What’s Fresh this Week, Plus A Farmer with a Microscope

Happy sunny Thursday, folks!

We hope your new plant starts have been thriving with all this spring rain.  We have a great line-up for you this week.  Now that we’ve entered Phase 2 of reopening and are days away from a hopeful Phase 3, we have decided to re-introduce a few of the things you love about market, including live music and temporary vendors who enhance the market with their wide array of unique foods and crafts.   Social distancing, masks and sanitation will still be strongly encouraged, and our Friends of the Market (501c3) will continue to provide free sanitizer for you to use at each booth, and stations around the market.  But smart shopping can be fun too, right?

This week we welcome Nick Grow to the stage.  He’s an acoustic guitarist and singer who covers classic hits and forgotten favorites from the past 70 years, as well as a few of his own original titles.

And for those who prefer, our Curbside Pickup Program is still available to serve you.  We’ve worked out the kinks and last week went very smoothly, with wait times of under 5 minutes.  So feel free to take advantage of that option too.  Order online here.

On Stage:

Saturday: Nick Grow

New Vendor Spotlight: Farmer with a Microscope

Entrepreneurship runs in the family – both families.  Fortunately the Viauds and the Platts live next door to each other.  While sisters-in-law Jennifer and Stephanie launched a business together growing succulents and selling arrangements at the Farmers’ Market, their spouses George and Paul delved into an mutual interest of theirs – growing mushrooms.

With backgrounds in engineering and software, Paul’s natural green-thumb, and a mutual love for good food, these brothers-in-law-turned-backyard-farmers have turned their in-town yard and garage into an impressive, home-built, climate-controlled growing operation.  They even built their own pasteurizer for sterilizing the growing medium, and a mushroom growing room (which resembles a cheese cave) that sends alerts to their phones if temperature or humidity fluctuate too far.

And now that they’ve worked out the kinks and are transitioning into full production, Gem State Mushrooms will be bringing their beautiful Bears Head, Pearl Oyster and King Oyster mushrooms to the Farmers’ Market, and they hope their product line will continue to grow.

Curious how to prepare mushrooms?  Sauteed in garlic and butter is always a sure and easy bet, says Jennifer.  But if you have a little more time, try the recipe she recommends for Bears Head Mushroom Crabcakes (below).

….I did, and it was chewy, filling and delicious!

Gem State Mushrooms in Coeur d’Alene can be reached at contact@gsm.farm.

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Bears Head Mushroom Crabcakes

Servings: 4

Author: Forager Chef

Ingredients

• 1 lb bears head mushrooms
• 2 large or medium eggs + 1 yolk
• 1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
• 2 tablespoons butter
• Seasonings can be adjusted to what's on hand use cilantro instead of tarragon, etc
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 2-3 scallions tender green and white parts only quartered the long way and diced into 1/4 inch squares
• 1 small clove garlic grated or smashed to a paste about 1/2 teaspoon
• Zest of half a lemon or to taste
• 2 tablespoons fresh cut chives
• 1 tablespoon fresh chopped Italian parsley
• Good pinch of fresh chopped tarragon plus more to taste optional
• Cayenne or a shot of Tabasco to taste
• 2-3 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce or to taste
• 2 tablespoons grated high quality parmesan like Reggiano

Instructions

1. Break the Bears Head into manageable sized pieces so that you can inspect and clean it. If the mushroom is very clean, great, if it's dirty, dip it quickly into a sink or bowl of cold water, give it a firm "swish" then wrap it in a towel to dry and weep water.

2. After the mushrooms are cleaned, preferably all together in a large, high sided pan, sweat them in the two tablespoons of butter and a good pinch of salt, covering the pan with a lid to help them wilt, try not to brown the mushrooms since you want the finished cakes to be white inside, keep an eye on them so they don't stick.
3. Water will come out of the mushrooms while they cook, especially if you had to wash them. When the mushrooms are completely cooked through and wilted, transfer them to a bowl and allow to cool until you can handle them. Squeeze the mushrooms to release excess water, then reserve the mushrooms and juice separately.
4. Chop the mushrooms medium-fine then transfer to a mixing bowl and add the remaining ingredients, starting with the breadcrumbs. Work the mixture around to saturate the breadcrumbs, (add some of their liquid if you need). Try forming a small quarter sized piece of the mixture and cooking to check the seasoning and how the cake holds together. Adjust the seasoning if needed for, heat (cayenne) salt, lemon, and tarragon if you feel it's needed, then take 1/4 cups of the mixture and pack into a ring mold, pressing down so they hold their shape.
5. Fry the cakes in oil or butter on both sides until golden and eat hot, I like to garnish them with spicy mayonnaise, made with sriracha mixed with aioli, or even Hellmans in a pinch.

Recipe Notes

Hericium can hold a lot of water which I like to cook out for the most firm, meaty cake possible. I sweat the mushrooms until they wilt to begin the cooking process, squeeze out the water, then chop the mushrooms, recombine with their juice and cook until the mushrooms are glazed in their liquid to not waste anything, but you can just squeeze the juice out of them and discard too. If your mushrooms were very clean and you didn't have to rinse them in water, you may not need to squeeze out much liquid at all after you've wilted them

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