Friday, August 29, 2014

Chanterelles with Napa & Nuts




Per Tricia~
This week I finally got a chance to help Nana (for a change) 
after we ran into trouble locating the Chanterelles. Nana is an
 amazing "sourcer" of ingredients for our French Friday adventures 
so when she ran into difficulties I will admit I was a bit scared.  
As usual, however, I got lucky. 
A quick internet search under "Philly" and "Chanterelle" and I 
ended up on the Facebook page for "The Woodlands at Phillips".  
Located in Kennett Square, PA, (dubbed the mushroom capital of
 the world.......) "The Woodlands" turned out to be mushroom mecca.
Serendipitously, they had just posted about a fresh order
 of Chanterelles coming in this week. They were actually 
sourced from Washington State. 


Cookbooks, cooking tools, gifts, and yes,
 even mushrooms- they have it all.  




A few quick emails back and forth with the gracious folks there
 and I had two pounds reserved for Nana and I. 

Unfortunately Nana could not join me in the road trip the day they 
arrived but she is getting a raincheck because we will be back.

 Yes, we will definitely be back.

Now on to the recipe from "Around My French Table".
In full disclosure, I do not care for mushrooms. 
My curiosity was piqued and the road trip was fabulous,
 but that would not sway my tastebuds if they are not happy. 
Luckily, they were happy. 

I actually even ate a Chanterelle before cooking it and was pleasantly surprised.  

In fairness, the soy sauce added a flavor that was right up my alley. 
To top it off, the whole completed dish looked suspiciously like 
my favorite spicy cashew chicken from the Cheesecake Factory. 

It didn't taste like it but I did enjoy a serving and my mind was racing 
with ideas of what to serve this with, on, or in. My guys were all fans 
of  mushrooms before this week so it was no surprise that these were a hit, 
but they did get a kick out of the new variety. Another Friday adventure.

Per Nana~
I looked all over for Chanterelle mushrooms these past two 
weeks and finally gave up and purchased a package of dried.   
thought that I would reconstitute them and take my chances 
with this week's recipe, but for some reason I kept putting it off. 
This was one time when procrastinating paid off.
Along came Tricia with goodies galore from her trip to the mushroom farm. 
I am so lucky, and she even supplied the Napa cabbage too. 
The recipe was very interesting and never having tasted these mushrooms
 before, I did not know what to expect.  Everything blended together so 
well, with the nuts giving it the perfect crunch. I have some leftovers and 
am seriously thinking of cooking rice and topping it with these 
wonderful mushrooms. Now that I have used the fresh mushrooms 
I can not imagine the dried working with this recipe. 

Happy French Friday ~ 

12 comments:

  1. Tricia, what a great road trip. Thanks for sharing your adventure. Nana I was glad Tricia was able to be your food fairy this week. I did a make-up as fungus does not go over well in my house.

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  2. Cute little chanterelles -great detective work Tricia! ($15 a pound though - whoah!)

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  3. What fun. Don't you love it when you stumble upon such wonderful places in your area? Those mushrooms look great and both of your dishes look delicious.

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  4. You did great Tricia stepping in to get the mushrooms! What a delightful find! Both results absolutely DELISH!

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  5. So very resourceful! And what a find! Both of your dishes look divine...I need to taste this with the real McCoy!

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  6. Okay, I SO want to go to that store. Seriously...
    Tricia, bravo for being the mushroom whisperer this week :-)

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  7. Nana, absolutely. Once you taste the fresh version, it's difficult to return to dried. That's how I now feel about buying peppers in a jar. After making my own (for the first time), I won't return to the jarred ones. When you return to The Woodlands, Tricia, let me know. Wow, that looks like quite the establishment. I had never tasted Chanterelles before either (I don't think) and felt it was a real flavor pleasure. Morels, in Iowa. Then the usual white, in my cooking. So this was fun albeit expensive. Glad you found this gem.

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  8. Glad that you ladies found the Chanterelles - I don't think we have them here at all. I am fascinated by the sound of the spicy cashew chicken dish now ...

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  9. Wow…that mushroom farm looks like one great find, Tricia! I wish it were closer to my neck of the woods, I would love to visit there. Your Chanterelles look beautiful! Both of your dishes look fabulously delicious!! So glad you both enjoyed this recipe…it was a hit in my house, too! However, I was not so lucky to find Chanterelles, I used beautiful fresh shiitakes and they worked deliciously! Happy weekend, ladies!!

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  10. I love that the tables were turned this week and Tricia supplied the ingredients to Nana! Is that a first? I would like to visit there too. Looks like a very cool mushroom place. I think the mushrooms I buy at the grocery store are often from Phillips in Kennett Square. My uncle used to do accounting work for another mushroom company there, but I can't remember which one. I'm glad this delicious recipe was a hit for so many of your tasters!

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  11. What a find, Tricia! I love places like that. I bet Nana will, too. An extra benefit of French Fridays this week. So nice that this dish was a hit for everyone in your households this week, too. I loved it and will be using this method for more than just chanterelles, I think.

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  12. Tricia, what a fun trip, and what a great place to discover! I don't like mushrooms either, but you've piqued my interest. Maybe I should have tried this recipe. I'm glad you both enjoyed this recipe.

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