapple and walnuts. The cranberries and apples are necessary, otherwise use your imagination or whatever you have in stock! This is so simple and so delicious. I don't think it would be as good with any other squash than Delicata. It is really a "delicate" light recipe.

Now for the Carnival. This recipe would work with Acorn squash as well (and probably many others !). The "stuffing" is based on a sauce I used to make for pasta at the White Rainbow, Sausage, Basil and Cream. Of course back then, it was homemade Italian sausage from Trupiano's. Now I use "Greenwise" Hot Chicken Sausage from Publix. How time changes all! 

The basil is still fresh from my "garden", now a container on the lanai. Does anyone remember my herb garden outside the White Rainbow kitchen?  Mine! The real one!! I have an old newspaper clipping of it and me picking Basil for a Pesto Lasagne, Night Rainbow "special".

Carnival Squash..doesn't it look happy!?

ITALIAN SAUSAGE, BASIL, CREAM STUFFED SQUASH

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Cut the squash in half and scoop out the seeds.

Place it in a baking dish with a little water. Cover and bake for 30-40 minutes until softened. This is a denser squash and takes more time to bake. The recipe takes a long time, but the "active" cooking time is minimal.

4 tablespoons butter

1 small onion, chopped (approx. 1/2 cup)

2 cups cream (yes, heavy cream)

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg (freshly grated if possible)

twist of black pepper

20-25 leaves of fresh basil, chopped 

1/4 -1/2 cup breadcrumbs to bind stuffing

1 pound (4) Italian sausages (hot or mild), casing removed

Melt the butter in a skillet. 

Saute the onion until softened. 

Add the sausage, crumble and cook until done.

Add the cream, nutmeg, pepper and parmesan and continue to cook until slightly thickened.

 Add enough breadcrumbs to "bind" the stuffing, but do not make it too dry.

Chop and add the basil.

Stuff the squash and bake for 20-30 minutes.

Cut, serve and enjoy!

This should stuff 4 squash and serve 4

 

NOVEMBER: FLORIDA AND NEW ENGLAND

Florida

November is a pivotal month. Summer is truly over , baseball is past and the Holiday fervor starts its slow crescendo. First Pumpkins, Squashes and Mums, then the makings of Holiday traditional foods appear on the grocery shelves and in the fresh markets. The pace is no longer leisurely, yet there is a sense of warmth (in  Florida, the lovely sunshine enhances that feeling), nostalgia and retreat. I feel it here in the shorter days and waning afternoon sun, the conversations which inevitably turn to family stories, and the quest for familiar foods to prepare.

This is really Florida, too, but looks like New England!

The following is an excerpt from my column, Cornucopia, which I wrote in the 1970's! It is the "November" I remember and echos the sentiments described above in a different environment.

"November in New England signifies many things. It is the end to any recall of summer that comes with the deceiving warmth of Indian Summer days. The brilliance of October is but a pale trace of color on a frosty cheek.

  It is a time of transition into winter, cheerful, despite nature's ominously  stark scene. Life turns indoors as thoughts of winter and the upcoming Holidays mount. 

  Amidst the atmosphere, the preparation of tradtitonal foods is almost a necessary ritual. As with rites of all kinds, the formula is prescribed: pumpkin pies, cranberry sauces, fruit and nut cakes. These are as much a part of November as the bare trees outlined against the sky. No changes should occur to them unless the household sanctions them. The following recipes, using pumpkin and cranberries, are solid enough not to offend the staunchest November Yankee, but interesting enough perhaps to tempt him and provide the cook some secret delight in a little bit of license."

The recipes I've included in this post are simple and homespun, yet delightful in their own way. Warm your hands on a mug of coffee or tea and enjoy them!

AUNT MATTIES' CRANBERRY CAKE

My aunt Mattie was a wonderful home cook. Everything she made was fresh, simple and delicious. Fresh food was all she knew, so there are no tricks or contrivances here to distract.

 Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

1/2 cup unsalted butter

1 cup sugar

1 egg

2 cups flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilla 

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

1 cup fresh, halved cranberries

Cream the butter and sugar until smooth. Add egg and beat until well blended.  Add the vanilla and almond extracats.

In another bowl, sift the flour, baking powder and salta together.

Alternately add the dry ingredients and milk to the creamed mixture.

Fold in the cranberries and pour into a well greased 9 inch cake pan. Sprinkle the top with granulated sugar. 

