Escargot Stuffed Mushrooms

Prep Time:

45 minutes

Cook Time:

15 minutes but see note in ingredient list if using wild mushrooms.

Serves:

I have used store bought cremini in this recipe but Fried Chicken mushrooms (Lyophyllum decastes), Honey Mushrooms (Armillaria), a variety of milk caps ( Lactarius), or Shrimp Russula (Russula xerampelina) mushrooms would be very tasty in this dish.

Harvesting your own snails requires some patience and a little bit of planning but on a daily basis you really do very little. You also control the exact day you would like to serve this divine little dish. It is also so much less traumatic than I first thought it would be. In fact it's quite simple and fascinating! I read through several recipes and articles describing the cleaning and preparing of snails until I came up with this method which works wonderfully for me.

9 - 12 fresh garden snails that have been prepared for cooking by feeding them carrots or corn meal for 4-5 days then fasted for 5 days and washed thoroughly in cool clean water as described above.2 tablespoons salt dissolved in 1 1/2 cups water.1/4 cup white vinegar diluted with 3/4 cups water.12 evenly sized

cremini mushrooms cleaned and stemmedI have used store bought cremini in this recipe but Fried Chicken mushrooms (Lyophyllum decastes), Honey Mushrooms (Armillaria), a variety of milk caps ( Lactarius), or Shrimp Russula (Russula xerampelina) mushrooms would be very tasty in this dish.

Important Note * If using wild mushrooms for this recipe, be sure you have properly identified the mushrooms and thoroughly cleaned and cooked them before using them. Prepare the caps and boil them before filling with snails or Cream Cheese filling.

Compound butter:1/2 cup room temperature butter blended with 4 cloves of minced garlic, one minced small shallot, a pinch of Herbs de Provence or a tablespoon of freshly minced parsley and salt & black pepper to taste.

Cream Cheese filling (if using):4 oz cream cheese blended with 3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese, 1 clove minced garlic, a pinch of the minced shallot, a dash of cayenne pepper and salt & black pepper to taste.

Crusty Bread for Serving