Cast Iron Chef: Mushroom Challenge

"Baby Giant" Rowan is a baby giant

I had a lovely visit with my friends Will, Chrissy, and their son, Rowan. We capitalized on some nice weather to do a bit of climbing, had some good conversation about the nuances of relationships, and I had some quality time playing with "baby giant" Rowan. My favorite moment was early in the morning when I heard Rowan outside my door asking, "Uncle Colbin?" (that's how my name comes out of a two year old's mouth). When I responded, he promptly jumped up on the bed and joined Megan and I in our sea of down comforters. Megan (who I have never seen so awake at 8am) said, "I love Uncle Calvin. Don't you?" Rowan agreed, and the two of them promptly smothered me with kisses. It was the sweetest type of good morning anyone could ask for.

Will, in the incubation room at Sno-Valley Mushrooms

Not only did I get some good baby kisses, but Will also delivered a couple pounds of gourmet mushrooms from his farm, Sno-Valley Mushrooms, in Duvall, WA. This prompted a series of cooking experiments that I have been calling "the Cast Iron Chef Challenge". With a few pounds of lion's mane and blue oyster mushrooms I created some amazing meals that I am dying to share. Compared to the button mushrooms you find at the grocery store, these toadstools have a strong meaty flavor and some amazing medicinal properties. Research suggests that lion's mane supports the immune system against certain types of cancer, and may be used to treat nerve damage related to Alzheimer's and dementia. I could write a whole article about the special powers of mushrooms, but, for now, I will focus on their power to make amazing food.

Of the meals I prepared with these specialty mushrooms my favorite was Lion's Mane Alfredo. I went all out, using fresh spinach fettuccine from Bellingham Pasta and heavy cream from Twinbrook Creamery, to produce the type of dinner you might find in a 5 star restaurant. Check out mushroom-appreciation.com for the recipe I used, and interesting facts about mushrooms. I want to urge you, dear reader, to look beyond the button mushroom and portabella and experiment with some of the more exotic fungi at your local grocer (or what you can find hiding in the woods). You may discover unparalleled richness of flavor and texture.

Rather than copy and paste the Lion's Mane Alfredo recipe, I will share one I made from scratch. With my trusty cast iron, I have made frittatas for every meal of the day. Using blue oyster mushrooms (also shown to have cancer fighting and antibacterial properties) this recipe made an amazing breakfast and can be prepared entirely in one pan.

A colorful, well balanced, and complete meal with almost no clean up

• Begin by preheating the oven to 375 degrees farenheit
• On the stove top, warm up your cast iron pan with a tablespoon of coconut or olive oil on medium/high heat (if it starts smoking it is too hot)
• Fry two medium sized potatoes washed and cut in 1cm cubes, for 7 minutes or until tender; stirring often
• Add a half pound of breakfast sausage breaking it up with a metal spatula. Also add mushrooms, chopped into 1in pieces, and half an onion, diced. Cook until sausage is brown, stirring often.
• Mix in a couple handfuls of spinach, and remove from heat.
• Beat 6 eggs and pour over mixture.
• Season with garlic, thyme, salt, and pepper
• Put the cast iron in the oven for 10 minutes or until egg is firm and beginning to brown
• Remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes, serve and enjoy (be careful not to burn yourself on the cast iron!)

You can go crazy with fritatta and add just about anything. Comment with your favorite fritatta and mushroom creations.