Mushroom pâté

This flavoursome p?t? makes an excellent starter. Try it with some cro?tes or breadsticks.

SERVES 4

15g (oz) dried porcini mushrooms

450g (1lb) mushrooms

1 garlic clove, peeled

2–4 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

25g (1oz) butter or 2 tbsp olive oil

salt and freshly ground black pepper

a squeeze of lemon juice

TO SERVE

a little soured cream or cr?me fra?che

a sprinkling of paprika

sprigs of flat-leaf parsley

Rinse the porcini mushrooms thoroughly to get rid of any grit. Put them in a small bowl, cover with boiling water and leave to soak for 1 hour. Drain and reserve the liquid.

Put the soaked mushrooms and their liquid into a food processor with the ordinary mushrooms, the garlic and the parsley and whiz until everything is finely chopped. Alternatively, roughly slice the mushrooms, then put all the ingredients into a deep bowl and use an electric hand blender.

Heat the butter or oil in a large saucepan and add the mushroom mixture. Stir, then cook, uncovered, for 15–20 minutes or until all liquid has boiled away. Remove the pan from the heat and season with salt, pepper and lemon juice. Leave to cool. Serve on individual plates with a heaped teaspoon of soured cream or cr?me fra?che, a sprinkling of paprika and a sprig of parsley on each.