Roasted Prawns With Morels And Morel Butter Food

PASTA WITH MORELS, PEAS AND PARMESAN

Steps:

• Bring to a boil 2 pots of water, one small and one large, and salt both. Cook the peas for 1 minute in the small pot; drain and cool quickly by submerging in ice water.
• Meanwhile, melt half the butter in a skillet. Cut the morels into 4 pieces each, the long way, and brown them lightly in the butter, seasoning them with salt and pepper.
• Cook the pasta until it is nearly done. Just before draining, toss the peas and remaining butter with the morels and turn the heat to medium. Drain the pasta, reserving a little of the cooking water. Toss the pasta with the morels and peas, adding a little water if necessary to make the mixture saucy. Toss with the Parmesan and lots of black pepper and serve immediately.

ROASTED PRAWNS WITH MORELS AND MOREL BUTTER

Steps:

• Finely chop enough fresh morels or reconstituted morels to measure 1/2 cup (packed); reserve remaining morels. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in medium nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add 1/4 cup shallots and garlic; sauté 1 minute. Add chopped morels and thyme; sauté 2 minutes. If using dried morels, add reserved soaking liquid to skillet, leaving any sediment behind. Increase heat; boil until almost all liquid evaporates, about 8 minutes. Transfer morel mixture to small bowl; cool. Mix remaining 7 tablespoons butter into morel mixture. Season lightly with salt and pepper. (Morel butter can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and chill.)
• Using scissors, cut along back shell of each prawn all the way up to tail, exposing vein; pull out vein. Turn prawns over. Using small sharp knife and starting just below tail end, butterfly each prawn by cutting 1/4-inch-deep slit to opposite end. Place prawns, shell side down, on rimmed baking sheet. (Can be made 6 hours ahead. Cover; chill.)
• Preheat oven to 500°F. Melt 2 tablespoons morel butter in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add remaining 1/2 cup shallots; sauté until golden, about 3 minutes. Add remaining whole fresh morels or reconstituted morels and sauté until tender, about 4 minutes.
• Meanwhile, spread 1 teaspoon morel butter over each giant prawn (or 1/4 teaspoon over each of 24 large prawns). Roast just until prawns are opaque in center, about 7 minutes for giant prawns or 4 minutes for large prawns. Top prawns with remaining morel butter, dividing equally. Return to oven just long enough to melt butter slightly, about 10 seconds.
• Transfer prawns to plates. Serve sautéed morels alongside.
• *If using dried morels: Bring 3 cups water to boil in medium saucepan. Add dried morels. Remove from heat. Cover; let steep 1 hour. Using slotted spoon, transfer morels to bowl. Reserve soaking liquid.

ROASTED ASPARAGUS AND MOREL MUSHROOMS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.
• Arrange asparagus and mushrooms on the prepared baking sheet. Drizzle with oil and sprinkle with salt; toss to coat. Roast, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes. Add butter and thyme. Toss to coat, and roast an additional 5 minutes.
• Arrange vegetables on a serving platter. Top with arugula, sprinkle with salt, and drizzle with balsamic vinegar.

PAN-ROASTED BREAST WITH MORELS, RAMPS AND FROTHED PARMESAN

Steps:

