Warm Mushroom Salad
Mushroomy salad...
I think I’m ready for summer. I’ve been playing with a whole bunch of salad ideas in my head. I should write them down – but writing a post about them will suffice for now.
Since the sunshiny weather in London is but a farce – it’s still blinkingly cold – I thought a warm salad will be just the thing for a sunny spring Sunday lunch.
This salad is simple, nutritious and very tasty. My hubby who often asks ‘where’s the meat’ when a meatless dish is served, thoroughly enjoyed it – and without a squeak about the lack of animal protein. phew.
If I had access to a variety of wild mushroom, it would be even better but those darn things are very expensive and not readily available at the local supermarket. I made do with some closed cup mushrooms, chestnut mushrooms and a tiny bit of dried porcini mushroom for the added earthiness.
In a hot pan, I drizzled some olive oil, lightly browned some thinly sliced shallots before adding all of the mushrooms and some garlic to cook, seasoned with salt and pepper. The salt draws out the water from the mushrooms and I cooked them till the liquid’s reduced. A couple minutes before the mushrooms are ready, I added frozen garden peas to the mix. The sweet juices from the mushroom, peas and shallots produced an added dressing for the salad. Most convenient!
I used French salad leaves tossed in olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper. The mushroom juices did the rest of the tasty work. Topped with shaved parmesan – this warm salad was hearty and satisfying, even for the meat-lover in me.
Shrooms up close
