Yes, you read that correctly.
I came home from the test kitchen with 4 morels and 1/2 C peeled fava beans.
Now, I am in many ways a purist: I want extraordinary ingredients to taste like... themselves.
Morels and favas are extraordinary.
Therefore, I began to think about things that enhance, but don't mask, those flavors...
Bacon (but not a lot)...
Cream (but not a lot)...
Parmigiano (but not a lot)...
Black pepper (a whole lot)...
And Sherry (hardly any).
Armed with this knowledge, I began to formulate a plan. Almost immediately, I realized I had about a cup of cooked orzo... hardly enough for dinner for two, but in this case, richness would make up for volume.
I sliced two pieces of bacon into small pieces and sautéed them until crisp. I drained them and poured off almost all of the fat. Then I added the 4 large morels that I'd quartered and sautéed them for about 1 minute...
Then I added the favas and cooked for another minute...
Then I added them to the bacon, deglazed the pan with a tiny shot of dry sherry, added the mushroom mixture back in, and peppered heavily (trust me). You may want salt... I didn't.
Then in went the orzo. I warmed it all for a minute, then added a good but not excessive splash of cream... warmed that... and then placed a small mound of this perfection on a very hot plate. I lightly dusted it with Parmigiano, and served it forth...
There are no words. Charlie said it might just have been the best thing I ever made. I didn't disagree.
We could taste everything. Nothing was masked or overwhelmed.
And this all happened with 4 morels and 1/2 C favas. Not a lot...
But way more than the sum of!!!