In this week’s newspapers they were guessing the date of the first snowfall. Seriously? Calm down, everyone. It's fall. FALL! Let’s not freak out, okay? So no talking about snow, snowstorms, ice, or ice cold winds from the North Pole. Thank you. I appreciate it.
They sit on
my kitchen countertop like gold nuggets. Fragile and beautiful. Only hours
before they were hiding in the woods, living with their best friends, the birch
trees. It's called symbiosis.
For me the chanterelle is the queen of mushrooms. They don't even need a crown - they are the crown.
I decided to make a chanterelle potato gratin. A fall favorite. I think it’s at its best as a side for a Sunday roast beef. But feel free to enjoy it at any day of the week. You won't be disappointed.
As cheese I used another royal - Västerbotten cheese. It's one of Sweden’s oldest and best-known brands. A very flavorful and versatile hard cheese.
Feel free to use any other wild mushroom or flavorful cheese variety.
Chanterelle Potato Gratin
Adapted from Leilas
guldkant på vardagen by Leila Lindholm, p. 55
Serves 4-6
1 kg
(2 pounds 3.5 oz) potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced {use a mandolin if you
have one}
¼ (about 140
g; 5 oz) celeriac, peeled and thinly sliced
1 onion,
thinly sliced
2 garlic
gloves, thinly sliced
4 dl (1.7 cups) light
cream
1 tbsp chopped
thyme
½ tbsp fine
sea salt
freshly ground
black pepper
200 g
(7 oz) chanterelles, cleaned and halved/quartered {depending on the size}
butter
60 g (2 oz;
1 dl) grated cheese {I used Västerbotten cheese but a Swiss-type cheese like Emmentaler would be great too}
fine sea
salt and freshly ground black pepper
Preheat the
oven to 200°C (400°F). Butter a 28-by-24-cm (11-by-9-inch) baking dish and set
aside.
In a medium-sized pot, combine the cream, thyme, salt, and pepper and bring to a boil. Add the sliced potatoes, celeriac, onion, and garlic. Simmer for 15 minutes.
In a frying pan, sauté the chanterelles in butter. Season with salt and pepper.
Add the mushrooms and cheese to the potato mixture. Pour into the buttered baking dish.
Bake on the middle rack for 25-30 minutes, or until the top is golden brown.
