I had been saying to people that I\u2019m going to change my middle name to mushroom because you just never know where I\u2019ll pop up next!<\/p>\n
I\u2019ve had a new direction in my working life \u2013 but still hanging onto the things I\u2019m passionate about. Food, music and memories of my Mum.<\/p>\n
The season of autumn holds very strong memories for me of the sheer excitement of going out on a crisp, sunny autumn Sunday, early afternoon, Mum driving the old Zephyr Zodiac out along the Colac Highway to a particular spot.<\/p>\n
We\u2019d stop by the roadside, climb through the wires of the fence. There I was, a freckled 12-year-old, anticipating the thrill of the hunt for mushrooms.<\/p>\n
I can clearly remember having to equip myself with a particular ivory handled bread and butter knife and a small cane
\nbasket \u2013 my special \u201ctools of the trade\u201d that I would take each time when we went mushrooming.<\/p>\n
You needed a keen eye to step carefully to avoid the cow pats while scouring the rough grass.<\/p>\n
You also kept a watchful eye in case the farmer came over to ask what you were up to, or that there wasn\u2019t a bull out
\nto pasture in that particular paddock! Of course, these aspects added a dimension of adventure to the whole expedition of gathering mushrooms!<\/p>\n
Once home, Mum would carefully pick over the large black field mushrooms andwipe the tops with a clean tea towel. Never
\nwash a mushroom. And remember life\u2019s too short to peel a mushroom, so don\u2019t do that anymore.<\/p>\n
The roughly chopped mushroom would be saut\u00e9ed for a few minutes in a generous amount of butter, (Mum never skimped on butter with anything) and the short cooking time was enough for the juices to run to form a kind of sauce.<\/p>\n
The cooked mushrooms were served on thick slices of hot toast. But that\u2019s where I drew the line. I never ate them, yuk! I only liked gathering them, you see.<\/p>\n
But now, well, one of my favourite ways to eat mushrooms is a quick recipe shared by Antonio Carluccio many years
\nago in one of the cooking sessions in the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival.<\/p>\n
Antonio was passionate about mushrooms and was the author of many books, including one exclusively on mushrooms.<\/p>\n
My Mum was ever thrifty and like her I try not to waste anything, so if you have mushrooms that are a bit past their
\npeak, make them into what I call truffled mushrooms and use these on top of homemade pizzas, or through salads.<\/p>\n
With the very slow cooking in this recipe you will find even rather bland button mushrooms end up looking like shavings
\nof black truffle, (which are wonderful, but an acquired taste, and an expensive treat), and the concentration of flavour in these slow-dried mushrooms is fantastic!<\/p>\n
To make them, chop 400 gm button mushrooms – sliced very thinly, stalks removed into a small saucepan. Add 1 tablespoon water and on the lowest possible heat, gently and slowly cook the mushrooms until they shrivel and are almost bone dry. Stir them occasionally with a wooden spoon. This may take 25 minutes or more. They will keep in the refrigerator for several days. They\u2019re great with a warm salad of chunky cut root vegetables, or on top of pan fried chicken, a barbecued steak or, if making homemade pizza, scatter them over the top for the last couple of minutes of cooking.<\/p>\n
So Mum, thanks for the wonderfully memorable outings \u2013 and introducing me to mushrooms!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
I had been saying to people that I\u2019m going to change my middle name to mushroom because you just never know where I\u2019ll pop up next! I\u2019ve had a new direction in my working life \u2013 but still hanging onto the things I\u2019m passionate about. Food, music and memories of my Mum. The season of […]<\/p>\n