A Hunt and Gather culinary adventure for the Holidays with clay mushroom ornaments to trim your tree and a mushroom dish that brings the deep, earthy, flavors of the Italian forest to your Christmas table.
Why mushrooms at Christmas? Mushrooms are featured in a number of Christmas traditions. From seasonal food to the belief that it's good luck to hang mushroom ornaments on the Christmas tree. Italians love mushrooms. Coming into season in the fall Italians celebrate the mushroom with festivals (Sagre dei Funghi) that attract crowds of people from all over Italy. They enjoy them with everything from pasta to robust stews, sauces and tarts. Mushrooms make a delicious risotto or when sautéed with olive oil and balsamic an easy bruschetta topping for a holiday aperitivo or light meal.
Our Nonna liked to serve them with polenta and we think that her fondness for the funghi goes back to an ancient tradition from Northern Italy. The pairing of polenta and mushrooms has a seasonal history that goes by back to the forests of Northern Italy when woodcutters foraged for wild mushrooms to make a hearty funghi trifolati of sautéed mushrooms as a side dish served with polenta. The dish became known as Woodcutter’s Polenta and Mushrooms and is a popular dish even today. In the coldest months, friends and relatives still gather around the table, open a bottle of a good red wine and share a platter of polenta topped with mushrooms.
Woodcutter's Polenta and Mushrooms
You can use one variety of mushrooms or a combination to make this dish. If wild mushrooms aren't available you can use white mushrooms, which does not alter in the slightest the character of this traditional wild mushroom recipe.
To prepare the fungi trifolati start by cleaning 1 lb of fresh mushrooms, removing any traces of soil. Rinse them quickly under running water and gently dry. Thinly slice the mushrooms cutting them into pieces.
Sauté the mushrooms in a large skillet on medium high heat with 1 T unsalted butter and 1 T extra virgin olive oil. Sprinkle the mushroom slices with a pinch of coarse salt. We prefer to use Dario Cecchini Profumo del Chianti Herbal Salt Blend. This will cause the mushrooms to release their juices. Continue the sauté until the mushrooms are soft and well-browned, 4 to 8 minutes longer. Reduce heat to medium. Add 1 fresh garlic clove smashed. Adjust seasonings of salt and coarsely ground black pepper to taste. Cover and cook, stirring until aromatic, about 3-5 more minutes. Add 1/4 cup Italian red wine into mushrooms if desired and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until liquid has slightly evaporated, 2 to 3 minutes. Sprinkle mushrooms with some chopped fresh Italian parsley. Serve with a creamy polenta.
*you can also 1/2 tsp chopped nepitella (Calamintha nepeta) when you add the garlic. Nepitella is a regional herb from Tuscany with a woodsy flavor, a subtle combination of mint, basil, oregano and thyme. Nonna did not use it in this recipe. I discovered it while in Tuscany.
Hunt and Gather Clay Mushroom Ornaments
This has become one of my favorite DIY projects for the holidays. These Hunt and Gather Clay Mushroom Ornaments add a whimsical rustic touch to your Christmas tree or make a unique and personal Christmas gift. (From Inspired By Charm).
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