During my pre-vegan days I didn’t like mushrooms at all. Actually, it was really about the texture, they are so weird and slimy. I ate them occasionally if I didn’t really notice there presence. After going vegan I slowly started to accept them into the “things I will eat”, group. This summer we even joined a shiitake mushroom CSA! When I first saw the recipe for Pfifferlings-Kuechle (chanterelle) in my cookbook, I thought I would love to try these. The trouble is where can I get these special mushrooms? As luck would have it a friend of mine, who discovered a trove of wild mushrooms near her home, happened to stop into the local co-op while I was there. She was hoping to find someone that could identify, and confirm the mushrooms she found are in fact edible. Personally, I am of the belief that if they are not in a store, and I am not being charged $9.00 a pound for them, they are probably poisonous. My friend did find someone who could identify them as non poisonous, totally safe, edible chanterelle mushrooms. In the past I would have said, no thank you when offered any wild mushrooms, but in the name of blogging I decided to take some home. In the end I am glad I did, because they were wonderfully delicious!
If you are lucky enough to get your hands on chanterelles you might like to try this recipe for mushroom cakes. We enjoyed them with fresh salad, and grilled eggplant, and zucchini. The cakes came out perfectly, held together well, and tasted good.
The original recipe does calls for 300 grams (about 10.6 ounces) of mushrooms, which I didn’t have. I considered mixing them with shiitakes, but decided to halve my recipe instead. This way I could experience the flavor of chanterelles on there own. If you can’t get chanterelle mushrooms, try these cakes with a different variety, oyster mushrooms maybe?
Recipe
- 2 cups (5 ounces) chanterelles thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup finely chopped onion
- 3 tbsp oil
- 1/4 cup fresh, chopped parsley
- 2 cups cubed bread (about 4 slices)
- 1/4 cup soy milk
- 1 tbsp. ground flax seeds mixed with 2 tbsp. of water
- 1/2 tsp. flour
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
Directions
In a large pan saute the mushrooms, and onions with a tablespoon of oil. Cook until the onions become transparent, and most of the liquid is gone. Add the parsley, and remove the pan from the heat. Heat the soy milk in a small saucepan, and pour over the bread. Cover, and allow to rest for a few minutes. Next, mix in the cooked mushrooms. Then add the flax seed mixture, flour, salt, and nutmeg to the bread. Form six patties out of the bread mixture. Using the same pan heat the oil, and fry the patties on both sides on medium heat, until they become golden brown. Enjoy!
