MORCHELLA, THE TRUE MORELS

Pasta with Morilles a la Crème (Morels with Cream)

Morel mushrooms, known as Morchella or true morels, are one of nature’s most exciting wild mushrooms to forage in spring. Morels possess wonderfully complex and delicious taste, commonly described as nutty, earthy, and slightly smoky. They are highly prized wild mushrooms, sought after for their unique flavor profile, texture, and rarity. Unlike many other types of mushrooms, morels are foraged instead of farmed. After cordyceps sinensis, truffles, and matsutake, they are one of the most expensive mushrooms in the world, their price going north of 400 euros per kg of dried and about 35-50 euros per kg of fresh mushroom.

No wonder mushroom hunters roam the woods to find this delicacy in spring, while their favorite foraging spots remain a good-kept secret. The recipe for successful morel hunting is to know when and where to look for them. Usually, I start looking for them after heavy spring rains, when the soil temperature reaches 12-15°C (53-59 F). They’ll usually stop fruiting when the soil temperature rises above those levels. In our location, this could be anywhere between April and May, although this year, for example, we already reached these temperatures by the middle of March.

When oak leaves are the size of a squirrel's ear, when lilacs and woodland violets are blooming, when the first asparagus breaks earth, when bullsnakes are moving, on Mother's Day - that's when you start looking for wild morel mushrooms.

THE OLD FARMER'S ALMANAC

Morels grow in a variety of locations. They tend to love flooded areas, especially sandy riverbanks. I often discover them while foraging wild garlic near streams.

They are more likely to appear in logged or recently disturbed woods and after forest fires. We also often find them in rich humus soil on the warmer south-facing slopes. They do not grow on trees but can be found near dead or dying trees, especially elms, poplars, ash trees, or even in old apple orchards.

At first, they are difficult to spot as they hide in the leaves and are a similar color, but as soon as you find the first one, the eyes understand what they are looking for and it gets easier to spot them. As soon as you find one, look for more as they are likely nearby.

Whenever foraging remember to practice the principles of the "honorable harvest". In the book "Braiding Sweetgrass" Robin Wall Kimmerer shares:

The guidelines for the Honorable Harvest are not written down, or even consistently spoken of as a whole - they are reinforced in small acts of daily life. But if you were to list them, they might look something like this: Know the ways of the ones who take care of you, so that you may take care of them. Introduce yourself. Be accountable as the one who comes asking for life. Ask permission before taking. Abide by the answer. Never take the first. Never take the last. Take only what you need. Take only what is given. Never take more than half. Leave some for others. Harvest in a way that minimizes harm. Use it respectfully. Never waste what you have taken. Share.

Most importantly, make sure you correctly identify what you're harvesting. There are over 100 different species of morels around the world. In color, they vary from grey, yellow, gold, blond, and black. But to make things easier, all true morels share similar characteristics and are edible. All true morel mushroom species have to be well cooked, as undercooked or raw morel can make people sick. Morel mushrooms do have some semi-lookalikes but can be easily distinguished and identified if following their distinct characteristics:

• true morels are always hollow in the center from the bottom of the stem to the tip of the cap

• true morels have pitted caps with a honeycomb structure

• true morels have caps that are completely connected to their stems 

When foraging, look for fresh-looking, sturdy, not brittle, and morel without blemishes, discolorations, or mold. Somewhat older and drier specimens can still be used for drying. Use a mushroom basket, so the spores will be distributed freely around the woods while you harvest. Ideally, you better clean the mushrooms before putting them in the basket to avoid dirt and earth getting in all the little honeycomb structures. If they are at their prime time, young, dry, and clean, they won’t need additional cleaning before use. However, the larger ones may be wise to cut in half and let eventual inhabitants of their hollow center leave before use. If the mushrooms are dirty, swish them quickly in cold water and put them on paper towels to drain.

Morels spoil fast, so you better use them immediately. They can last a few days in the fridge (or up to a week if they are in their prime time). I like to keep them in a paper bag covered with a lightly wet paper towel to avoid them from drying out.

If you get lucky and find a big batch of morels, you can easily dry them to preserve them for later. You can put them in a dehydrator or an oven at a low setting with doors slightly ajar to let the moisture out and dry until crisp. Check often so you don’t burn them. They will shrink a lot.

Morel mushrooms are very beneficial to our health. They are high in antioxidants, that help fight free radical damage and protect the cells against oxidative stress. A study has shown that morel mushrooms may help protect against harmful pathogens and fight infections caused by bacteria or yeast. In the study, the significant inhibitory activity of morel mushroom compounds has been discovered. Research by the Amala Cancer Research Center in Kerala, India showed, that administrating morel mushroom extract exhibited hepatoprotective activities and reduced several markers of liver disease. Preliminary research suggests that certain compounds of morels were able to enhance the activity and anti-inflammatory properties of immune cells. Besides enhancing immunity and delivering a splendid dose of health-supporting antioxidants, polysaccharides extracted from morel mushrooms showed powerful anti-proliferating and antitumor activities.

Pasta with Morilles a la Crème (Morels with Cream)

Morels with cream is one of my favorite sauces. This is a classic French morel preparation home in Périgord and Lyon, where morels truly shine: fresh morels are sauteed with caramelized onions, and cooked with white wine and cream. This sauce is delicious on its own paired with crunchy freshly-baked bread, over your favorite pasta, delicious with a tasty steak, and a huge seasoning with spring vegetables such as young peas or asparagus. It is a truly finger-licking sauce.

Ingredients (for 2 servings):

• 2 shallots

• 3 Tablespoons butter

• 120 g fresh morels

• 100 ml heavy cream

• 50 ml dry white wine

• 200 g of your favorite pasta

• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg

• salt and pepper to taste

• 50 g finely grated parmesan

• few twigs of fresh thyme

• fresh wild garlic blossoms (to garnish)

Preparation:

Cut large morel mushrooms in half lengthwise. If they’re dirty, clean them quickly under running cold water and put on a paper towel to dry.

Melt the butter in a stainless steel pan. Add thinly sliced shallots and sauté until caramelized, about 10 minutes.

Bring one large pot to boil and salt the water. Add your pasta to the boiling water and cook al dente.

Meanwhile, add cleaned morels and a pinch of salt to the stainless steel pan and cook until morels have given up their juices and the pan is nearly dry. Add the wine and reduce by half. Add fresh thyme, nutmeg, and the cream. Simmer until the sauce is thickened and very creamy. Drain the pasta, reserving a little of the cooking water. Toss the pasta with the morels, adding just a little cooking water. Season with salt and pepper, and adjust as needed. Toss with freshly ground Parmesan, garnish with fresh wild garlic blossoms, and serve immediately. Enjoy!