I call this recipe "Cafe-style creamy mushrooms" because they are every bit as good as what you get when you go out for breakfast on a Sunday. The cafes seem to be able to cook their mushrooms perfectly - just the right amount of Garlic and herbs, while the creamy sauce isn't too runny and not all thick and chunky either. Mmmmmmm.
This recipe does a pretty good job of capturing the flavor, making for a great Sunday breakfast.
We use portobello or field mushrooms for the main event, and then a number of button mushrooms (if you have them) for making the sauce - I like to keep the big mushrooms nice and big, it seems a waste to chop them up small.
Ingredients
- A bag of large mushrooms
- About 6 button mushrooms, brown or white
- 3 cloves of garlic
- A dash of white wine vinegar
- Olive oil + a good knob of butter
- Fresh thyme
- Grated fresh parmesan cheese
- 1/2 a cup of cream
- A splash of white wine (optional)
- Toast - fresh and homemade is best
The quantities here are all very approximate. There is no magic formula to work with, and the key to making this a success is to add the liquid slowly so it doesn't end up too runny.
The secret ingredient
The secret ingredient to this dish is to use chopped up button mushrooms as the base. This forms the base of the sauce, and thickens the sauce enough that it works nicely. Without this, the wine and cream has nothing to stick to, and the whole dish seems to fall apart.
Take a few button mushrooms and chop them finely. Add to a hot pan with olive oil, butter, 3 cloves of chopped garlic and some fresh thyme. At this stage, add a splash of white wine vinegar.
After about 30 seconds, add the portobello or field mushrooms to the pan. I find them easier to work with when chopped into halves or quarters.
Adding the sauce
The sauce is simply fresh cream and a little white wine, it will mix with the ingredients already in the pan and taste delicious. You can add half of your parmesan cheese as you add the cream, and this thickens the sauce and adds to the flavor. Reserve the rest of the cheese for sprinkling over the final product.
Add the wine very sparingly, and add the cream a little at a time, stirring constantly. Continue adding cream and stirring slowly over about 3 minutes, until you are happy with the consistency.
Serve on fresh toast and enjoy - I like a thick homemade multigrain toast.
Comments
Sasha - Mar 11, 2009
PS. It also makes me fart and the farts smell like mushrooms!
Harvey - Mar 12, 2009
I'm so pleased you decided to share that with us :)
lesly - Jul 29, 2009
thank you for your comment, i all of a sudden lost my appitite....thats one way of putting people off this recipe
Alice - Jan 29, 2010
Thank you for sharing this recipe, I've been looking for a good variation and I think this one is the best so far! It looks absolutely delicious and I can't wait to try it. :)
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Sasha - Jan 22, 2009
Unbelievably good recipe! It turned out exactly how I wanted it to be first go. I tend to also add bacon.
YUM!!!