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Award-winning chef, author and forager Alan Bergo. Food is all around you.

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French Lentils with Sauteed Wild Mushrooms

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Lentils with lovage soffrito and Gyroporus cyanescens recipe

These are excellent cooked fresh.

When I got back from hunting with a bag full of fresh Gyroporus cyanescens, one of the only boletes I prefer fresh to dried, this is what I made. It’s super simple, and just a snapshot of the simple European food I usually cook at home.

First you make a soffrito by finely chopping some bacon or ham with garlic, onion, celery, and herbs, which you sweat for a bit in olive oil. Then you add lentils, but not any lentils, really good lentils, and by really good I mean no brown, red, or any of the cheap kinds. From my experience, the only two types of lentils I would use for this are French lentils du puy, or Black beluga lentils, anything else just won’t taste the same, and there is definitely a difference in taste with lentils (I strongly dislike the brown ones for texture and flavor reasons).

Finally, you toss in a good handful of cherry tomatoes just to warm through, and top the whole thing with a pile of sauteed mushrooms, and plenty of olive oil. Add some crusty bread and a few slices of charcuterie and it’s a good summer meal.

Gyroporus cyanescens or the cornflower bolete, an edible blue staining bolete

I used blue-staining boletes, (Gyroporus cyanescens) but you could use many different mushrooms here.

Lentils with lovage soffrito and Gyroporus cyanescens recipe
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Warm French Lentils with Sauteed Wild Mushrooms

Serves 2-4 as an appetizer, side dish, or light entree
Prep Time15 mins
Cook Time10 mins
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: French
Keyword: Black Lentils, Boletes
Servings: 2

Ingredients

  • 2 cups cooked lentils du puy or black lentils
  • Kosher salt to taste
  • Good handful of parsley or preferably a mix of parsley, cilantro, lovage, dill, or other fresh garden herbs, plus extra for finishing
  • 2 oz bacon
  • Extra virgin olive oil as needed for cooking and extra for drizzling
  • High heat cooking oil as needed for cooking the mushrooms, a tablepoon or two
  • Fresh lemon wedges for serving
  • Handful of fresh cherry tomatoes halved
  • 2 oz Half a stalk of celery
  • 2 oz shallot or onion
  • 1 medium sized clove of garlic
  • Dash of white wine
  • 4 oz fresh mushrooms thickly sliced
  • Fresh ground black pepper

Instructions

  • Finely mince the bacon, garlic, celery and shallot or onion, then sweat with some oil for a few minutes.
  • Add the wine and cook off, then add the lentils and some of their reserved cooking liquid and simmer for a bit until the vegetables are soft. The pan should stay juicy, so add a little extra liquid if you need. Double check the seasoning and adjust to taste, then toss in a handful of halved cherry tomatoes at the end just to warm them through.
  • Meanwhile, heat a tablespoon of cooking oil in a pan and brown the mushrooms well, then season lightly to taste with salt and pepper.
  • To serve, toss the lentils with some of the extra herbs, a good drizzle of oil, and spoon the mushrooms over the top, passing the lemon wedges alongside. You can also serve them from a larger dish family style.

 

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FORAGER | CHEF®
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Author: The Forager Chef’s Book of Flora
James Beard Award ‘22
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Alan Bergo
HALP! I’ve been keeping an eye on two loaded mul HALP! I’ve been keeping an eye on two loaded mulberry trees and both got a bunch of fruit knocked down by the storms and wind. 

If anyone in West WI or around the Twin Cities knows of some trees, (ideally on private property but beggars can’t be choosers) that I could climb and shake with a tarp underneath, shoot me a DM and let’s pick some! 🤙😄

TIA

#throwadogabone #mansquirrel #beattlefruit #mulberries #shakintrees
Lampascioni, or edible hyacinth bulbs are one of t Lampascioni, or edible hyacinth bulbs are one of the more interesting things I’ve eaten. 

These are an ancient wild food traditionally harvested in Southern Italy, especially in Puglia and the Salentine Peninsula, as well as Greece and Crete. I’ve seen at least 6-7 different names for them. 

A couple different species are eaten, but Leopoldia comosa is probably the one I see mentioned the most. They also grow wild in North America. 

The bulbs are toxic raw, but edible after an extended boil. Traditionally they’re preserved in vinegar and oil, pickled, or preserves in other methods using acid and served as antipasti. (Two versions in pic 3). 

They’re one of the most heavily documented traditional wild foods I’ve seen. There’s a few shots of book excerpts here.

The Oxford companion to Italian Food says you can eat them raw-don’t do that. 

Even after pickling, the bulbs are aggressively extremely bitter. Definitely an acquired taste, but one that’s grown on me. 

#traditionalfoods #vampagioli #lampascione #cucinapovera #lampascioni #leopoldiacomosa #foraging
Went to some new spots yesterday looking for poke Went to some new spots yesterday looking for poke sallet and didn’t do too well (I’m at the tip of its range). I did see some feral horseradish though which I don’t see very often. 

Just like wild parsnip, this is the exact same plant you see in the store and garden-just escaped. 

During the growing season the leaves can be good when young. 

They have an aggressive taste bitter enough to scare your loved ones. Excellent in a blend of greens cooked until extra soft, preferably with bacon or similar. 

For reference, you don’t harvest the root while the plant is growing as they’ll be soft and unappealing-do that in the spring or fall. This is essentially the same as when people tell you to harvest in months that have an R in them. 

#amoraciarusticana #foraging #horseradishleaves #horseradish #bittergreens
In Italy chicken of the woods is known as “fungo In Italy chicken of the woods is known as “fungo del carrubo” (carob tree mushroom) as it’s one of the common tree hosts there. 

My favorite, and really the only traditional recipe I’ve found for them so far is simmered in a spicy tomato sauce with hot chile and capers, served with grilled bread. 

Here I add herbs too: fresh leaves of bee balm that are perfect for harvesting right now and have a flavor similar to oregano and thyme. 

Makes a really good side dish or app, especially if you shower it with a handful of pecorino before scooping it up with the bread. 

#chickenofthewoods #fungodelcarrubo #allthemushroomtags #traditionalfoods #beebalm
First of the year 😁. White-pored chicken of t First of the year 😁. 

White-pored chicken of the woods (Laetiporus cincinnatus) are my favorite chicken. 

Superior bug resistance, slightly better flavor + texture. They also stay tender longer compared to their more common yellow-pored cousins. Not a single bug in this guy. 

#treemeat #ifoundfood #foraging #laetiporuscincinnatus #chickenofthewoods
TBT brisket face 💦. Staff meal with @jesseroes TBT brisket face 💦. Staff meal with 
@jesseroesler and crew @campwandawega
📸 @misterberndt 

#staffmeal #brisket #meatsweats #naptime
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