Call of the Wild

Lobster mushrooms

Although we have stayed close to home throughout the COVID pandemic, venturing out mainly for shopping, picking up library materials and occasional walks beyond our neighborhood, we found the call of the wild irresistible this autumn. The hunt for mushrooms beckoned.

We reveled in the welcome awakening of our senses to the changes of light, texture, sound, temperature, aroma and movement over trails, logs, rocks, sand and duff. The awesome wonder of discovery in places we had never been to (or revisited) was so seductive. Though we did not have a banner year as far as mushrooming goes, we did find a few forest delights: a few pounds of lobster mushrooms, a couple of matsutakes and a pound of oyster mushrooms cropping out on a fallen tree log. We feasted on lobster mushroom risotto for Thanksgiving. The matsutake became the star ingredients in a Japanese rice dish and broth. An oyster mushroom quiche was the feature of our recent Sunday brunch menu.

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Matsutake rice & matsutake clear soup with Korean bulgogi (BBQ beef) dinner

Shortly after coming to Oregon 13 years ago, we joined the Oregon Mycological Society. They sponsor field trips, hold classes and monthly meetings, host an annual Fall Mushroom Show and are a great resource for learning more about the wealth of mushrooms that are here in our midst. Great comradery, too.

Our Golden Rule for mushrooming is that we only cook with wild mushrooms that we have positively verified as edible. Today there is a wide variety of good edible mushrooms sold in local groceries and farmers’ markets. Each type has special qualities, textures and tastes. Certain mushrooms may sometimes be just the right ingredient to add to a soup, an egg dish, a stir fry, a pasta, a gravy and so much more. So take advantage of the edible fungi available to you in the market and experiment.

Below is our recipe for a mushroom quiche that uses the white button mushrooms or brown cremini mushrooms, both in the agraricus bisporus family and readily available in grocery stores. Enjoy!

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Mushroom Quiche

Ingredients

• 1 pre-made pie crust (We prefer Wholly Gluten-free brand.)
• 1 lb cremini or button mushrooms
• 2 – 3 T olive oil
• ½ sliced red pepper
• 4 oz Swiss or Emmenthaler cheese (We prefer Trader Joe’s soy cheese as a lactose-free alternative.)
• 3 eggs
• ½ cup milk (We prefer whole lactose-free milk.)
• ½ cup plain yogurt (We prefer lactose-free Green Valley Organics brand.)
• ½ tsp thyme
• 1 tsp black pepper
• ¼ tsp salt
• Nutmeg (a pinch)

Making the Quiche

Mushroom & pepper layer

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F and bake pie crust for 15 minutes. Allow baked pie crust to cool on wire rack until it reaches room temperature. Tips: Prick crust with fork first, then cover pie crust with parchment paper and place pie weights on top before baking. Also, set pie crust in a larger pie pan if available to prevent spillage of quiche mixture in oven.
2. Slice mushrooms thinly and then sauté with olive oil in frying pan. Mushrooms will give off water. Cook until water evaporates and mushrooms become brown. Add pepper slices and sauté another minute. Finally stir in thyme and black pepper and remove from stove.
3.  After pie crust is cool, add cheese to the bottom of the pie shell.
4. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
5. Use egg beater or wire whisk to mix together eggs, milk, yogurt, salt and nutmeg.
6. Spread sautéed mushrooms over cheese layer.
7. Pour egg mixture on top of mushroom layer. Tip: Use a pie protector shield to prevent crust from burning.
8. Bake quiche for 35 minutes or until toothpick shows no liquid when quiche is pricked.
9. Remove from oven and enjoy while still hot.

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