• For the pan-roasted chicken: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Place a medium saute pan over medium-high heat. Season 2 airline chicken breasts (skin on) on both sides with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Pat dry the chicken with paper towels. Add the blended oil to the pan and heat. Once heated, add the chicken skin-side down into the hot pan and sear until golden brown, about 3 to 5 minutes. Flip and add a couple sprigs fresh rosemary, thyme, and unsalted butter. Allow the butter to melt and baste the chicken with the melted butter. Place the pan into the preheated oven for 3 to 5 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through, 160 degrees F.
• For the Parm froth: To a small saucepan, add 2 cups chicken stock, 2 rinds Parmesan cheese, 1 sprig fresh rosemary, bay leaf, sliced garlic, sliced shallots, pinch salt, and taste for seasoning. Re-season if needed and allow to boil. Just prior to straining add the lemon juice. Place a wire mesh strainer over a medium bowl. Strain and press the sauce through the sieve.
• Place the egg yolks into another medium bowl and temper the egg yolks whisking in a small amount of the heated lemon-chicken stock and then whisk the egg mixture back into the bowl with the remaining lemon-chicken stock. Place the egg-lemon stock mixture back into the same saucepan off the heat. Place over low heat, but do not allow to come to a boil. The eggs could scramble. Taste and season the sauce, if needed. Add 2 tablespoons Parm cheese and whisk to combine. Just before serving, use an immersion blender to froth the sauce.
• Remove the chicken from the oven and set aside to rest. Remove the extra herbs and discard, reserving the fat. Place the fat over the medium-high heat and add the morels and season with salt. When ready, flip the mushrooms and add the ramps. Toss to combine. Carefully pour off some of the excess fat, if necessary. Deglaze the pan with a little bit of chicken stock, about 1/2 cup. Reduce the heat.
• For serving: Slice the chicken on the bias or diagonal and place the slices onto a plate. Top with the ramps, morels, and drizzle with the frothed sauce. Season with sea salt.
• Rinse the chicken parts thoroughly. In a 10-quart stockpot, combine the onion, carrot, garlic, thyme, salt, bay leaf, peppercorns, and 1 gallon cold water. Bring the liquid to a boil over high heat, skimming and discarding any foam and impurities that rise to the surface. Reduce the heat to low and simmer 5 hours, skimming the surface as necessary. Strain the stock through a fine-mesh strainer, discarding the solids. Makes 3 quarts

CHICKEN BREASTS WITH MORELS

Steps:

• Put morels in mixing bowl and add warm water to cover. Let stand 30 minutes or longer. Drain.
• Put each chicken breast half on flat surface, trim off all remnants of fat and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
• Heat 1 tablespoon of butter in small heavy skillet and add 1 tablespoon of shallots. Cook, stirring, until wilted. Add drained morels, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, about 1 minute and add 1/2 of wine. Cook until liquid is reduced by half. Add cream and cook 2 minutes.
• Heat 2 tablespoons of butter in skillet large enough to hold chicken in one layer. Add chicken pieces and cook over moderately high heat. As chicken pieces cook, stir gently without turning about 3 minutes or until nicely browned. Turn and continue cooking about 5 minutes.
• Transfer chicken to warm serving dish, arranging neatly. Add remaining shallots to skillet and stir briefly. Add remaining wine and stir to dissolve brown particles that cling to bottom of pan. Cook down until not quite evaporated. Add chicken broth and cook 1 minute.
• Heat morels in cream and spoon around chicken.
• Swirl remaining tablespoon of butter into sauce with chicken broth and spoon over chicken pieces.

CHICKEN WITH MORELS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Lift the morels carefully from the hot water in order to leave any grit behind in the liquid. Rinse a few times to be sure all the grittiness is gone. Discard the liquid and dry the morels lightly with paper towels. Set aside.
• Sprinkle the chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Dredge them in flour and shake off the excess. Heat half the clarified butter in a large saute pan and cook the chicken in 2 batches over medium-low heat until browned on both sides, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove to an ovenproof casserole.
• Add the rest of the clarified butter to the pan along with the shallots, drained morels, and garlic. Saute over medium heat for 2 minutes, tossing and stirring constantly. Pour the Madeira into the pan and reduce the liquid by half over high heat, 2 to 4 minutes. Add the creme fraiche, cream, lemon juice, 1 teaspoon salt, and 3¿4 teaspoon pepper. Boil until the mixture starts to thicken, 5 to 10 minutes. Pour the sauce over the chicken and bake for 12 minutes, or until the chicken is heated through. To make ahead, refrigerate the chicken and sauce in the casserole and reheat slowly on top of the stove.