Hazelnut Mushroom Pate

  

This savory spread recipe is from Fungi.com’s awesome mushroom recipe archives, created by their webmaster Andrew… It can be adapted to be dairy-free with the addition of rice-based cream cheese substitute if so desired! This recipe is a great way to showcase Pacific NW local foods.

Serves: 6 as an hors d’oeuvre

Cook time: 1 hour

Ingredients:

2 cups hazelnuts

4 cups whole shiitake mushrooms, cleaned of debris

4 cups whole maitake mushrooms, cleaned of debris

2 cloves garlic, peeled and degermed

12 oz organic cream cheese (or vegan cream cheese), warmed to room temperature

1 tsp dried parsley or thyme

Soy sauce to taste

Olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

1 tblsp balsamic vinegar (optional)

Equipment needed:  Food Processor, large skillet

Instructions:

-          Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Place the hazelnuts on a baking sheet, and slow roast in the oven for 45 minutes (set a timer!), shaking every 15 minutes. Remove from the oven, and let cool for 15 minutes.

-          While the hazelnuts are roasting, coarsely chop the mushrooms. Place the mushrooms and garlic in the food processor, and mince finely. Set aside into a bowl.

-          In a large skillet over medium heat, warm up about 1 tblsp olive oil. Add 1 cup of the mushroom garlic mixture, and saute over medium –high heat with a splash of soy sauce, until the mushrooms have sweated off much of their water and they are starting to brown, about 10 minutes… resist stirring them too much or it will take longer to cook them! Remove each batch of the cooked mushrooms into a large bowl, and repeat with the remaining cups of mushrooms (about 4 batches total, 40 minutes in all).

-          Remove the hazelnuts from the oven after 45 minutes, and place in the food processor, blending them finely.

-          Once all the mushrooms are cooked, add them, the softened cream cheese, the herbs, and a ½ tsp pepper into the food processor with the hazelnuts.  Blend until the lot is of a smooth consistency, about 2 minutes. Taste for salt and pepper- add if needed. Add a tblsp of balsamic vinegar, if you’d like the pate more tart!

-          Keeps up to 3 days in the refrigerator. Do not allow to sit at room temperature longer than 3 hours if you want to refrigerate the rest for another day. Anything left out longer than 4 hours should be tossed to the chickens!