Mushrooms & Garlic Cream

We first had this in Sydney in a funny little tapas bar we used to go to called Capitan Torres. When we were in Spain we discovered that it was a staple of most traditional tapas bars. We liked the fact that you could use a plain cultivated mushroom and turn it into something with so much flavor.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil

• 300 g (10 1/2 oz) baby button mushrooms

• pinch of salt

• 2 garlic cloves, sliced

• 1 golden shallot, sliced

• 2 tablespoons torn flat-leaf (Italian) parsley leaves

• 125 ml (4 fl oz/ 1/2 cup) dry white wine

• 125 ml (4 fl oz/ 1/2 cup) thickened cream

• freshly ground black pepper, to taste

• 1 tablespoon toasted

• fine dry breadcrumbs

Eat at the Bar by Matt McConnell with Joe Gamvros

Directions

Heat the olive oil in a heavy, cast-iron frying pan, then add the mushrooms and salt, making sure the mushrooms are lying flat on the base of the pan. Cook on a very high heat, turning frequently, until golden brown. Add the garlic, shallot and parsley and fry until starting to soften.

Take the pan off the heat and add the wine, cream and pepper, then return the pan to a high heat and reduce and caramelize the sauce (this can take about 4–5 minutes). When the sauce has thickened and is bubbling, pour the mushrooms and sauce into a bowl and top with the toasted breadcrumbs.