Girolle and garlic pasta

I love wild mushrooms. Mushroom hunting is a national hobby in Russia. When you go to the market in summer and autumn, there are usually dozens of babushki selling the freshly picked bounty. I have never been confident enough in my knowledge to pick the right mushrooms to go foraging in the woods, but I certainly enjoy eating them. That's why I was delighted to see that Tesco is selling the girolles aka golden chanterelles (a 100g pack for £2). As I was placing my groceries order online, I have added a couple of packs to my shopping trolley. I would have added more, but I wasn't sure how fresh they would actually be, as in the past I had some very sad looking wild mushrooms from Waitrose (but they were picked somewhere in Latvia or Lithuania and were not at their best after a long trip). Well, Tesco proved me wrong, and the mushrooms were very fresh.
Girolles are known in Russia as lisichki, i.e. little foxes, and no wonder why. The colour is as bright as the summer fox's tail.

These mushrooms don't need any fancy cooking, they are so full of flavour that they need just a little bit of cooking. They make scrummy snacks, just quickly fried in butter and seasoned well. Top up a piece of warm ciabatta, and enjoy a heavenly snack.

Girolle and garlic pasta (for 2)
Ingredients:
100g fresh girolles
1 garlic clove
1tbsp butter
a small bunch of chives
salt, pepper
spaghetti
Brush the mushrooms to remove the specks of dirt. You are not supposed to wash them, but if they are a bit too dirty, give them a quick rinse and then leave them to dry on a paper towel.
Cook the spaghetti in the salted boiling water, they should be cooked al dente.
In a small frying pan melt the butter. Once it starts to sizzle, add the garlic, either finely chopped or squeezed.
Add the chopped mushrooms and chives, season well with the sea salt and freshly ground pepper. Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring the mushrooms.
Drain the pasta and mix with the cooked mushrooms.
Serve at once. Delicious!

You could swap the chives for fresh thyme, or even a bit of flat parsley.

Have a look at Tesco's Wild Mushrooms. I haven't been asked to write about the mushrooms, I just wanted to share the good news in case you missed it.