Mushroom Monyet (Wild Mushroom En Croute)

I never entered any contest before, so when I found out the announcement at  Marxfoods about this mushroom contest, I didn't think twice about joining in. I commented to his blog to let him know that I was interested. The next thing I knew was this precious little package arrived at my house. Of course I was happy and excited to try them. The package consisted all of the ingredients needed for this recipe, they were perfect. I am very familiar with all of this mushroom with exception of black trumpet and matsutake, so I was glad that this two were included in the package. Whenever in season, I always try to buy fresh porcini, chanterelle, or morel, which is easily available in my grocery store. They are pricey, but worth every penny. When I cook with such a precious mushroom like this, I never really interested in adding too many herbs and spices that I would normally do in my cooking.  I always worry that the fragrant and spiciness will compete with the earthy flavor of this mushrooms. As for the pink peppercorn, you don't have to worry, the flavor is delicate, not too peppery spicy and has a tad of sweetness to it, so is not overpowering.



So here is my entry that I adapted from my own recipe created for my husband and my son so many years ago. This recipe has become a family recipe that I make from time to time, a recipe that I passed down to my sisters, brother, and to my son who is very much interested and likes to cook. And by the way, he can do a good job on braiding the pastry too :).

All mushrooms listed in this recipe can be purchase here.



Mushroom Monyet (Wild Mushroom En Croute)
Serve 8 as an appetizer or 4 as a main dish
~elra~

Ingredients:

1 sheet (about 8 to 9 oz) homemade or store-bought  puff pastry
1/2 oz dried matsutake
1/2 oz dried lobster
1/2 oz dried porcini  
1/2 oz dried black trumpet
1/2 oz dried chanterelle
7½ oz fresh shitake, discard the stems - sliced
1½ medium size onions, chopped
2 - 3 tbs olive oil
1/4 cup chopped parsley
4½ oz grated French gruyere
4 tbs crème fraîche
salt to taste
½ tsp pink peppercorns, lightly crushed

1 egg yolk
1 tsp milk

Reconstitute the dried mushrooms by soaking them in hot boiling water until soft, about an hour or two. Drain, squeeze the excess water, then roughly chop. If you wish, you can reserve  the water for other use, such as to make stock.

Caramelized the chopped onion with 2 tablespoon olive oil about 10 minutes on a medium high heat. Once caramelized add all mushrooms including shitakes, lower the heat to medium and saute for 10 minutes, if looks a little dry add another tablespoon of olive oil. Season with salt and  crushed pink peppercorns. Set aside to cool. When the mushroom is cool enough add crème fraîche and the cheese, mix well. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.

Roll out the puff pastry to 14 by 14-inch square, transfer to a piece of parchment paper, then place it on a baking sheet. Transfer the mushroom in the middle of the pastry, make a series of 1-inch slanting cuts on both side (between the mushroom filling). Start braiding the pastry by over lapping each of the slice on top of the filling to enclose it. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes up to 24 hours. Check this video on how to braid the puff pastry.

Preheat oven to 375⁰F.

In a small bowl, combine the yolk and the milk together. Brush pastry with this egg wash mixture. Bake mushroom monyet in the middle rack for 35 minutes, or until golden brown. Serve hot with simple green salad as a main dish, or cold as an appetizer.