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

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Saffron Milk Caps With Chickpeas, Tomato, and Gran Queso

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Saffron Milkcap Mushrooms With Tomato and Gran Queso In Spain, hands down the most famous is the rovellon, or saffron milkcap. This particular recipe I made for the Cascade Mycological society’s cookbook.

Chickpeas are popular in Spanish cuisine, and gran queso is a famous, slightly salty cheese from the region. Combining the chickpeas and cheese with a little chopped, peeled tomato, and some saffron milkcaps makes a great dish.

Halfway between a saute and a stew, it’s perfect for the cold fall nights in Minnesota when the milkcaps start to fruit. Served on top of polenta, pasta or toast it can be a great vegetarian entrée, it wouldn’t hurt to throw some aged ham or prosciutto in it either though.

Saffron Milkcap Mushrooms With Tomato and Gran Queso_-2

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Saffron Milkcaps With Tomato, Chickpeas, and Gran Queso

A rich saute of saffron milk cap mushrooms with chickpeas, tomato and gran queso cheese
Prep Time20 mins
Cook Time17 mins
Course: Appetizer, Salad, Side Dish
Cuisine: Spanish
Keyword: Gran Queso, Rovellons, Saffron Milk Cap

Ingredients

  • 1 lb fresh saffron milkcaps cleaned. Quartered or sliced if large, left whole if small
  • ½ cup cooked chickpeas/garbanzo beans preferably dried
  • ½ cup chopped peeled tomatoes
  • ¼ cup chicken or vegetable broth
  • Gran queso cheese for grating
  • Kosher salt and pepper to taste
  • Extra virgin olive oil for finishing the plate preferably a peppery Spanish variety
  • Flat leaf parsley or cilantro coarsely chopped
  • High heat oil like grapeseed or light olive oil for sautéing

Instructions

  • Heat the oil in a large saute pan until lightly smoking. Add the mushrooms and cook on high heat until lightly browned, 5 about minutes. Season the milkcaps lightly with salt and pepper. Reduce the heat and add the garlic and cook for 1 minutes.
  • Next add the broth, chickpeas, and tomatoes, then simmer for 5 minutes more, stirring occasionally. The mixture should have thickened, but still have enough juice to ladle a bit onto each plate. If the pan starts to get dry, add some more stock or water and adjust the consistency as needed.
  • Double check the seasoning for salt and pepper before serving, especially if you used water instead of stock. Finish the dish by adding the parsley at the end, then dividing the ragu between 4 preheated plates. Garnish each plate with a drizzle of some olive oil, grated cheese, and serve immediately.

More

Forager’s Guide to Saffron Milk Cap Mushrooms

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Will K.

    October 25, 2016 at 2:08 pm

    I’ve never collected L. deliciosus before. I found some once fruiting under a large loblolly pine, but they were too far gone to collect. Based on that one occurance, I know they’re in our area, but I just rarely forage in pine woods. I do collect L. volemus and L. corrugis whenever I find them (really, really good) and I’ve also collected L. indigo and L. paradoxus (not as good, IMHO). I may have to start looking in those pine woods to see if I can find some of those saffron caps and give them a try- your recipe sounds great!

    Reply
    • Alan Bergo

      October 31, 2016 at 4:41 pm

      I didn’t hunt in pine much either, but after heavy rains, I have a couple spots in the pines I’ve stolen from the Russians here in MN that have given me 30+lbs consistently of good, bug-free milkcaps. You have to dig most of them from underneath the pine needles where I live though, I find them by looking for lumps in the pine needles, since the needles have typically fallen off when the milkcaps fruit here in earnest, often around late Oct in my areas.

      Reply

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FORAGER | CHEF®
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Author: The Forager Chef’s Book of Flora
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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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