Morel and Sage

This recipe pairs the fried morel with tender morel ravioli, the sage complimenting their earthiness. Your choice, white or red sauce.

Drain morels by pulling them out of the water, setting on a towel and drying gently but thoroughly. Slice the best 6-8 morels into 1/2’s or 1/4’s and chop the rest into 1/4 in. dice. Set all aside.

Heat a medium sauté pan to med-high. Warm butter to sizzling and add the shallot. Cook a couple minutes until opaque then add the garlic and sage. Stir twice or thrice and add the chopped morels... can I say that again? Yes! Add the morels!

Stir again to incorporate and add the wine, increasing heat a little. Boil for a few minutes to evaporate the liquid, and stir in bread crumbs to absorb the rest. Let sit to cool.

While the stuffing is cooling, start heating a large pot of water for the pasta, and also a heavy saute pan for the morel slices.

When the sauté pan is heated to med-high add the butter and garlic. Put morels in a single layer in the pan and brown them well on each side. Half way through the cooking, scoot the shrunken morels to make room for the whole sage leaves. Fry all, remove from pan and drain on paper towels. (If your water is boiling now, just turn it to low until you are ready)

To stuff the ravioli, put a wonton skin on a plate and top with about one tablespoon of filling. Dip your finger into the water and wet the perimeter of the skin. Put another skin on top and, starting at one side, seal around the edges, pushing as much air out as possible. Finish sealing by crimping all edges with a fork. You should get about 8 ravioli.