Name: Mushrooms and grains
Prep time: 40 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 85 min
Yield: 6
Ingredients: 100 gm (½ cup) whole spelt (see note); 100 gm (½ cup) roasted buckwheat (see note); Juice and finely grated rind of 1 lemon; 3 flat-leaf parsley sprigs, coarsely chopped; 2 tbsp olive oil; 1 golden shallot, finely chopped; 1 garlic clove, finely chopped; 50 gm shiitake mushrooms, thinly sliced; 50 gm enoki mushrooms, trimmed; Ajo blanco; 50 gm blanched almonds; 100 gm crustless sourdough bread; 125 ml (½ cup) milk; 1 tbsp olive oil; 1 garlic clove, finely chopped; Juice and finely grated rind of ¼ lemon

Mushrooms and grains

Australian Gourmet Traveller recipe for mushrooms and grains by Three Blue Ducks in Bronte, NSW.

Braised lamb shanks, burnt leeks and zucchini salad

Serves 6

Prep

40M

Cook

45M

Total

1H 25M

“This dish has been a favourite in Bronte,” says Robertson. “Grant, our gardener, grows a lot of our mushrooms, so we get to try them straight from the garden. This dish also works really well with other mushroom varieties; if you can’t get your hands on shiitakes, the king brown, nameko and wood ear mushrooms also make interesting variations.”

Ingredients

100 gm (½ cup) whole spelt (see note)

100 gm (½ cup) roasted buckwheat (see note)

Juice and finely grated rind of 1 lemon

3 flat-leaf parsley sprigs, coarsely chopped

2 tbsp olive oil

1 golden shallot, finely chopped

1 garlic clove, finely chopped

50 gm shiitake mushrooms, thinly sliced

50 gm enoki mushrooms, trimmed

Ajo blanco

50 gm blanched almonds

100 gm crustless sourdough bread

125 ml (½ cup) milk

1 tbsp olive oil

1 garlic clove, finely chopped

Juice and finely grated rind of ¼ lemon

Method

Main

1.Cook spelt in a saucepan of lightly salted boiling water over high heat until just tender (18 minutes), drain (reserve cooking water) and transfer to a bowl. Return cooking water to pan, add buckwheat and cook until just tender (10 minutes). Drain (discard cooking water), combine with spelt, season to taste, add lemon juice and rind, parsley and half the oil, then set aside and keep warm.

2.For ajo blanco, preheat oven to 180C. Roast almonds on an oven tray until golden (6-8 minutes), then set aside to cool. Combine bread and milk in a bowl until bread is softened (2-3 minutes), transfer to a blender, add roast almonds, oil, garlic, lemon juice and rind, season to taste, blend until a smooth thick paste forms, adding extra milk if necessary, and set aside. Makes 250ml.

3.Heat remaining oil in a frying pan over low-medium heat, add shallot and garlic, stir occasionally until softened (4-5 minutes). Increase heat to high, add shiitake, stir until just starting to soften (40 seconds), add enoki, stir until just warmed through (10 seconds), season to taste and remove from heat. Transfer grains to a platter, top with mushrooms, dollop with ajo blanco and serve warm or at room temperature.

Whole spelt and roasted buckwheat are available from select health-food shops and delicatessens.
This recipe is from the August 2012 issue of
.
Drink Suggestion: William Downie Gippsland pinot noir. Drink suggestion by Shannon Debreceny & Jeff Bennett
Notes