Brik with Wild Spring Greens & Morel Mushrooms

Brik is a popular north African street food with many different regional variations. The version I’ve come to love are commonplace in Tunis, where my dad spent the first 14 years of his life. It wasn’t until more recently that I truly realized how special they are. Tumeric spiced potatoes, capers, chopped onion, and a whole egg packed into a delicate pastry dough, fried until crispy, topped with some harissa or fermented bomba paste and a squeeze of lemon. They are deeply satisfying. Crunchy on the exterior and velvety on the inside.

The version here layers in some freshly foraged ramp leaves and morels - but any sort of fresh herbs or greens (think nettles, wintercress, spring onions, etc) would work really well in this format. The recipe here features a homemade pastry dough - mixed together like a crepe batter and painted onto a nonstick pan on a double boiler. If you don’t want to make a fuss, any store bought spring roll wrappers work really well too.

Recipe as follows and video of the whole process below.

The Pastry Dough (Warqa)

Ingredients

100 g 00 Flour

150 g semola flour (or similar)

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp salt

450 g room temperature water

*makes about 10 8” circles

Directions

1. Mix all ingredients together in a bowl and whisk together until there are no clumps. You can use a food processor for this step as well.

2. Cover and allow to rest for 1 hour.

3. Set a non stick pan over a pot of boiling water to create a double boiler.

4. Lightly coat the surface with olive oil. This step is important and you’ll want to ensure the surface is clean and oiled before each time you make a sheet of dough.

5. Using a brush, “paint” on a thin layer of the batter across the entire surface. Work quickly and make sure there are no holes as you go. The batter will quickly start to solidify on the hot pan. After about 3 - 4 minutes the dough should be ready. Use a spatula or utensil to peel the dough away from the edges of the pan, carefully remove the pastry dough and transfer to a clean work surface to air dry. Repeat the process until all the batter is gone.

6. After air drying, they can be stacked and if done properly they will not stick to one another. Wrap in a clean towel and set aside until ready to cook.

The Brik

Ingredients

About 6 medium yellow potatoes (peeled)

1 tbsp tumeric powder

1 tsp salt

About 6 - 8 ramp leaves (or finely diced red onion)

8 oz of fresh morels (or similar mushroom)

2 tbsp chopped capers

1/4 cup good olive oil

Directions

1. Bring a pot of water to a boil and boil the potatoes until fork tender (about 20 minutes).

2. Drain and set aside to cool.

3. In a medium skillet saute the diced morel mushrooms in some olive oil. They will reduce in size significantly as they cook. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook for about 10 minutes until they start to form a nice brown color. Add chopped ramp leaves and saute for a few minutes until the mixture is well incorporated and fragrant.

4. Mix the ramps and morels with the potatoes and use a fork to smash it all together.

5. Add the capers, tumeric, and olive oil, a little salt and pepper and continue mashing.

6. The mixture should be slightly chunky and glistening with the olive oil. Here you can add some harissa to the mixture if you like it spicy.

7. Bring a nonstick pan to medium heat and cover the bottom with olive oil.

8. On a clean plate, lay down a sheet of the pastry dough. On one half of the dough spoon on the potato mixture and carefully create a well in the center large enough to crack an egg in the middle and leaving room along the edges to fold over.

9. Brush on an egg wash along the edges, fold the circle in half, pressing the edges to seal and carefully slide the brik into the hot pan. Fry for about 3 minutes until crispy and golden brown. Using a spatula, carefully flip the brik over and fry the other side for another 3 minutes until golden brown.

10. Transfer to a paper towel lined dish to absorb excess oil and allow to cool for a few minutes before eating.

11. Serve with harissa, fermented bomba, and a squeeze of lemon.

Wild Spring Quiche with Morels and Ramps

This quiche has been on my mind for a while and the stars finally aligned - morels (sautéed in duck fat), ramps, fontina, and some sweet/mild Chimayo chili flakes that I just brought back from New Mexico, all cradled in a flaky pie crust. It was better than I even expected and works as breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Video of the whole process below.

Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Ingredients

6 eggs

3/4 cup heavy cream

1 cup finely diced fontina cheese

1/2 cup fresh ramp leaves (sliced into strips)

1 cup fresh morels (or other mushroom of choice) thinly sliced

1 tbsp dry chili flakes (I’m using a mild Chimayo chili for this but modify according to how spicy you like)

Duck fat (or butter)

Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Directions

1. Set the oven to 375F.

2. Chop/dice your fresh mushrooms and ramp leaves.

3. Bring a medium sized pan to medium heat.

4. Drop in about two tablespoons of duck fat or butter.

5. Saute the morels for about 5 minutes.

6. Add the dried chili flakes and continue to simmer on medium/low for a few more minutes.

7. Add the ramp slivers and turn the heat off. It will smell fragrant and amazing. Allow to come to room temperature.

8. In a bowl, whisk together the eggs and heavy cream.

9. Add the finely diced fontina (grated works here too) into the egg mixture.

10. Add the mushroom & ramps mixture and mix well. The oil from the chili flakes will mix with the eggs and make a wonderful orange color.

