Marinated Mushrooms

Carefully wash the mushrooms and trim the stems so they are no longer than 1/4 inch (6 mm) from the mushroom cap. Use the stems in another recipe. You can cut the larger mushrooms in half if you wish, but it is not strictly necessary. Add to a large stainless steel stockpot with the lemon juice and cover the mushrooms with fresh water. Bring to a boil. When it reaches a boil, set your timer and let it boil for 5 minutes. Drain the mushrooms and load them into half-pint ( 240 ml) jars leaving 1/2 inch (13 mm) of headspace. In another saucepan, stir together the white wine vinegar, olive oil, garlic cloves, salt, oregano and basil leaves, and crushed red pepper flakes. Bring this mixture to a boil over medium-high heat. Fish the garlic from the boiling brine and tuck one clove in and among the mushrooms in each jar. Stir the vinegar and oil dressing well and ladle over the mushrooms in the jars, maintaining the 1/2 inch (13 mm) of headspace. Moisten a paper towel with vinegar and use that to wipe the rims of the jars clean. Fix jar lids in place and tighten appropriately. Use canning tongs to transfer the jars to a canner full of boiling water that covers the jars by 2 inches (5 cm). Put the lid of the canner in place, return the water to a boil, and process for 20 minutes. Carefully transfer the jars to a towel-lined counter or wire 11/2 tsp (1 g) dried basil leaves cooling rack and allow them to cool completely, preferably overnight, 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes before removing the rings, wiping the jars clean, and labeling. After processing, you will probably notice that the oil and vinegar separate in the jar. This is not a cause for concern. I always give my jar a solid shake or two to recombine them before I open it. Don’t toss that dressing that surrounds the mushrooms! You can use this as a stand-alone Italian salad dressing or marinate chicken or pork with it.