They appear only in spring, and really should be enjoyed in season, even if their price is similar to that of a great vintage Bordeaux wine. They share few visual characteristics with our usual idea of a mushroom, what with their wide, hollow stalk and a cap that is long, slender, and deeply pitted all over, not unlike a knot of lace. Take great care in cleaning morels, as there is many a small nook in which small stones and the like can reside. Split them through lengthwise, and, if clean enough, go at them with a brush only or, if needs really must, a quick dunk in plenty of lightly salted water. If you take the latter approach, make sure they are completely dry before cooking.
All recipes serve six.
A similar line of thought, albeit born out of sheer necessity, resulted in this mussel, clam and pea dish, which was fashioned out of thin air at the restaurant after an especially busy lunch that fair savaged our plans for the evening menu. By the end, the fridge contained little more than a lot of bits and bods, and out of the wreckage we came up with this union. 1 kg mussels 1 kg clams 100ml white wine 4 shallots, chopped fine 500g peas, shelled 1 tbsp olive oil 10g unsalted butter 6 tbsp double cream 1 small handful fresh mint, chopped Remove the beards from the mussels and put them with the clams in a bucket under running cold water. Leave them for at least half an hour. In a great big pot, fry the shallots slowly in the oil and butter over a gentle heat.