wild mushroom parmigiana

This is looking to be a great season for wild mushrooms in the Northeast, I went out last week and there were fungi all over the place.

I cant wait to find my very favorite - the Maitake or Hen of the Woods, this mushroom is one mushroom I never grow weary of, another mushroom that makes its debut this time of year is the Giant Puffball.

I found quite a few of these soccer ball sized wonderments and decided to make a parmigiana, that is a huge cucumber, over 12 inches, so as to give you some perspective.

I sliced them and battered them and fried them.

I layered them in a pan with a nice and spicy fresh marinara I made with garden fresh tomatoes, basil and one tasty red chile with a ricotta, mozzarella, romano cheese mixture and I baked it until it was bubbly and delicious.

I sliced it into perfect serving sizes and shared it with my friends.

The mushrooms gave this a nice light earthy flavor that was so perfect with the ricotta, mozzarella, romano cheeses.