11. Season with salt and pepper.

12. Pour the egg mixture into your prepared/parbaked pie crust. (see below for more details about how I made it, but feel free to use whatever pie dough recipe you prefer. The recipe I am using requires you to pre-bake the crust for 20 minutes before you add the filling.)

13. Bake at 375F for about 40 minutes until the eggs are set and the crust is a golden brown.

14. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for about ten minutes before eating.

15. Enjoy.

The Pie Crust

I’m using a Smitten Kitchen recipe for my pie dough which uses the following ingredients.

Ingredients

8 tbsp butter

1 cup of all purpose flour

1/3 tsp sea salt

1/4 cup cold water

1/2 tbsp granulated sugar

I followed her recipe and was very satisfied with the results - a recipe with very similar proportions as many other pie dough recipes you’ll find online.

Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Wild Mushroom Arancini

Here's a spin on a classic Arancini where I've stripped it down to the basics and built it back together using seasonal foraged ingredients. I used an arborio rice and prepared as you would a traditional risotto, layering in a stock fortified with wild mushrooms, parmesan cheese, butter and a ramp puree. Any wild mushroom can be used in this recipe but since it's spring I'm using morels and chicken of the woods mushrooms (separately). Along with the wild mushrooms they're packed with hunks of caciocavallo from Jersey Girl Cheese. I'm still on the fence about Chicken of the Woods, but I found the method described below renders them in a way where they almost resemble bacon or pancetta. Of course you can't really go wrong with morels. These are relatively easy to make, and a great way to incorporate wild seasonal ingredients into classic recipes. Video of the whole process available below.

Ingredients

Arborio rice (2 cups)

Stock (8 cups chicken or veggie)

Wild mushrooms (1 cup cooked and diced)

Ramp puree (ramp leaves and olive oil)

Caciocavallo cheese (1.5 cups cubed into small pieces)

Parmesan cheese (3/4 cup freshly grated)

Butter (1 stick)

Salt and Pepper

All purpose flour

Plain bread crumbs

Canola Oil

Risotto Instructions

1. Heat your stock in a separate pan and bring to a low simmer. For this recipe I’m using a chicken stock fortified with wild mushrooms to add more depth.

2. Melt butter in a large pan and add in the rice. Stir well so all the rice is lubricated with the melted butter. Saute for 1 to 2 minutes.

3. Slowly pour in a cup of hot broth and stir into the rice. For the next half hour, you’ll want to continue adding in one cup at a time so the rice doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pan. Start to finish it will take about 30 minutes, and you’ll want to be constantly stirring.

4. After about 15 minutes of cooking the rice, gradually adding in more stock as you stir, add in about 1 cup of ramp puree. Since I’m making this a little later in the season, I’m using a batch that watch frozen. It’s a simple puree of ramp leaves and olive oil. If ramps are not available you could substitute this with a nice garlicky pesto.

5. Add in more broth and continue stirring. The risotto will now be a beautiful green color. Add in the grated Parmesan and continue stirring. Add more broth as necessary. The rice should never be completely covered with broth, but there should always be enough to make sure it’s not sticking to the pan.

6. Season with salt and pepper to taste and allow the risotto to come to room temperature.

Arancini Instructions

1. Take a scoop of the risotto in your hands and form a cup in the palm of your hand. Gently pack the rice down so it doesn’t feel loose.

2. In the middle of the rice, add a few chunks of caciocavallo cheese and the cooked mushrooms.

3. Take another scoop of rice with your free hand and gently pack it on top. Carefully form the ball together, pressuring it evenly all around, being mindful to patch any weak spots with more rice. It should be roughly the size of a baseball, and hold together well after shaping. Set them aside until you’ve shaped all of your balls.

4. In medium size bowl, whisk together about a cup of flour to a cup of water to make a paste. It should have the consistency as pancake batter. Put about 2 cups of breadcrumbs into another bowl.

5. One by one, evenly coat each rice ball in the flour paste. Use your hands to ensure the entire surface is coated. Transfer each ball into the bowl of bread crumbs and roll them around until they have an even coating. Try to avoid large clumps of flour and breadcrumbs. You’ll likely want to wash your hands a few times periodically. Set all of the rice balls into a large tray.

6. Bring a heavy duty pot of canola oil (or deep fryer) up to 350 F. Make sure it’s deep enough to fully submerge the balls. Fry each rice ball for about 4 -5 minutes each until golden brown, turning periodically so they get an ever color.

7. Transfer the balls to absorbent paper, paper towels, to soak up some of the excess oil.

8. Arancini’s are most commonly enjoyed room temperature, but they’re also quite nice when still a little hot. They hold their shape a bit better once they’d cooled down.

