Vegetarian | Gluten-free with cornmeal

Yield: 8–10 cakes, about 4 servings · Prep: 25 min · Cook: 45 min

Lion’s mane has a delicate, slightly sweet, seafood-like taste and a texture that pulls apart in strands — which makes it uncannily good in a crab cake. Roasting it first drives off the extra moisture that lion’s mane always carries, and concentrates the flavor.

Ingredients

• ½ pound lion’s mane mushroom

• 1 onion, or a bunch of scallions or chives

• 3 cloves of garlic

• 2 tbs extra virgin olive oil

• 2 tbs yogurt or mayonnaise

• 1 cup bread crumbs or finely ground corn meal

• 1 egg

• 2–3 tbs fresh chopped parsley and/or chives

• Lime juice from ¼ lime

• ½ cup high-heat oil for cooking the cakes

• Salt and pepper to taste

Tartar

• ½ cup mayo

• 2 tbs chili sauce

• 1 tsp paprika

• 2 tbs chopped fresh parsley

• 2 tbs grainy mustard

• 2 tbs chopped pickles

• Hot sauce, to taste

• Salt and pepper, to taste

Preparation

1. Roast. Dice the lion’s mane into large pieces. Toss in olive oil and roast in the oven along with the garlic and onion at 350°F for 30–40 minutes, turning halfway through. The mushroom will shrink substantially as the water cooks out.

2. Pulse. Put the mushroom in a food processor and pulse 4–5 times, until the mix is broken down into smaller chunks.

3. Mix the wet. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg, yogurt or mayo, lime, herbs, salt, and pepper until evenly combined. Add the breadcrumbs and pulsed mushroom mixture and stir.

4. Shape. Use an ice cream scoop or tablespoon, depending on the size you want, to measure equal portions. With your hands, roll into balls and form into flat cakes.

5. Fry. Heat oil in a non-stick pan over medium heat and fry until lightly browned on both sides. Lay out on a paper bag to soak up excess oil.

6. Serve. Serve with tartar sauce, fresh greens, and pickled goods.

Notes & Variations

• Mushroom swaps: lion’s mane is the star here for its strand-like texture, but oyster mushrooms, torn rather than diced, make a respectable substitute.

• Don’t over-pulse in the food processor. You want chunks, not paste — the texture is a very important part of the dish.

• If the mix feels too wet to hold a cake, add breadcrumbs a tablespoon at a time. Chilling the shaped cakes for 20 minutes also helps them hold together in the pan.

Storage

Stores 1–2 weeks in the refrigerator and freezes very well for longer storage. Freeze the shaped, uncooked cakes on a sheet tray, then bag them once solid.

Adapted by Wellspring Forest Farm from the original recipe by Local Roots subscriber Stephanie Wright (localrootsnyc.com).

More recipes at wellspringforestfarm.com/mushroom-info-hub