Bake for 50 minutes. 

You could dust with confectioners' sugar or an orange glaze, but it is good as is. 

Simple ingredients for Cranberry Cake

Ready for coffee??

The next recipe makes 2 loaves. It is not the usual pumpkin bread as it is not really sweet. The sour cream and whole wheat flour make it more wholesome and maple syrup as the main sweetener make it slightly more subtle too.

New Englanders know that the best maple syrup for cooking is Grade B. (the same way that Floridians know that the best fruit is often the ugliest..we send the pretty stuff to the tourists) Grade B is darker and more opaque, perhaps not as translucent as its light amber Grade A cousin reserved for the tourists, too.

These loaves are great toasted with butter or cut into triangles and used as a base to hold a fruity or curried chicken or turkey salad.

MAPLE PUMPKIN BREAD

(2 LOAVES)

3 cups white flour

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon ginger

1 stick unsalted butter

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1 1/2 cups pumpkin puree

1/2 cup sour cream

1 1/4 cups maple syrup

(1 cup chopped nuts or raisins-optional)

Preheat oven to 350.

Cream the butter and sugar until smooth and add the eggs one at a time.

Stir in the pumpkin puree, sour cream and maple syrup.

In another bowl, sift the dry ingredients together.

Gradually mix them into the pumpkin mixture.

Fold in nuts or raisins if using.

Divide the mixture between 2 well greased loaf pans. 

Bake for approximately 1 hour and 10 minutes or until done.

Serve warm or room temperature.

Freeze one loaf for later, or give as a nice holiday gift.

 

KURI SQUASH RAVIOLI WITH SAGE, PECANS AND BROWN BUTTER SAUCE...and variations

Not all my catering/cooking stories have funny or happy endings, but they all contribute to the growth of a cook and a person.

My first gig as chef at a conference center known as the prototype of environmentally correct living was, quite naturally, a group of vegetarians seeking to overcome personal problems and allow themselves to grow. I was told repeatedly by the staff of the wonderful macrobiotic and health food chefs previously engaged by this group, and was excited to let them try my style for a change.
 I was not a vegetarian, but grew up loving vegetables and had many vegetarian meals in my repertoire.  These were the days when everything was made from scratch or it was considered "unworthy".


As the date drew near and the stories of past chefs more numerous, I started to mistrust myself and began reading all sorts of healthy cookbooks, magazines and articles and found some new recipes which sounded impressive for this group. Somehow I was equating the labor involved with the success of the meal.


The day of their arrival and first meal finally came. I started early for their 6 P.M. dinner. I soaked and boiled legumes, I washed, peeled (in some cases), diced, chopped, minced, kneaded, stewed and baked all morning and afternoon. The result was a Vegetable and Legume Stew in a homemade vegetable broth and Focaccia with Mushrooms and Fresh Artichokes and Cheese, some had Gorgonzola, some Fontina and some  had freshly roasted Red Peppers. There were several varieties of fresh fruit crisps with Frozen Yogurt for dessert. The group numbered around 50-60 and I was preparing alone.


The aromas were enticing; I decorated the buffet lavishly, arranged the food in varying heights for an optimal display and waited...


They ate, and ate and ate. The organizers of the group smiled and politely said, "Thank You" and that was it.
 Later after clean-up, the manager of the conference center took me aside and said that although they loved everything, it was not spectacular enough..they considered the meal "soup and pizza"!


I was devastated as well as exhausted!  Soup and Pizza!!! I had worked all day!! It was a vegetarian feast!!  I learned that even in that atmosphere and situation, short cuts had to be taken and culinary tricks had to be played..fewer veggies in the stew, a salad with a choice of dressings and condiments, pre-made bread dough, one variety of fruit crisp and some cookies or brownies added. I learned to limit the time consuming chores and optimize those items which were not: for example, berry crisp rather than apple crisp (no peeling or chopping).


I also learned to "cook from the heart" even when it seemed the situation demanded something else from me. Thereafter, whenever I had a difficult menu to solve, I would close my eyes and center myself, and think, "what would you like, Jeanne"?  Even if the ingredients were not of my choosing, the style would be!


