1. Cepe Mushroom and Chestnut Salad, Flambe
The flavors of nature intermingle and combust in this wild yet sophisticated salad
recipe. We will be using this kind of mushroom for cooking the Flambéed cepes
mushrooms plus chestnut, and apples in a bed of mixed greens and fresh herbs dressed
with mushroom vinaigrette in a dish created by award-winning and world-renowned Chef
Régis Marcon, known for his natural and innovative cuisine.
Known as Porcini in Italian, Penny Bun in Britain, Cepes or Ceps in French, these
wild mushrooms are prized for their rich flavor and earthy aroma; just a few bits of these
precious fungi added to savory recipes will enhance the dish and add height, depth, and
wonderful complexity. It is popular among vegetarians for its meaty, slightly nutty flavor and
creamy texture and is often used as a substitute to beef, pork or chicken to make various
vegetarian recipes. Ceps is a versatile ingredient that has been described as “the wild
mushroom par excellence.” In this recipe, it is used in two ways: to make mushroom oil for
the vinaigrette and flambéed as a main ingredient for the salad.
You can make your own mushroom oil simply by lightly frying dried cepes mushroom
in peanut oil and allowing it to marinade in the oil for a month, storing it in a glass jar with a
2. tight seal. The oil will develop a very strong mushroom flavor and can be used for cooking,
seasoning, or making salad dressing.
Apples and roasted chestnuts lend a delicately sweet flavor to this salad dish. Both
chestnuts and ceps can be described as nutty and creamy, but their distinctive nuttiness
and creaminess are miles apart in difference. The tangy apples cut a sharp taste in the
palate enhanced by the vinegar in the dressing. Flambéed in a peach liqueur, all these
flavors meet and mingle to create a wonderfully warm, refreshingly cold, and perfectly
balanced salad dish.
Ingredients
10.56 oz. cepe mushrooms
10.56 oz. mesclun (chervil, arugula, leafy lettuces and endive in equal proportions)
chickweed and fresh herbs
0.33 lbs. fowl livers (foies de volailles)
1 apple (Pippin)
18 grilled chestnuts
Eau-de vie fruit brandy
Xeres vinegar
mushroom vinegar
3. Preparation Instructions
1. Prepare the vinaigrette by combining sherry vinegar, salt and pepper. Mix with a whisk to
dissolve. Add mushroom oil and walnut or hazelnut oil. Mix well.
2. Mince some parsley, chives, and chervil, and place in salad bowl. Add salad greens, toss
them all together.
3. Cut the apples into small segments. Peel the roasted chestnuts. Slice cepes mushrooms
thinly.
4. In a pan, put some walnut oil. Add a slice of butter, which will brown the cepes. Sautee
thinly sliced cepes in the hot pan. Don’t let the mushrooms brown too much, just a hint of
color. Season with a pinch of salt and place on a plate.
5. Cook the apples in the same pan, browning them slightly. Add the grilled chestnuts and
the slightly browned cepes in the pan. Finish off by flambéing the pan with peach liqueur.
6. Dress the salad with the mushroom oil vinaigrette. Toss salad to get an even coating.
Place salad in the center of the plate. Arrange the cepes, chestnuts, and apples around the
dish and serve.