What better way to spend a cold, wet, autumn Sunday than to head to Mid Wales to take part in some mushroom foraging with mushroom expert Dan Butler?
Well, thanks to my friend and hedgerow guru Adele Nozedar, that’s exactly what I did.
I love mushrooms, they’re so versatile and healthy but I went along to the fungi foray prepared that it was time to move past the Sauteed Mushrooms, to shun the run of the mill button variety and start being a bit more adventurous with fungi…
Adele has covered this great day on her blog which you can read here…
Meanwhile here are 10 reasons why mushrooms are great…
1. Mushrooms are uber healthy…
They’re low calorie, packed full of iron and other vitamins and minerals and have been linked to decreased risk of chronic diseases.
2. Mushrooms are a great source of vitamin D
Did you know that if you leave mushrooms out in the sunshine for 20 minutes before eating them they can absorb Vitamin D? Ingesting a handful of vitamin D-enriched mushrooms four times a week can bring serum levels to a healthy baseline.
3. Mushroom Soup
Good mushroom soup can be amazing…not only amazing but also cheap and quick to make.
Mushroom Soup Recipe
Ingredients
- 600 g mixed mushrooms
- olive oil
- 1 onion, peeled and finely sliced
- 2 sticks celery, trimmed and finely sliced
- 3 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced
- a few sprigs of fresh flat-leaf parsley, leaves picked and chopped, stalks finely chopped
- a few sprigs of fresh thyme, leaves picked
- 1.5 litres organic chicken or vegetable stock
- sea salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- 75 ml single cream
- 4-6 slices ciabatta bread
Method
Peel off any tough outer skins of the mushroom caps and throw them away, then slice the mushrooms finely. Heat a large saucepan over a medium heat and pour in a splash of olive oil. Add the onion, celery, garlic, parsley stalks, thyme leaves and mushrooms, place a lid on top and sweat gently until softened.
Spoon 4 tablespoons of mushrooms out of the pan and put to one side. Pour the stock into the pan and bring to the boil. Turn the heat down and simmer for 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, then whiz with a hand-held blender until smooth. Pour in the cream, bring just back to the boil, then turn off the heat.
Toast the slices of ciabatta in a hot griddle pan, then top with most of the reserved mushrooms and drizzle with olive oil. Spoon the soup into deep, individual bowls, garnish with the chopped parsley and remaining mushrooms, and serve with the ciabatta crostini.
Recipe via Jamie Oliver
4. They can save the world…watch this TedTalk
5. They can help you be meat-free
Check out this Pinterest board with plenty of recipes for Meatfree Monday’s using Mushrooms…
Personally my favourite is these meatless “meatballs”…
Beautiful photos Rachel. I’m a big fan of mushrooms, both plain and fancy ones (love shiitake). I have a recipe on my blog (taken from Sarah Brown’s Vegetarian Kitchen) for a mushroom risotto which is so simple but such a favourite in our house, especially as the colder weather arrives. Your soup recipe definitely looks like one to try, too. Plus I love a homemade mushroom pate!