Magic(al) Mushroom Bolognese
Meet my friend Ricky + a recipe for a vegetarian meal that carnivores will love!
I always say that I could be a vegetarian, just not a vegan. I love cheese to much to give them up, but veggies are my jam.
Don’t get me wrong, I love a wide variety of meats, but there is not a vegetable I don’t like. Not a one. Brussels? I liked them before it was cool. Cabbage? Another helping, please. Lima Beans? Fill my bowl with beans and pot likker! But mushrooms? They have my heart.
Growing up in the Midwest, our exposure to mushrooms were the button ones available in the can or if you were fancy, a jar. I am not ashamed to say that I loved them! My mom would put them in her Creamed Pheasant dish along with Cream of Mushroom Soup. They were also on top of the pizza that we would get at Godfather’s Pizza at the mall. I couldn’t get enough.
I honestly don’t know when I discovered varieties of mushrooms, outside of the good ol’ button variety, but I do know it opened my mind to these lovely funghi.
My friend Ricky owns Enchanted Mushrooms in Llano, TX. He supplies a lot of local restaurants, caterers and stores with a variety of beautiful mushrooms. He also is at a lot of the farmer’s markets throughout the Hill Country.
Last spring, I spent an afternoon with Ricky and learned all about his incredible process of growing the mushrooms, not to mention is incredible ability to market these relatively unknown varieties to the public.
He is passionate about what he does and I learned so much about the different flavor profiles, textures and best way to use them through our conversation. Here is a video of Ricky talking about
You will have to bear with the loud noise in the background, its a chiller and its a bit noisy. He is right, I love the smokiness that comes out in them.
So let’s get down to the recipe. It is based on a Michael Symon recipe that I had a few liberties with to make it my own. Don’t tell my Italian friends that I am calling this a “Bolognese” as they would be sure to let me know this is not traditional or from Bologna but more of a mushroom ragu. For marketing to the masses, I am going with Bolognese, but please know I respect Italian traditions in the kitchen!
It has the holy trinity of onions, carrots and celery like bolognese and it gets its color from the tomato paste. Using mushrooms for the protein, it does not need to simmer for hours like a traditional Bolognese, but can be ready in about an hour from start to finish.
I hope you enjoy this dish. If you are local to the Texas Hill Country, be sure to hunt down Ricky from Enchanted Mushrooms. You will be so happy you did.
With grace, grit & gratitude,
xx, JeriLynne
Mushroom Bolognese
Ingredients
1 1/2 pounds mixed wild mushrooms, such as chestnut, shiitake, cremini or oyster
1/4 cup olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 large carrot, peeled and finely chopped
1 rib celery, finely chopped
1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
Diamond Crystal salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Small bundle fresh thyme, tied with butcher's twine
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1 cup whole milk
Parmesan, for serving
Favorite small pasta to serve, like rigatoni or ziti
Method
On a cutting board or in a food processor, finely chop the mushrooms. Set aside. Place a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat and add the oil. Add the garlic, carrots, celery and onions with a large pinch of salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables soften and begin to caramelize. This will take about 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms and bundle of thyme. Cook until the mushrooms begin to brown and dry out, about 5 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste and toast it until it looks rusty, a few minutes. Turn the head to medium low and slowly add the milk. Stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper and continue to simmer. Cook, partially covered, until the sauce has thickened and all the liquid is reduced, at least 20 minutes.
Start cooking your pasta according to package directions.
To serve, combine the cooked pasta with the mushroom sauce. Top with Parmesan.
Enjoyed this! I’m with you for mushrooms…..had totally forgotten the ones in the can - Vintage!