Simulacrumbly

“Inside my browser, I’m made of cookies”

Fixin a plate on ds106radio

Cooking on air is nothing new for #ds106radio — and I mean that quite literally. @rowan_peter has been known to cook a meal beside a live microphone mixed atop an awesome playlist. Many DJs post photos of their cooking, baking, and spirit mixing as the playlists roll. And who can forget @RadioEUG and his KFC rice + Skype + radio?

And it just gets better and better. We’ve now had two recent cooking shows on #ds106radio. @CosmoCat got things started back in January, making some tasty-looking couscous while playing some tunes. She had the great idea for a semi-regular cook-along show.

And @joefromkenyon kept things rolling and evolving, sending out a recipe in advance and inviting folks to listen and cook along in real time. Jambalaya was the dish of choice, accompanied by some New Orleans-based musical selections.

So I’m thinking of taking my turn. I propose to make the Hungarian Mushroom Soup recipe from Molly Katzen’s The New Moosewood Cookbook (pg. 18).

I was inspired a few months back (October 2021) by @LaurenHeywood’s Learning to forage mushrooms post on her blog.

A tray of foraged fungi displaying 24 different varieties in many colors, shapes and sizes. All collected on a single foraging excursion.
A tray of foraged fungi displaying 24 different varieties in may colors, shapes and sizes. Photo by Lauren Heywood

And also by my near miss in collecting this beauty of a Lion’s Mane mushroom on my place in New York. I was about 3 or 4 days too late. Otherwise this would have been about 5 pounds in weight and likely very tasty.

A Lion's Mane mushroom growing on a dead standing Beech tree in Delaware County New York, October 2021.
A Lion’s Mane mushroom growing on a dead standing Beech tree in Delaware County New York, October 2021.

I did, however, have a bit of luck with some grow-at-home kits from North Spore. I’ve tried several of their wine box sized spray & grow kits and I’ve always had success with them. I used the Pink Oyster mushrooms to make this recipe and it turned out amazing.

Several spray and grow mushroom kits from North Spore sitting on a bench in my dining room. Pictured are Pink Oyster, Blue Oyster, and Lions Mane mushrooms.
Several spray and grow mushroom kits from North Spore. Pictured are Pink Oyster, Blue Oyster, and Lions Mane mushrooms.

So I’m planning on giving the Hungarian Mushroom Soup recipe a try on air on Sunday, March 27th, but I’m not sure the time at noon EDT, 6pm CET. Here are the ingredients:

  • 2 Tbs butter
  • 2 cups chopped onion
  • 1.5 to 2 pounds mushrooms, sliced
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 2 to 3 tsp dried dill (2 to 3 Tbs fresh minced dill)
  • 1 Tbs mild paprika
  • 2 tsp fresh lemon juice
  • 3 Tbs flour (can substitute other thickener if desired)
  • 2 cups water
  • 1 cup milk (or substitute) at room temperature
  • black pepper to taste
  • 1/2 cup sour cream (I’ve also used plain Greek or Icelandic yogurt, non-dairy equivalent)
  • finely minced fresh parsley for the top

So the ingredients aren’t very exotic. Hopefully some good mushrooms are available this time of year in your area. Pennsylvania is a big mushroom producer, so we’re lucky to have a variety of locally produced mushrooms available year round. I’ll send out the rest of the recipe’s details when the time is set. Please find the full recipe below, and I’ll read it again over the air.

hungarian-mushroom-soup

I’m working on my playlist now and I’ll have it ready by the time we next cook together. Hope you can join me. Can’t wait!