Magic Shrooms

There are 3 grocery stores in this world that I love to death. Wegman's in Ithaca, NY. Le Grand Epicerie in Paris. And the grocery section in the Hyndai department store in Seoul. I drop by the GE religiously, that some of the rude French workers have taken a liking to me and greet me in Korean. Weird. But cool. The other day, I couldn't help myself and bought some yellow oyster mushrooms (pleurots) and tiny mousserons. I know it's not mushroom season, but they just looked so pretty on display. And I really like pretty things. I came home...abracadabra...et voila!

Sauteed Wild Mushrooms with Creamy Polenta


FOR 4

INGREDIENTS:
1 pound wild mushrooms
1 cup instant cook polenta
3 cup milk (or water)
½ cup grated parmesan cheese
½ cup mascarpone cheese
2 tablespoon oil (vegetable or peanut)
4 tablespoon unsalted butter
3 tablespoon chopped flat-leaf parsley
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

PREPARATION of Polenta:
Heat the milk over high heat. Once the milk comes to a boil, add the polenta and 1 tablespoon of butter. Cook on low heat for about 5 minutes constantly stirring with a wooden spoon. At the end of cooking, incorporate 1 tablespoon of butter, mascarpone and the grated parmesan.
Season with salt and pepper. The polenta should be supple and creamy. Keep warm.

PREPARATION of Mushrooms:
Heat the sauté pan with the oil until it is smoking, then add the mushrooms in a single layer. Leave them for about 2 minutes to get the heat back in the pan. Continue frying the mushrooms for another 3 minutes, stirring them a little, until all the juices have evaporated and the mushrooms are well colored. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter and let this cook to a nutty brown, about 1 minute, then add the parsley and as soon as the aroma hits you, season with salt and pepper.

FINISH:
Divide the polenta among 4 dishes, then top each with the sautéed mushrooms. Serve and eat immediately.

The dish was almost perfect. Only if they had some Girolles (baby chanterelles)...woulda been perfectly amazing...