Celebrating Fall in France with Cèpes

      16 Comments on Celebrating Fall in France with Cèpes

After the wine harvest in France, autumn sets in. Winter squash and Swiss chard begin to appear at markets and on menus. Yet one item that especially excites me this time of year are the mushrooms. Here in the sud-ouest of France, mushroom lovers swoon over the cèp, also known as porcini or king bolete, and for good reason.

Cèpes, aka Porcini are a prized delicacy. The caps can grow up to twelve inches in diameter; the cèp in this photo was about seven inches! When fresh, expect to pay from 20 to 30€ or more per kilo in Europe and from 50 to $100 per pound in the United States.

In the same way the cèp mushroom is notably expensive, the taste and mouthfeel notably stand-out. They boast a rather delicate, nutty and woodsy flavor with a meaty and robust texture that softens when cooked, yet works beautifully in brown and butter sauces. They are a sublime burst of flavor in dishes!

Little known fact: The porcini, an umami food, has a relatively high protein content and a healthy dose of other vitamins and minerals.

In normal years, cèpes are available from roughly late-August through October. This year was anything but normal with extreme heat all summer into autumn, thus their appearance was delayed.

Our first cèp dish spotting was in Bordeaux at one of our favorite lunch spots near the Cathedral Saint-Andre – Horace. Commonly served as a starter, or ‘entree’ in French, cèpes are sautéed in some combination of butter or other fat, garlic, parsley or chervil, stock and/or some kind of wine, and sprinkled with a finishing salt. Their preparation was similar at Horace and delicious, garnished with crushed hazelnuts and a few baby greens.

sautéed porcini mushrooms

Extremely tasty, grilled then sautéed cèpes from Restaurant Horace. One of the best lunch spots in Bordeaux!

Moving on, Mark and I split them as an entrée (starter) at the new Bordeaux restaurant Casa Sudette in the booming Nansouty neighborhood of Bordeaux. A similar preparation below with thinly sliced, raw cremini mushrooms and roasted almonds over the top.

sauteed porcini mushrooms

Sautéed cèp mushrooms in duck broth with roasted almonds and sliced cremini, an excellent pairing with Pinot Noir.

In addition to adding them to various dishes, it is common to make them into velouté, which is the French version of a puréed soup. This photo shows an exceptionally tasty velouté from Restaurant Mets Mots in the Fondaudège corridor of Bordeaux.

cèp veloute porcini soupAlthough I named just a few, I know many restaurants across France, if not the majority, offer dishes with the earthy, soulful, and nutty tasting cèp mushroom when in season.

Like most mushrooms, this one is fantastic with wine. The deep, savory character works quite well with Pinot Noir from anywhere in the world. Depending on their preparation, here are a few other wines we recommend with a plate of sautéed cèpes.

Jurançon Moelleux (moelleux meaning half sweet) – Jurançon is a white wine only appellation. Petit Manseng and Gros Manseng, two of the grapes allowed, have mouth-watering (higher) acidity even when half-sweet wines. And the other grape sometimes included, Courbu, isn’t far behind.

This little known, southern France appellation produces sweet, half sweet and dry whites that can stand up to the best in Bordeaux in fact!

Jurançon Moelleux are rich tasting, medium- to full-bodied wines matching the deeply savory character of cèpes, especially when sautéed with butter, oil, or another fat and herbs.

Try:

Chardonnay – Fuller-bodied barrel or lees aged, and more mature Chardonnay have a richness and creaminess that mirror sautéed cèpes. The richness of both stand up beautifully to each other.

Other red wines will work too, especially if serving the cèpes (porcini) as a side dish with red meats. My friend David from Cooking Chat shares recipes and wine ideas for porcini served in this manner.

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This blog article was inspired by the French #Winophiles group of bloggers, writers and enthusiasts and the October theme celebrating autumn. Cooking and traveling inspiration follow in the articles below!

Jeff of Food Wine Click! takes us to  Backroads Bourgogne in Autumn: Bistro des Falaises 

Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm is Celebrating Fall French Style

Cam of Culinary Adventures with Camilla shares Europe by Milk Run, Coquilles Saint-Jacques, and L’un Des Sens Orange Wine 

Gwendolyn of Wine Predator is Falling for Fall with Four French Wines plus Instant Pot Beef Bourguignonne Pot Pie

Susannah of Avvinare shares Cru Bourgeois: Perfect for Fall Fare

I leave curious minds with a succinct article about Domaine Cauhapé and Jurançon wines from bkwines.com  If you cannot find fresh porcini mushrooms where you are, the dried version rehydrated add an orbiting flavor to dishes!

 

16 thoughts on “Celebrating Fall in France with Cèpes

  1. Allison Wallace

    Looks like you’re truly ‘savoring the harvest’! I had no idea about the high protein content which makes it even more of a win-win…envious you have such an interesting bounty (that pairs so well with the local wine) in your backyard!

    Reply
    1. Lynn Post author

      Wish I could share both with you. Perhaps you’ll make it here in the autumn sometime so I can!

      Reply
  2. Wendy Klik

    Well you know I love mushrooms, so I am very jealous that you are in France enjoying cepe season. Thanks for joining in this month for our Fall celebration.

    Reply
  3. robincgc

    Oh Lynn, I am so hungry now! I’m also swooning at the thoughts of beautiful fall and the markets in Bordeaux. A stroll in the crisp fall air…(thank you for the glorious day dream!)

    Reply
  4. Jeff

    Sadly, it seems they are already gone here in Dijon… I did love having some of my first local, fresh Ceps here a week or two ago.

    Reply
  5. Kay Ferrier

    I love porcini mushrooms, They are a great meat substitute. Shitake are an even better substitute. Hearing about the neighborhoods and restaurants in Bordeaux is wonderful. Thanks,
    Kay

    Reply
    1. Lynn Post author

      We think alike when it comes to porcini and shiitake! I have a few Sac-based friends who used to wild mushroom hunt up I-50, but don’t recall if they found porcini. I know you two would love it here, come visit!

      Reply
  6. Jane

    As a mushroom lover, I appreciate your wine suggestions beyond Pinot Noir (another one of my favorites). We were recently in Germany and the Chanterelle mushroom was on every menu – so good! One of my favorites was an herb pancake with sautéd Chanterelles in a cream sauce (of course).

    Reply

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