Balsamic Fiddleheads

Friday, June 15, 2012

Have you guys seen/heard of fern fiddleheads? I hadn’t until about this time a year ago. A couple of my girlfriends and I went up to Maine for a girls weekend to celebrate my 30th birthday. We went out for a nice dinner and I had a risotto dish with fiddleheads.

Since that first experience with this curvey veggie, I knew I wanted to find some to cook at home for Hubby. This past weekend, at my first trip to the grocery store after our trip, I stumbled upon a basket of fiddleheads. I instantly snatched some up and headed home.

Hubby was a bit skeptical when he saw me preparing these for dinner. Once he took a couple bites, he agreed that they were a special treat. The flavor is very mild, similar to the stalk of broccoli or asparagus, but even more subtle.

I researched some techniques for cooking fiddleheads online and came up with this recipe. The sweetness from the shallot and balsamic play really well with the subtle vegetables. We both enjoyed this dish so much that I made it the next night for dinner too!

Two Years Ago: Homemade Chicken Broth and Veggie Chicken Soup in the Crockpot
Three Years Ago: Mounds Cupcakes

Balsamic Fiddleheads

Fiddleheads are a great spring/summer vegetable to mix things up with

Yield: Serves 2

Ingredients:

1/2 lb fern fiddleheads
1 Tbsp butter
1 shallot
2 cloves garlic
1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

Directions:

Set a medium pot of water to boil.

While water is boiling, fill a medium bowl with cool water.

Using kitchen sheers, trim the ends of the fiddleheads and toss into water.

Swirl fiddleheads around in water to wash them. Leave in bowl until water is boiling.

Once water starts boiling, add fiddleheads to boiling water. Discard bowl of water and boil fiddleheads for 5 minutes. Fill the same bowl with clean cold water and set aside.

Meanwhile, melt butter over medium heat in a medium skillet. Once butter starts to foam, add shallots and stir to coat with butter.

After the fiddleheads have boiled for 5 minutes, remove them and plunge into the bowl of cold water to stop the cooking process.

Add the garlic to the skillet and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the fiddleheads to the skillet and cook a few minutes.

Stir in balsamic vinegar and coat vegetables. Cook another minute and serve.

Side Dish

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17 Responses to “Friday Faves – The Small Boston Kitchen makes Cranberry Risotto Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms”

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Lauren — January 7, 2011 at 1:13 pm

I’m not a huge mushroom fan, but the cranberry risotto sounds absolutely fantastic! Thanks for the idea, Katie :).
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Fun and Fearless in Beantown — January 7, 2011 at 2:51 pm

What a great recipe Katie!
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Daisy — January 7, 2011 at 3:02 pm

I am in awe of your description of mushrooms. that recipe is awesome and so is the idea to cook them in butter and red wine! if non mushroom lovers are not converted after this post, there is no help for them!!
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Erica — January 7, 2011 at 3:29 pm

This comment has been removed by the author.
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Jennifer — January 7, 2011 at 3:29 pm

I am a huge mushroom lover. This recipe sounds wonderful!
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In and Around Town — January 7, 2011 at 3:33 pm

I am a HUGE fan of mushrooms, I put them in everything! This will probably be dinner tonight!
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Sarah from 20somethingcupcakes — January 7, 2011 at 3:55 pm

I’m definitely with you in the first camp, though I will tell you – I’ve converted the boyfriend into a semi-mushroom lover, so maybe there is a person who lies a bit in between after all! This looks heavenly.
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8

Smitten Sugar — January 7, 2011 at 5:05 pm

I am definitely not a mushroom lover but this recipe looks amazing!
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9

Megan — January 7, 2011 at 5:48 pm

Katie can make these for me anytime! Great recipe and great guest post!
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10

Josie — January 7, 2011 at 7:00 pm

OMG this combines so many of my favorite things into one dish! I’ve already added it to next week’s menu. Thanks so much for introducing me to a fun new blog!
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Melissa — January 7, 2011 at 8:28 pm

I’m on the verge of being a mushroom lover – when raw the texture creeps me out but I’ve discovered I love the flavor and like them when cooked. I would love to eat this dish!
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12

kitchenmisfit — January 7, 2011 at 11:58 pm

It is bad that I thought the sneak peak picture looked like mashed potatoes? That can only mean the risotto must be extra creamy!
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kitchenmisfit — January 7, 2011 at 11:59 pm

It is bad that I thought the sneak peak picture looked like mashed potatoes? I think that just means this risotto must be extra creamy!
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The Small Boston Kitchen — January 8, 2011 at 4:28 pm

Thanks Jen for including me in your Friday Faves and for saying such nice things about my writing! This dish was fun to make and was really good on a cold winter night. Thanks all for the comments! Even those from the mushroom haters 🙂
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Maris (In Good Taste) — January 8, 2011 at 7:34 pm

Aren’t portobello mushrooms the best? So many different things you can do with them!
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John at BOS — January 9, 2011 at 2:14 am

What more Can I say, a combination of my favorite ingredients… Mushroom and risotto! It’s nice to see a lot of mushroom recipe’s this past few days.
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Kerstin — January 10, 2011 at 5:03 am

What a creative recipe, I love it! Definitely the perfect way to kick off your cool Friday Favs feature 🙂