Sea mist, happy memories and Porcini's

Monday, April 21, 2014


We are sometimes greeted with a sea mist of a morning as it rolls over the Pittwater and when it does it's spectacular.  We watch it as it envelopes Scotland Island and wait for the morning sun to pierce through as it recedes as the temperature warms up.  Our usual weekend swims turn to walks along the beach with the promise of a warm nourishing breakfast afterwards. 


I often find myself drifting back to past experiences when I'm looking for inspiration to know what to cook sometimes.  Certain times of the year or the weather can trigger a wonderful memory or flavour.  

We had had a wonderful holiday one Autumn staying just outside the lovely town of San Gimignano in Tuscany.  On our arrival we had passed some of the local village folk early in the morning mushroom picking.  They were dressed beautifully in their country attire, cane baskets and walking sticks in hand.  I didn't want to bother with the usual sightseeing, I just wanted to leap out of the car and join them.  


The following morning, with the morning fog deep in  the valley and the sun just peeping through, I set off to do some mushroom picking of my own.  I will never forget the joy of finding fresh porcini mushrooms in the forest,  it was such a treat as I had never had a fresh one before.  The owners of the auberge, where we were staying, kindly cooked them for us that evening it was so special.


One morning recently we awoke to a foggy morning and my thoughts went immediately back to that morning in San Gimignano and the wonderful flavour of the porcini mushroom.  Despite the lack of forest to forage in and the fact that they don't grow here in Australia, I wasn't to be deterred.  Fortunately we can purchase dried porcini.  Frankly I find them more fragrant than the fresh ones and once rehydrated, work so well in omelettes.  They didn't disappoint, even as I removed the lid from the jar they were stored in, the aroma was intoxicating.  


Porcini omelette

3 organic eggs
knob of butter, ghee or coconut oil
dash of water
small handful of fresh parsley and basil
1 clove of garlic
a handful of dried porcini mushrooms 
boiling water
salt
grana padano parmesan cheese

Place your porcini mushrooms in a heatproof bowl or jug and cover with boiling water and set aside while preparing the rest of the ingredients.  You should allow 15-20 minutes for them to fully hydrate, then drain and reserve the liquor to add to soups or stocks for another dish.  Peel and thinly slice the garlic and fry lightly in butter together with the drained hydrated porcini and a pinch of salt, then set aside.  This should be enough for 2 or 3 omelettes depending upon how generous you wish to be.

Crack three eggs in bowl add a dash of water and whisk until light and frothy.

Heat the butter in a small frying pan until sizzling but make sure you don't burn the butter.  Pour in the eggs and using a spatula move the egg mixture from side to side gently allowing the eggs to cook.  Reduce the heat to low and add the porcini and garlic, then add chopped parsley and basil on top and then grate a generous quantity of grana padano parmesan cheese.  Fold in half and serve immediately with a further grating of cheese ... enjoy!







2 comments:

  1. dear bernadette, i am green and purple with envy, what a beautiful moment you are sharing! xo

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hello Ananda how lovely that you popped in, foraging is truly a passion of mine even when travelling, I look forward to you popping in again.

    ReplyDelete

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