Mushroom buckwheat galettes

Make pancake day a little more Mardi Gras this year by making these French-style buckwheat galettes for your main course.

I finish mine in the oven so that I can serve everyone at once and ensure set whites and runny yolks. The classic filling is ham, egg and cheese, but I love replacing the ham with sautéed mushrooms as they really compliment the earthiness of the buckwheat flour.

This recipe features in the February 2020 edition of Hampshire Life magazine with wine matches from Berry Bros & Rudd.

Mushroom buckwheat galettes

Serves 4

• 3 tbsp butter
• 1 tbsp rapeseed oil
• 250 g chestnut mushrooms, sliced
• 1 clove garlic, crushed
• 3 tbsp crème fraiche
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• 2 tbsp flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
• 100 g Old Winchester, grated
• 4 large eggs

For the galette batter:

• 100 g buckwheat flour
• 1 medium egg
• 200 ml whole milk

1. Heat 1 tbsp of butter and the oil in a sauté pan and fry the mushrooms for 10 minutes or until they start to colour. Add the garlic and fry for 1 minute, then add the crème fraiche, mustard and parsley and bubble for 2 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper, then set aside.
2. To make the galette batter, put the buckwheat flour and a big pinch of salt in a bowl and make a well in the middle. Break in the egg and pour in the milk, then use a whisk to gradually incorporate all of the flour from round the outside. You can use the batter straight away or leave it to stand for up to 24 hours.
3. Preheat the oven to 180°C (160 fan) / gas 4 and line a large baking tray with greaseproof paper.
4. Heat the remaining 2 tbsp of butter in a large crepe pan or non-stick frying pan. When it starts to sizzle, swirl the butter to cover the surface, then pour any excess into a ramekin and set aside. Put the pan back over the heat. When it’s almost smoking hot, add a ladle of batter and tilt the pan to thinly cover the whole surface.
5. When the batter has set and the top has turned from gloss to matte, add a sprinkle of cheese and a quarter of the mushroom mixture in a square on top. Break an egg into the centre, then fold over the sides to partially encase the filling.
6. Transfer to the prepared baking tray and repeat to make three more galettes, coating the pan with more butter from the ramekin if needed.
7. Bake the galettes for 8 minutes or until the eggs are set to your liking. Serve straight away with a green salad.

Local producers:

Chestnut mushrooms – Leckford Estate

Stockbridge, 01264 810270

leckfordestate.co.uk/produce/mushrooms

Old Winchester – Lyburn Farmhouse Cheesemakers

Landford, 01794 399982

lyburnfarm.co.uk/cheeses

Eggs – King’s Somborne Free Range Eggs

King’s Somborne, 01794 388297

kingssombornefreerangeeggs.com