D'ni mushroom bread

Monday, November 15th, 2021 AD

I found this recipe on an old Tumblr blog that I think is no longer updated. The original post is by now eight years old, so I decided to preserve it here just in case Tumblr has a catastrophic failure or it disappears at some point.

Myst: Uru -- D'ni Mushroom Bread

The original post begins below! ------

The Myst series is possibly one of the greatest I have ever encountered, with Myst III: Exile being my personal favourite (it has Brad Dourif in it - automatic win). I’m a huge fan of puzzles, story and exploration, and Myst always satisfies on each of these levels. The cultural detail of the worlds you encounter through every game is outstanding; incredible minutae is written about in the multitude of books scattered throughout - including the mention of a mushroom spore bread from the Teledahn, or ‘Mushroom’, Age. A delicacy for the elite, spores were harvested so furiously to make the outstanding Mushroom Bread all resources dried up, and the age had to be abandoned.

This recipe makes 2 loaves.

What you will need: A frying pan, a large mixing bowl, a sieve and cling film/saran wrap.

Ingredients:

• 2 Tablespoons Butter
• 250g / 3 Cups Wild Mushrooms (Finely Chopped)
• ½ Small White Onion (Finely Chopped)
• 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire or Soy Sauce
• 2 Tablespoons Dried Rosemary
• 1 Tablespoon Dried Parsley
• 1 Cup Warm Water
• 1 Sachet Dried Active Yeast (7g)
• 1 Tablespoon Natural Yoghurt
• 2 Tablespoons Honey
• 1 Teaspoon Salt
• 250g / 2½ Cups Strong White Flour

Making the D'ni Mushroom Bread:

• Melt the butter on a medium heat in the frying pan. Add the onion and cook for 1 minute, before adding the mushrooms.
• Sauté the mushroom and onion for several minutes before turning off the heat, and adding the Worcestershire sauce, rosemary and parsley. Stir well, then set aside to cool.
• Add the yeast to the cup of warm water and allow to stand for several minutes. Meanwhile, sieve the flour and salt into a large bowl. Add the natural yoghurt and honey.
• Pour the warm yeast and water into the flour along with the cooled mushrooms and mix well until a dough forms. Turn the dough out onto a well floured surface and knead with floured hands.
• The dough will be incredibly sticky to begin with, so gradually add small amounts of flour until it begins to feel slightly more solid. After 10-15 minutes of kneading, place the dough in a clean bowl lightly greased with olive oil. Cover the bowl with cling film/saran wrap and set in a warm place to rise for an hour.
• After an hour, the dough will have doubled. Knock the dough back and divide it into two portions. Gently knead the dough again into a neat round shape and place on a prepared baking tray. Leave the dough to rise again for 30-40 minutes.
• Once the dough has risen again, preheat the oven to 200C/400F. Bake the bread on the middle rack for 20-25 minutes. Allow the D'ni Mushroom Bread to cool completely before serving.

I was seriously worried about making a bread like this, but I was incredibly impressed with myself afterwards! The D'ni Mushroom Bread is so wonderfully fragrant and soft, it would compliment any platter of meats, cheeses and chutneys or ideal with fresh soups.