Wild Mushroom and Nut Pate

This delicious pate which blends summer mushrooms with hazel nuts is perfect for August picnics . . .

350g Mushrooms (eg swamp russulas, parasols etc)
1 Medium onion
1 Clove garlic
1 tbsn Rosemary
1 tbspn Thyme
14 oz Broad beans (cooked)
½ Lemon (juice and grated zest)
100g Hazelnuts
1 tspn Marmite (or ideally, less-salty Vegemite)
Hazelnut oil

Gently sauté the onion, garlic and mushrooms in a little nut oil until softened. Add the rosemary, thyme, drain off and reserve any liquid. Tip just over half the onion, mushroom and herb mix into a processor with the beans and Marmite, then blend into a smooth paste, adding a little cooking liquid to moisten if necessary. Allow to cool. Meanwhile, toast the chopped hazelnuts in a dry pan over a light heat, making sure not to burn. Stir this, the unprocessed mushroom mix and the chopped parsley into the mushroom paste and mix well. Season with salt and black pepper and serve on toast with a side salad.

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Alexanders
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Just as we Britons have lost any mushroom lore we might once have possessed, so most of us are at a loss when we finally venture into the kitchen with our haul. In reality, however, mushrooms are one of the easiest things to work with. They have such fantastic flavours, the general rule is to not to mask these with complicated recipes. Most should be cooked, particularly the first time, because they can be indigestible, but otherwise, simple is usually best . . .

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Jew's Ear on Pasta
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Wild Mushroom and Nut Pate
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I wouldn’t normally send out a newsletter this early in the year, but the weather has been so unusual that several readers have written in with reports of unexpected finds . . . .

Wild Mushroom and Nut Pate

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