Now, I love squash ravioli, but cannot stand the "sweet" varieties I encounter everywhere. They taste more like pumpkin or squash pie (which I love) but, I crave a savory sensation.
Since I've moved to Florida and have a postage stamp sized kitchen, no butcher block or marble surfaces, no special drawers filled with flour and sugar, nothing much to make a cook smile, I have limited my cooking repertoire. No more homemade pasta (yet anyway)! Yes, I did say that...I know I taught many of you HOW to make pasta and you all probably still do...but I, at least for now, do NOT!


When I  got the Kuri Squash from SunCoast Organics, I just knew I had to make Squash Ravioli, my way! The reddish squash was so beautiful and I knew from baking it earlier in the week, it was not stringy but dense and bursting with flavor.

Kuri Squash and Salem Pumpkins!!

Now for the lesson learned. I remember reading that one could use wonton wrappers for ravioli and actually did try it many years ago. It was successful, but once I got into making the stuff, I forgot about it...it came back and so my solution to having my own ravioli without making the pasta! (ok, so maybe it's not as good, but it sure tasted great!!)

KURI (or other) SQUASH RAVIOLI

First Roast the squash: Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Cut the squash (about 1 1/2 -2 #) into manageable pieces. Spray with cooking spray or brush with butter and place it flesh side down on a greased baking sheet or foil. Roast until softened about 20 (for Kuri)-30 (other squash)minutes.

Squash to be Roasted

 

Roasted Squash

Allow it to cool a little and then scoop out the flesh. With Kuri, you can just peel the skin off (even eat it, it is so soft!). Mash.

 FILLING:

1 cup squash puree

1 shallot, minced

1 tablespoon butter

2 tablespoons ricotta

1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1/4 cup grated parmesan

pinch of salt and pepper

This makes enough filling for 1 package of wonton wrappers (48)

Making ravioli

Take one wrapper and place a heaping teaspoon of filling in the center. Moisten the edges with water and fold into a triangle. Repeat until done. You can freeze these if you make more than you need.

BROWN BUTTER SAUCE WITH SAGE AND NUTS

1/2 Cup plus 2 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoons chopped nuts

10-15 leaves fresh sage

In the meantime, melt 2 tablespoons butter and toast 3 tablespoons chopped nuts. I used pecans, walnuts, pine nuts, pistachios, almonds, etc. are ok too.

Heat 1/2 cup butter until it browns, NOT burns, just toasty brown. Add 10-15 sliced sage leaves and crisp them. Then add the toasted nuts. 

Brown Butter

Add sage

Add the toasted nuts

Keep sauce warm and cook ravioli.

Bring several quarts of water to a light boil. You do not want to boil the ravioli vigorously or they may break. Boil them a few at a time for 6 minutes or  until they float to the top. Remove and keep warm until finished. (just cover with foil in the colander). 

Risen to the top!

Cooked and ready to sauce!

Serve them with the butter sauce and freshly grated parmesan.

Oh MY!! Worth the wait!

Variation:

Use Chives in place of sage (garlic chives are best!), walnuts, and crumble gorgonzola on top.

I also LOVE a very garlicky Roasted Tomato Sauce on Squash Ravioli.

Roasted Tomato Sauce

2 # sauce tomatoes, Roma, Early Girl, etc.

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

8 cloves garlic, crushed 

4 tablespoons butter or more oil

fresh herbs, basil, oregano, thyme (optional)

Salt and pepper

Slice the tomatoes and place on a baking sheet
Preheat the oven to 400

Drizzle oil over the tomatoes and spread the crushed garlic. Add herbs if using and salt and pepper. Roast until soft and juicy about 30-40 minutes. You could also slice the garlic in place of crushing it and roast it with the tomatoes.

One of the pasta sauces I used to make for the group mentioned above was these roasted garlic tomatoes with butternut squash added to them! They loved that AND all the "additions" I made to the menu each time! Try it sometime.

 

CATAPLANA! A DELICIOUS ANCIENT TRADITION

 Cataplana: Vessel and Ingredients for recipe

I've been waiting for some nice littleneck clams to show up at the market so I could make Cataplana. At last I found some from Cherrystone Creek, VA and there were some fresh Florida Pink Shrimp available too. So Cataplana is on the menu!


