November is the month of real cold, of days that get shorter and of the visceral need for a hot, cozy and comforting dish at the end of the day. This is the golden time for cardoncelli mushrooms: fleshy, flavorful and earthy. We thought of pairing them with the velvety sweetness of seasonal pumpkin and breaking the softness of the dish with a generous shower of crushed Senise IGP Crusco Peppers. A contrast of textures and flavors that transforms a simple cream into a royal dinner!
Ingredients (for 4 people)
Pre-fried Senise IGP Crusco Peppers in glass: 1 jar
Pumpkin (Mantovana or Delica type): 700 g (peeled and seeded)
Fresh or Cardoncelli Mushrooms in Extra Virgin Olive Oil: 300 g
Medium potato: 1 (to give creaminess to the cream)
Hot vegetable broth: about 600 ml
Extra Virgin Olive Oil: to taste
Garlic: 1 clove
Shallot: 1
Fresh parsley: to taste
Salt and Black Pepper: to taste
Preparation
Prepare the Pumpkin Cream: In a large pot, sauté the chopped shallot with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Add the diced pumpkin and potato. Cover with the hot vegetable broth and cook over medium heat for about 20 minutes, until the vegetables are very tender.
Blend into a cream: Turn off the heat and blend everything with an immersion blender until you get a smooth, velvety, and homogeneous cream. Season with salt and pepper and keep warm.
Sauté the Cardoncelli: Gently clean the cardoncelli mushrooms with a damp cloth and cut them into slices or chunks. In a pan, heat a drizzle of oil with a whole garlic clove, sauté the mushrooms over high heat for 6-8 minutes until they are nicely browned. Alternatively, use our cardoncelli ready to eat in extra virgin olive oil. Season with salt and sprinkle with fresh parsley.
The Crunchy Cruschi: Use our ready-made Cruschi in glass. Break them “a zeffunno” (roughly) with your hands.
Assemble the dish: Pour the hot cream into shallow bowls, place a generous spoonful of sautéed cardoncelli mushrooms in the center and complete with a cascade of crushed Crusco Peppers and a drizzle of raw extra virgin olive oil. Serve piping hot!
