recipe:: golden wild rice buckwheat crepes with mushrooms and taleggio cheese

I belong to a wine club; it's a winery that I styled a feature for Better Homes and Gardens Magazine many years ago. I was going to school at the Culinary Institute in Napa, and one day my entire class wound up at Sinskey Winery. I was so impressed with this organic winery that I pitched it to the editors at Better Homes and Gardens,and we did a feature a couple years after my first visit. If you don't know about Sinskey wine, you should. Every month I get a fantastic selection of organic wines.I actually wait for my shipment with much anticipation. In each shipment there is always a gift included (something food oriented) and a small booklet beautifully shot by the owner himself, Robert. He's a professional photographer which is another reason I love this vineyard. Their photography on all the wine bottle labels, printed collateral, and website is all done by Robert Sinskey.Maria, his wife, is a trained chef with several cookbooks to her credit. With each shipment, not only is there food, included but a recipe is as well. This month the recipe and beautiful ingredients (wild rice) seemed especially appealing: Golden Wild Rice Buckwheat Crepes with Mushrooms and Taleggio Cheese. I love making crepes, so I thought I would try it. Many of you asked for the recipe on my instagram account when I posted the finished product, so here you go. Make sure you pair it with a lovely Sinskey wine.

Golden Wild Rice Buckwheat Crepes with Mushrooms & Taleggio CheeseServes: 10 to 12

These rich, deeply satisfying crepes, bubbling and golden hot from the oven, make a great dish for vegetarians and meat eaters alike. They are a great make ahead dish for a crowd. The earthy, herbed mushrooms, swiss chard, and silky cheesy béchamel are a hit with the bright zing of RSV Merlot.

You will need:

- 1 recipe crepes

- 1 recipe mushrooms

- 1 recipe bechame

l- 12 ounces Italian Taleggio or Fontina, pulled apart or cut into small pieces

- 1 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese

- 1 cup finely chopped cooked Swiss chard or Spinach

- Kosher salt- Freshly ground black pepper

Preparation:Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.Toss the pieces of Teleggio with ½ cup of Parmesan in a large bowl. Add the mushrooms and greens and toss well to combine. Add 1 cup of béchamel and mix well. Season to taste with salt and pepper.Lightly oil a 15” x 10” baking dish with olive oil. Spread 1 cup of béchamel evenly in the bottom of the dish. Sprinkle with ¼ cup of Parmesan.Lay the crepes flat and place about ⅓ cup of the filling in bottom third of the crepe and roll the crepe up. Place the crepes side by side in the prepared baking dish then repeat until all of the crepes are filled.Pour the remaining béchamel evenly over the top of the filled crepes. Sprinkle the remaining ¼ cup of Parmesan over the top.Place the crepes in the preheated oven and bake until bubbly and golden, about 45 to 50 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Buckwheat Wild Rice Crepe Batter

Yield: 16 crepes

You will need:

- 1½ cups all-purpose flour- ¼ cup buckwheat flour

- 2 teaspoons kosher salt

- 3 cups water, divided

- 6 large eggs- Extra virgin olive oil- 2 cups wild rice

Preparation:

Mix flour, buckwheat and salt. Mix eggs, 2½ cups water and ¼ cup olive oil and slowly beat into flour mixture. Beat until smooth.Add the wild rice. Let rest for 20 minutes covered at room temperature. Batter to should be thin enough to easily coat the bottom of a pan when swirled. Add more water to thin if necessary.Heat a 10” nonstick pan over medium high heat. When the pan is hot brush lightly with olive oil.Use a scant 4 ounce ladle or ½ cup measure to pour batter into pan and roll around to thinly cover bottom. Stir the batter well before scooping to make sure you get wild rice in the scoop.Cook on one side over medium heat until batter is set and edges start to brown. Flip over and cook for a few seconds on the other side.Use a spatula to remove the crepe to a plate or simply flip the pan over and let the crepe land on the plate. Smooth the crepe so it flat for stacking. If you will be freezing the crepes separate each crepe with squares of parchment paper. Let cool.Note: Crepes can be stored at room temperature overnight, tightly wrapped after cooling or frozen up to 2 months tightly sealed.

Sauteed Mushrooms

Yields: 4 cups

These delicious and fragrant mushrooms can be used to stuff omelets, top pizzas, or accompany a nice grilled steak.

You will need:

- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

- 2 pounds thinly sliced crimini mushrooms

- Kosher salt- Freshly ground black pepper

- 2 teaspoons thyme

- 1 teaspoon minced garlic

- 3 tablespoons minced shallots

Preparation:

Heat a large sauté pan over high heat. When the pan is hot add the olive oil and then the mushrooms.Cook for 10 to 12 minutes stirring occasionally until the mushrooms are golden and the pan juices are almost dry. Season to taste with salt and pepper.Reduce the heat to medium, fold in the thyme, garlic and shallots and cook 1 to 2 minutes more. Turn out onto a sheet pan to cool before using.

Béchamel SauceYield:

4 cups

You will need:

- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter

- 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour

- 5 cups whole milk

- 1/2 cup finely diced yellow onion

- 1 small bay leaf, dried or fresh

- 1 teaspoon kosher salt- Freshly ground black pepper

Preparation:

Melt the butter in a medium sauce pan. Stir in the flour with a wooden spoon until the butter and the flour are thoroughly combined. Continue to cook the mixture over medium heat for 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove the pan from the heat.Whisk in the milk 1 cup at a time. Whisk until the paste is smooth than add another cup of milk and repeat the process until the milk is finished. The milk and flour should be smooth and slightly thickened.Place the pan back over medium heat and add the onion and the bay leaf. Bring the sauce to a boil while whisking constantly. Reduce the heat to low and cook for 15 minutes stirring every 5 minutes with a wooden spoon. The sauce will form a crust on the bottom so try not to disturb it with the wooden spoon or you will have brown flecks in your sauce. To avoid this, you can transfer the sauce to a double boiler and continue to cook it for 20 minutes without having to stir.Strain the sauce into a large bowl and season with salt and pepper. Cool for later use and store well-wrapped in the refrigerator.

Recipe via Maria Sinskey

Photo Wine styled by me photo by Helen Norman

Photos of Crepes by Robert Sinskey