Cataplana, a recipe, a vessel, a cult object, an ancient tradition in Southern Portugal, the Algarve. The word itself is not Portuguese and of uncertain origin, but generally attributed to the Arabs.  Portuguese cuisine, and especially that of the Algarve is influenced by the Romans and the Arabs, and this, of course includes the cultural influences of the contributing nations. The Arabs were adept in alchemy (the distillation of al-chohol) and metallurgy. The Cataplana cooking vessel is a double hinged clamshell shaped vessel of hammered copper. It has been described as a "double wok", and can be used as a wok when open and a steamer, pressure cooker when closed.  It keeps seafood moist and the flavor and aroma intense. The vapors reach the top half and cycle back to the base! When the Cataplana is opened at serving time, the sight and scent delight!

The Cataplana is uniquely Algarve and traditionally used to cook seafood, more specifically Ameijoas na Cataplana, Clams in a Cataplana. That said, last month in Vilamoura in the Algarve there was a festival of Cataplana cooking using the vessel for cooking, steaming, baking and much more. Chef Bertilio Gomes said of "The Cataplana Experience", "top chefs give new life to this old traditional pan" and referred to it as a "cult object"!

I have a Cataplana!! (purchased in Albufeira) And I love it and the clam recipe. I've shared it in my cooking class, "Threads of Gold" and with my family and friends for years.

Having had the dish in Portugal, I am always trying to recreate it as it was...nearly impossible due to the phenomenon the French call "terroir", things grown and natural to a certain area or environment. Portuguese clams and seafood are an example: tiny Mediterranean clams the size of a fingernail, sweet and succulent; olive oil, Portuguese olive oil, while not the finest in the world is the FRUITIEST and has a distinctive flavor which cannot be imitated; wine, Vinho Verde, while not Algarve it is the Portuguese wine to drink and cook with seafood, low alcohol, dry and almost fizzy; then there is the bread, Portuguese Corn Bread, dense, crusty and perfect for sopping up the garlicky, olive oil, seafood juices!


On Boston's North Shore, I was lucky to have a market, inappropriately called The New England Market. It was anything BUT New England! There I could find all of the above (except the clams were frozen, but our Mahogany clams were an ok substitute). This market was located in an ethnic neighborhood, next to a Greek Church which belonged more on a Greek isle than a Massachusetts side street. The aromas in the market were pungent, open cases of bacala, cheeses, sausages, olives, huge loaves of peasant breads and unusual pastries. Spanish, Portuguese and Greek olive oils were available as well as  some humble wines of those countries. English was rarely heard inside the store. OH, how fortunate I was..oh, how I miss it!

My Cataplana here, although delicious, could not compare. I think the olive oil was the key missing ingredient. You cannot duplicate Portuguese olive oil, but maybe Greek is a close substitute. I will try to find some and attempt the dish again.

Some cataplana ingredients and the vessel

The only things organic from SunCoast in this recipe are the garlic, the onion and the wonderfully fragrant cilantro, but their bright flavors helped compensate for the lack of Portuguese oil.

AMEIJOAS NA CATAPLANA

3 Tablespoons Portuguese or very fruity extra virgin olive oil

1 large onion, chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 pound Portuguese Chourico (or other garlic sausage or linguica), sliced

2 pounds Mahogany or Little Neck clams, fresh and local

1/2 pound fresh, local shrimp (optional)

1 cup dry white wine (vinho verde)

chopped cilantro or parsley

1 teaspoon Piri Piri saucae or hot sauce to taste

Rinse and clean the clams.

Heat oil in cataplana or dutch oven. Add onion and garlic and cook until softened. Stir in sausage, the shrimp if using.  Add wine and let evaporate for a few minutes. Add clams and close cover. Cook over high heat for 5 - 8 minutes or until clams open. Add Piri Piri and sprinkle with chopped cilantro.  Serve from the cataplana (in the restaurant each diner has his own cataplana!) with plenty of crusty bread for sopping up the juices.

Good to the last clam or slice of sausage. The pink color of the broth is due to the paprika in the sausage.

VARIATIONS:

Use 1/2 pound cubed or sliced pork loin marinated overnight in garlic, white wine, olive oil, paprika and bay leaf  in place of sausage. Drain pork and pat dry before sauteing. Marinade be added and cooked with the clams.

Some recipes use some chopped or diced tomatoes.

CORN AND CRAB CHOWDER IN A PUMPKIN!!

From March of Dimes Benefit, Atlanta Bread Display by Jeanne!

 Autumn is here! Pumpkins are here! Cool breezes (even in Florida!) in the morning and evening, and sunny afternoons which make everything bright with a warm glow.  These are my memories; this is my heart; Autumn in New England.

