Wild Mushroom & Crouton Salad



My sister-in-law Ellen sent me an email letting me know that there were very few mushroom recipes on my site. How come?

Because the other eater in the house (her brother) despises them. I can use them in a Chicken Marsala and Coq au Vin, but they will be picked out of his dish and put on my plate.
Thank you!

I think this is my favorite way to prepare mushrooms. If you love them, like I do, then you will LOVE this dish.

You can use any combination of wild mushrooms, and if you don't want to be fancy, then plain old white button mushrooms are fine.

This is for all the mushroom lovers in the house!

Wild Mushroom & Crouton Salad (really a saute more than a salad): (inspired by Real Life Entertaining)

2 lbs. of mixed mushrooms, sliced
2 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp butter
2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
2 cups of bread cubes from a baguette or rustic Italian loaf
sea salt & pepper
1/4 cup fresh parsley leaves, chopped

With this dish you have to work fast, careful not to burn the garlic or the bread cubes. It all cooks up quickly, so make sure you are paying attention.

In a heavy skillet, heat the olive oil with one tablespoon of butter on med-high flame.
Add the mushrooms and start browning by leaving them alone in the skillet, about 2 minutes. Now add the garlic, and start moving around the mushrooms and garlic with a wooden spoon, another minute or so.

It's time to add the bread cubes.
Add the other 2 tablespoons of butter to the pan and add the bread cubes. You may also need some more olive oil at this point, because the mushrooms suck up most of the oil. Add oil as needed.



Keep cooking the croutons until they get nice and crispy on all sides, about 2 minutes. Season the pan liberally with salt & pepper.

Add the chopped parsley and mix together. This gets cold quickly, but it's still delicious at room temperature.

Serve immediately.



Fungi rules!

Comments

Joanne said…
I have to admit, I've traditionallly not been the biggest mushroom fan. But I'm coming around to them. Maybe your husband will too if you keep making dishes with them that look this good!
lisa is cooking said…
Mushrooms don't always get the love they deserve, but they do from me! And, parsley is great with them. Looks terrific!
The JR said…
All the more for you if he won't eat them. I'm lucky my husband likes them and we get to eat them all the time.
I had a good laugh over your picked out mushroom comment. That's sort of like why you never see peas on my blog. :-D

This is a fun recipe. I'm not big on most varieties of wild 'shrooms, but I do like working with the portabellos and cremini because they are so hearty. I can imagine how nicely they would all go with the croutons. I would almost call this a mushroom panzanella.
As a man who's feet are firmly planted on the mossy slopes of the Pacific Northwest, where man, moss and mushrooms live harmoniously, I shall pluck this recipe for the recipe box and await Chanterelle mushroom picking season with great anticipation. Thank you kindly!
Anonymous said…
THERE'S FUNGUS AMUNGUS! I remember my mom serving sauteed mushrooms with steak, my sister and I weren't fans yet, and she and my dad happily hogging them all. They said we'd like them some day, now we love them, and they were enjoying the embarras de richesse while it lasted.
Claudia said…
First of all - I'm impressed your sister-in-law reads your blog! And second - yes to the mushrooms. Yes.
Linda said…
Oh Henry - How could you not like this - some day you'll really have to try and dig in.
Carole said…
Love mushrooms. Will have to try this recipe.
Lisa in Delaware said…
Love mushrooms. Especially marinated portabella in a sandwich of balsamic vinegar, red onion slices, garlic, grated parmesan, lettuce and tomato on a crusty roll. This recipe looks yummy, Stacey.

When we were given a new food to try but curled up our noses, my mother said, "you have to have one tasting bite". My grandmother was more manipulative, cajoling us: "I'll give you a quarter!" Henry: "you have to have 1 tasting bite"!
LF said…
I love mushrooms in any shape or form. Yum. Unfortunately it's really hard to find (impossible actually) wild mushrooms here.
Ellen said…
Hey Sta..

I did make this with my beautiful local Kennett Square mushrooms. It WAS heavenly. The mushrooms browned so beautifully and it was all divine. Nobody will eat mushrooms here either so I had it all to myself. Thanks for the recipe!! Love from your SIL
Dana said…
I always liked mushrooms but Randy made me love them. Funny, huh? My brother who eats giant quantities of anything will not eat mushrooms or artichoke hearts. He is a crazy man. This looks like a good main course to me!
rcoda said…
No cheese? Oh, a little Pecorino Romano or Parmigianno Reggiano on top would be killer!
tasteofbeirut said…
This is the perfect combo with mushrooms! Earthy and rustic all the way! Love it!
Dinah said…
We made this "salad" last night. It was crazy DELICIOUS! Thank you for the recipe.