Wild Mushroom Instructions

Morels

I’m making these in late spring, so morels are already past peak. I had a good year with morels so I have a small stash of dried morels. I simply soaked them in warm water for 15 minutes, drained, and cooked them just as you would with fresh morels. If using this method, make sure to save the water after soaking, and add it into your stock.

Chicken of the Woods

Full disclosure, COTW is not one of my favorite edibles. They are beautiful to look at, and I’ve been trying to find a way to cook them where I’d be excited about it. I did however enjoy how these turned out, albeit they were more a subtle part of the dish. I braised only the most tender pieces in a chicken stock for about ten minutes. Then sliced the outer most edges super thin into ribbons and sauteed them in some olive oil until they get nice and crispy. Season with a little salt and pepper. The color and texture out of the pan is almost bacon-like.

Tagliatelle with Morels in Cream Sauce

A mind melting delicious plate of tagliatelle and morels in a white wine + cream sauce needed no fancy garnish or embellishment. As the morel season in the northeast winds down, this was pure magic on a plate. If morels are not readily available or in season, any fresh wild mushroom would work nicely. Video of the whole process below.

Morel Cream Sauce

Ingredients

Fresh morel mushrooms

2 -3 finely diced ramp leaves (or cloves of garlic)

1 cup of heavy cream

1/4 cup white wine

Salt and pepper

1/2 stick of butter

1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan (plus more for finishing)

Instructions

1. Clean and slice the morels into pinky sized pieces.

2. Bring a skillet to medium heat and melt the butter.

3. Sauté the mushrooms for a few minutes and add the diced ramp leaves. Sauté for another minute.

4. Add the wine and bring up to a simmer so it starts to render down.

5. Continue stirring the mushrooms and slowly add in the heavy cream. Continue stirring and bring back to a simmer.

6. Simmer for another 5 minutes or so, and add more cream (or water) to adjust if necessary.

7. Add the freshly grated parmesan cheese and continue stirring. The sauce should be thickening, creamy, and will start to smell incredible. Season with salt and black pepper after tasting. The parmesan cheese is already quite salty and you don’t want to over salt.

8. The mushrooms should be tender, and completely cooked down. The total time should take about 20 minutes.

9. Transfer your cooked pasta directly into the pan with the cream sauce. Using tongs, roll the pasta around so the sauce complete coats all of the noodles.

10. Garnish each plate with some more freshly ground black pepper and parmesan cheese.

Freshly made tagliatelle is an excellent pair for the cream sauce.

Spring Morel + Ramp Oil Pizza

This is one of those pizzas that only happens once a year. It is spring at its best in pizza form. And after several years unsuccessfully searching for morels I finally had an opportunity to do what I've been thinking about for a very long time. Sauteed morels, ricotta and mozzarella cheese, ramp oil, wild violet flowers, fresh mint, and a little drizzle of honey on a sourdough crust wood fired in my Ooni Pro. Video of the whole process is embedded below.

Ingredients:

Fresh morels (sauteed in olive oil)

Fresh ricotta cheese

Shredded mozzarella

Ramp Oil (see instructions below)

Fresh mint

Wild Violet Flowers

Honey

Instructions:

The Morels

1. The real heart of this pizza are the morel mushrooms. For this recipe I chose only the ones in most perfect condition and sliced them in half lengthwise.

2. Saute the morels in olive oil on medium low heat until they begin to brown. This will take about ten minutes to soften them up. It’s important to cook morels thoroughly.

The Ramp Oil

1. Clean your ramp leaves in a cold bowl of water to remove any bits of dirt.

2. Trim the stems off completely leaving only the leaves behind.

3. Lay in the ramp leaves into your food processor (or blender) and add in good quality olive oil. You’ll have to use your best judgement on the amount depending on how many ramps you’re using. The consistency should be thinner than pesto.

4. Add a little dash of salt, and blitz for about a minute.

5. Transfer the puree into a fine mesh sieve and use a rubber spatula to press the oil down into a bowl. What’s left behind is a fragrant mash of ramp leaves with some traces of oil. This can be saved / frozen / and incorporated into countless other dishes. For now, you’re focusing on just the extracted oil that comes out of the sieve.

6. Transfer the oil into a container, ideally a squeeze bottle with cap. It’s ready to go. Store in the refrigerator.

The Dough

For the pizza dough I have been very happy using a Ken Forkish recipe from Flour Water Salt Yeast for an overnight dough with levain. It’s one of the few recipes that I have decided not to mess with as it always yields great results.

The Assembly & Finishing

1. Stretch your dough and drizzle first with a little bit of olive oil.

2. Layer on your shredded mozzarella cheese.

3. Now evenly distribute the sauteed morels.

4. Using a spoon, dollop on the fresh ricotta evenly across the pie.

5. Bake your pizza. I use a wood fired Ooni Pro but use whatever works for you.

6. Drizzle on a generous amount of ramp oil.

7. Drizzle on a swirl of honey.

8. Top with fresh mint and wild violet flowers.

9. Enjoy!