The tree leaves change from their vibrant, living green to an even more glorious display of color, orange, red and gold, a final tribute to a season of growing. The harvest too, reflects richness in its color: pumpkins; orange, white and heirloom, pale green,  squashes; yellow, orange, green and gold with wild names and gnarled shapes.  They are ready to be transformed into mouth-watering dishes redolent of cinnamon, nutmeg and spices and some of the pumpkins will come alive again at Hallowe'en with the many faces of a Jack-o-Lantern!

Florida, too, has it's own autumn. The yards and gardens are filled with pumpkins, scarecrows, corn husks and bales of hay. The sun has the same golden glow and the days grow shorter as the weather cools.  It is my favorite time of year, anywhere!

Sweet Pie Pumpkin

When I received my sweet pie pumpkin from SunCoast Organics AND still had some of their sweet, fresh corn, I knew Corn and Crab Chowder in a Pumpkin was "on the menu"!!

The basic recipe I will offer is for a New England style chowder, but the one I prepared (and will give instructions for as well) was a little more Latino.  

Steamed Sweet Bicolor Corn

Snow Crab Clusters

A few years back, I had the opportunity to prepare this recipe on ABC TV's, Sunrise program. I was preparing for a March of Dimes Benefit for Atlanta Bread Company and they offered us the TV spot for advertising the event. It was very exciting, even though it meant getting up at 3 AM to be at the studio at 5! (you can see by the photo, I don't do mornings well!) BUT, the pumpkin was bigger! I served the morning crew the Latino version in the pumpkin and garnished it with parsley and yellow, orange and green pepper strips to represent autumn leaves. 

Still trying to figure out how to get this photo here! Stay tuned!

CORN AND CRAB CHOWDER IN A PUMPKIN

Prepare the pumpkin: preheat oven to 350.

Wash pumpkin and cut off top for a lid. Remove all seeds* and scrape out the "stringy" material. (this stuff, appropriately, reminds me of Hallowe'en cobwebs). 

Seeds and Strings!

Coat the inside and outside of the pumpkin with butter. Add salt and pepper.  Place prepared pumpkin on a baking tray (without lid) and bake at 350 for one to 1 1/2 hours until inside is softened and cooked, but outside still firm enough to hold its shape. The hardest part of this is to keep from eating the baked pumpkin and letting it collapse. It just smells so good cooking!!

Butter and Pumpkin!!

Baked pumpkin and butter!!

You can serve the chowder in the hot pumpkin or heat it inside the pumpkin for the last 20 -30 minutes.

Carefully scoop some of the pumpkin into each serving of chowder.

Chowder recipe:

2 tablespoons butter

1 cup chopped onion

4 slices chopped, smoked bacon

1 cup water, seafood or chicken stock

1/2 cup white wine or sherry

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme or 1 tablespoon, fresh

salt and pepper to taste

s cups fresh (or frozen) sweet corn

1-2 tablespoons flour

1 1/2 cups half and ;half

1 pound lump crabmeat (or other)

Saute the onion and bacon in the butter until onion is translucent and bacon is crisp. Add thyme, salt and pepper. Sprinkle with flour.

Add wine and let evaporate slightly, stirring to blend and thicken. Add stock and then corn. Whisk in half and half. Gently stir in crabmeat.

MMM..just smell those flavors

Corn and Crab Chowder Baked in a Pumpkin, Rosy colored

Served with Chunks of Pumpkin..see the golden color

* you can clean off the pumpkin seeds and let them dry overnight on wax paper. Then coat them with a little oil, salt and pepper and chili spice and roast them in a hot oven until brown! Yummy pumpkin seeds!

For the Latino version of this chowder:  add 1 tablespoon or more of chopped jalapeno to the onion. Add some chopped chorizo to the bacon or substitute. Use fresh cilantro in place of thyme. I used both.

As an added note, the Chowder is authentic to both New England culture and the Latino culture. Pumpkin is a favorite food in South America!

For an elegant presentation at a dinner party, serve this chowder or another appropriate chowder or soup in mini-pumpkins at each place setting.

 

MUSHROOMS: HIDDEN TREASURE

The "Woodsy Muse" Enchants the Mushrooms

It was over 20 years ago, when I learned that one mushroom could suffice for dinner.

