Looking for local organic food? Nothing is more local and organic than the wild foods collected from our native oak woodlands, and there's an excellent crop this year. Among the best is the 'hen-of-the-woods' mushroom', known as maitake in Japanese cuisine. Here's a soup recipe I developed in 2003 after quite a bit of experimentation. It's sophisticated, not too difficult and displays the rich flavor of the mushrooms to great advantage..
Pick some fresh 'hen-of-the-woods' from the base of an ancient black oak. If you don't know how to identify the mushroom, don't take any chances. Get a seasoned expert to check it out before you even consider eating it. I am very cautious -- if I have any doubt about a mushroom, I don't even touch it. As with all wild foods, take it easy the first couple of times you try it, to make sure it agrees with you. Personally, I've eaten quite large quantities of maitake without any effect except for an occasional 'yum'!
When you collect, please consider conservation -- gently cut the mushroom at the base with a sharp knife, tread lightly around the great oaks that produce these beauties, and never take all of anything. I leave at least 20% of what I find out in the woods. Treat the woods, trees and mushrooms with the respect they deserve and you'll be rewarded; I've been collecting mushrooms under the same trees for, well, decades actually.
Here's the recipe:
3 cups fresh Hen-of-the-Woods 1/2 stick butter 2 cloves garlic 1 handful celery heart, chopped 1 1/2 tablespoon dried parsley 3 1/2 cups water 1 tablespoon Soy Sauce 2 dashes Worchestshire Sauce 1/2 teaspoon rubbed Sage 1/2 teaspoon crushed rosemary salt and pepper 1 cup milk (or half and half) 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Soak your mushroom in cold brine (about like sea water) in a cool place for about four to eight hours; expect to see some insects climbing out of the mushroom, proof that it is truly organic. Thoroughly clean and discard any portions with embedded sand -- better to throw some mushroom into the compost than to spoil the soup. I also discard any top portions with to much gillage - the heart is the best part. You'll need about three cups of sliced, cleaned mushroom for this recipe.
Warm an empty large saucepan for a few moments. Reduce heat and gently melt half a stick of butter in the sauce pan; don't scorch it! Add a couple of cloves of pressed garlic to the melted butter. Then add a chopped white onion. Saute gently until the onion begins to clarify, but don't brown it. Then add a handful of chopped heart of celery, and a tablespoon or two of dried parsley. Now add the three cups of chopped mushrooms and sauté until they give off their moisture and it begins to reduce, but don't boil it off.
Once the mushrooms, etc. are finished giving off their moisture, add about three and a half cups of water, a tablespoon of soy sauce, a couple of dashes of Worchestshire sauce, a half teaspoon of rubbed sage, a half teaspoon of crushed rosemary, and a little salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer with the lid on for about a half an hour. If it starts looking too crowded in the sauce pan, add water. If it's looking watery, open the lid and let it reduce.
Remove from heat and allow to cool for about fifteen minutes. Pour the contents of the saucepan into a blender and puree. Careful...don't get scalded!
When it's getting smooth, but before it gets foamy, pour it back into the sauce pan. Gradually add about a cup of milk (more if you like).
Remove about a quarter cup of the soup and mix in about a tablespoon of flour -- then add more soup to the paste and when you're sure you aren't going to make lumps, add it back to the soup. As the soup gets near boiling, mix in about a quarter cup of freshly grated Parmesan cheese, and salt and pepper to taste. Don't scorch it! Once it gets just to boiling, let it cool a little and serve with crackers. For a festive touch, hollow out a loaf of sourdough bread, and fill with the mushroom soup.
MLucas 