Patia Stephens

I was at the Missoula Farmer’s Market last Tuesday evening when I spotted the biggest morel mushroom I’ve ever seen. I thought morel season ended a month or two ago, too.

I asked the vendor how high up he had to go to find them and he said with a grin, “So high my legs are still sore.”

I bought a basket for $10 and set out to do that big sucker justice. Asking around and doing a little online research led me to come up with the following. I have to admit, it was one of the most delicious meals I’ve ever prepared. I had a few requests for the recipe, so here it is. Sorry, I don’t really use measurements.

Stuffed Giant Morel with Red Wine Cream Sauce

Cut smaller morels in half lengthwise to facilitate cleaning. Quickly rinse in colander and pat dry with paper towels. Set aside large morel.

Chop small morels and saute in butter and fresh minced garlic until golden brown.

Chop walnuts and a few dried cranberries; slice green onions (scallions). Toss with morels during last minute or two of cooking. Add a little salt, pepper and dried parsley.

Beat one egg with a little half and half. Add salt and pepper.

In another bowl, add half a cup or so of flour. (I used a whole wheat blend from Montana Wheat.)

Heat a good amount of olive oil in a small, clean pan.

Gently spoon the sauteed morel mixture into the large morel. Dip it into the egg mix, then flour. Do that a few times until it has a good coating.

Put the stuffed, battered morel into the hot olive oil and cook on medium-high heat, turning frequently so it starts to brown on all sides. Once it’s warm, weigh the giant morel down with a larger, heavy frying pan so it cooks evenly. It will flatten out; cook on both sides until brown.

Put any extra sauteed morels onto a plate and cover to keep warm. I sprinkled them with parmesan and used them as a bed for the big one.

I also cooked a ribeye steak in another frying pan. Then I deglazed both the steak pan and the sauteed morel pan with red wine.

Use the red wine as a base to make a cream sauce: wine, butter, half and half, a teaspoon or so of flour, salt and pepper. Whisk constantly on high heat until it thickens.

Pour the cream sauce over the stuffed morel. Pour a glass of wine and enjoy the heck out of yourself!

My thanks to the lovely farmer’s market vendor for his hard work picking morels in Montana’s high country in mid-August. Thanks also to Chef Ron Abfalter for cooking suggestions.