We were traveling in Calabria in Southern Italy, and as usual, we chose the unknown route to our destination.  Ascending the Aspromonte range seemed like a good challenge and, perhaps, crossing the Mont Alto Pass, the highest point, would give us a short cut to the Ionian coast.

For awhile, the rugged ascent was pleasant. When we encountered a farmer and his goat along the way, we stopped him to inquire whether or not it was actually possible to reach the other side through the pass.  He hesitated, but then replied, "Si, ma guarda!" Yes, but be careful, he warned, there are two dangers, the mushroom pickers and the road. 

Mushroom pickers, dangerous?  How could that be? Would they try to feed us poisonous mushrooms? Soon, we saw baskets of wild mushrooms scattered along the roadside...and they were guarded by dogs and some human guards had guns.The mushrooms were treasures and so were the pickers' locations. Every now and then a head would appear only to quickly disappear among the trees and bushes. The mushroom pickers,  jealously protective of their picking territory, were checking to ensure that we were indeed just passersby and not competitive spies! We hastened along.

The descent revealed the second danger, the so-called road. It was intended for mules only!  Cars were not meant to travel that narrow, dirt path. We encountered heart-stopping views from precipitous cliffs while rounding hairpin turns. My husband maneuvered admirably, and slowly, as we shunned boulders and other  debris while winding our way to the bottom. I closed my eyes as much as possible! Miraculously, we reached a dried riverbed,  passed through someone's back yard and drove onto a mercifully flat, paved road. I'd recommend a donkey or another route.

Holding to the main roads for the remainder of the trip, we stopped at what was then, a dingy, but animated town, Castrovillari.*  It was here in a little restaurant in the middle of town that we discovered why the mountain folk guarded and prized their mushrooms so fiercely. We experienced a meal to rival the best with a mushroom as it's centerpiece!


It began with the daily pasta, homemade cavatelli with eggplant, tomato,  ricotta and several fresh herbs. It was light and zesty. Second was a grilled wild mushroom..it covered the entire plate. It was grilled to perfection with olive oil, garlic and parsley and was as rich as any beefsteak. I tried so hard to find out what is was, but was told, Cardoncello, "mushroom of the mountains" which means nothing. That too, was a guarded secret, but what a delicious secret!


Our mushroom was followed by a salad of fresh fennel and oranges and we enjoyed a light fruity red wine, Lachryma di Castrovillari with it all.  Dessert was a fresh, peeled pear stuffed with mascarpone with nuts and honey! Espresso and a local digestivo, redolent of herbs and orange completed our feast.


*The town may now be a bright tourist destination as are many of the little towns we visited back then.


When I returned home, I tried to find a mushroom which was comparable. A giant portabello is close, but the flavor was even more "meaty" or maybe it's just nostalgia for the setting.

Beautiful  Mushrooms and Herbs

 Wild mushrooms and fresh herbs can be grilled or sauteed as an appetizer or meal or served over pasta or in a risotto.

Fresh Herb,Shiitake and Cremini Risotto

The following recipe was inspired by the  Spinach Mashed Potatoes on the Apron's Menu at Publix last week and my own variations stuffed into a portabello mushroom!  It's a great way to use several SunCoast Organics veggies for an appetizer, dinner or a side dish.

STUFFED PORTABELLO MUSHROOMS WITH SPINACH, GARLIC, AND ASIAGO MASHED POTATOES

  Cut the stem off the portabellos and scrape the gills

Make your favorite mashed potatoes, and add a few garlic cloves to the pan. I like to add celery stalks with leaves for flavor, removing them before mashing potatoes or use celery root and mash with potaotes. I use cream cheese, butter and milk and some grated nutmeg.

Use 1 cup of fresh spinach for each mushroom/person and steam or microwave for 1 minute. Add to the potatoes   with 3 tablespoons grated Asiago cheese for each mushroom/person.

Chop the mushroom stems and 1 shallot (or more if making 4 or more mushrooms) in 1 tablespoon butter. Arrange mushroom caps on baking pan and fill with mushroom/shallot mixture. Top with potatoes and grate some extra cheese over all.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Bake the mushrooms until browned on top and hot in center. Some people like to bake the mushroom caps for a few minutes, before stuffing, to soften them. If they are extra large, I would recommend this, but for average sized mushrooms, just baking is enough. It usually takes about 25- 30 minutes, longer if larger mushrooms or more than 4.

Mushrooms really are a treasure, but they should be shared!