It is spring in Indiana. “Have you found any yet?” “Nope, too early?”  “When do you think they will be there?” “Needs to warm up a bit.”  A week later: “How about this week, seen any?” “Nope, we need a good rain.” And another opinion: “Wait until the tulip poplar starts to bud.”

Finally we have warm weather followed by a rain. “Where should I look?” “Anywhere.”  “Can you be more specific?” “Just anyplace, you never know where they will be this year.”   I take this as a code, for they are all over, but I am not telling you where!

I am looking for those rare, and now very pricey, morel mushrooms. The mushrooms are a challenge to find, IMG_1567[1]but hiking through the forest, breathing the fresh spring air gives me time to dream of recipes for mushroom pies.

Spring in Indiana also brings wild ramps, or wild leeks as they may be called. Both the green tops and the bulb are edible and can be roastedIMG_1573[1] or sautéed in butter. They add a garlic flavor to roasted vegetables, and also can be used to add flavor and texture to a mushroom pie!

Before I went to Pie Camp and learned to make pie crust, we always tossed the morels in a bag of flour and fried them in butter. But this year, I put them in a pie! A wild ramp and mushroom pie is like a quiche, but has robust spring flavors. You have to like mushrooms, and if you do, this pie is a sublime dining experience. I adapted a recipe for mushroom pie (see recipe) and substituted the morels for the mushrooms that were suggested in that recipe and the ramps for the onion and garlic. The recipe calls for Parmesan cheese in the filling, so I also dusted my pastry cloth with a bit of the grated Parmesan cheese along with the usual flour and rolled out the crusts on both sides with this mixture. The cheese shreds worked into the crust and gave a great preview (pretaste?) of flavors to come when taking the first bite of the filling. I had planned to serve 2 slices per person, but one was all we could eat! It was that rich and filling. I served this pie with a fresh spring greens salad, lightly dressed, and our favorite pinot noir from Cherry Hill winery in the Willamette Valley, Oregon.

People: XXX XXXXXXX. XXX is the morel master at the Billings’ Farm. All information about XXX is classified and must be redacted in this document! He has a good eye for the mushrooms and will share his secrets, as long as I won’t give them away!

Places: Forests in areas where morels grow, but just try to find someone who will tell you exactly where that place is! Commercial morel hunters range the forests from Oregon and California, through the Midwest, and as far south as North Carolina.IMG_1600[1]

Pie: Wild ramp and mushroom pie. A treat for spring in Indiana.IMG_1570[1]

 

Wild Ramp and Morel Mushroom Pie, Billings’ Farm
 
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Author:
Recipe type: Pie
Cuisine: American
Serves: 6 slices
Ingredients
  • For the crust:
  • • Use the basic crust recipe from http://www.artofthepie.com
  • • 2-4 Tablespoons fresh-grated Parmesan cheese for rolling out the top and bottom crusts
  • Prepare the mushrooms:
  • • Rinse the mushrooms in cold water, removing as much dirt as possible
  • • Slice the mushrooms lengthwise
  • • Place the sliced mushrooms in a shallow bowl with salted (about 2 Tbsps.) water; refrigerate overnight; rinse before using
  • For the filling:
  • • 2 tablespoons butter
  • • 1 cup ramps
  • • 2 lbs. of morel mushrooms (but could use or add other mushrooms)
  • • 2 teaspoons coarse salt
  • • ½ teaspoon black pepper
  • • 2 large eggs
  • • ½ cup heavy cream
  • • ¼ cup all-purpose flour
  • • 1 tablespoon fresh herbs (rosemary, thyme, and/or sage)
  • • ⅓ cup Parmesan cheese, grated
Instructions
  1. For the crust:
  2. Follow directions at http://artofthepie.com for basic crust. When rolling out the dough, add 1-2 Tbsp. of grated Parmesan cheese to the flour and roll the crust on both sides to incorporate the Parmesan cheese. Transfer the bottom crust to a deep dish pie plate.
  3. For the filling:
  4. Heat the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Rough chop the stems and leaves of the ramps and sauté in the butter until soft and wilted. Chop the mushrooms into large pieces and to the skillet and cook until browned, stirring frequently. Season with salt and pepper.
  5. In a medium bowl, whisk together the heavy cream, eggs, and flour. Add the mushroom mixture, herbs, and cheese and stir to combine. Pour the filling into the bottom pie crust. Roll out the top crust on both sides in the Parmesan cheese and flour mixture and place on top of the pie. Pinch the two crusts together and tuck into the dish to seal. Cut slits into the crust to vent. Brush top crust with egg wash.
  6. Bake at 350 degrees F until crust is golden brown and juices are bubbling, about 60-75 minutes. Let the pie cool to room temperature before serving to let the filling thicken.
  7. Keep any leftover pie in the refrigerator. If serving again, reheat the pie at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes.

Spring in Indiana: Wild Ramp and Morel Mushroom Pie, Billings’ Farm