Soft Polenta with Mushrooms, Kale, Shallots and Nut Brown Butter

INGREDIENTS

  • 1/2 cup Polenta
  • 1/4 cup Cream
  • to taste Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 150g Golden shallots
  • 10 cloves Garlic
  • 200g Portobello mushrooms
  • 100g Shitake mushrooms
  • 6 sprigs Lemon thyme
  • 200g Unsalted butter
  • 100g Baby king mushrooms
  • 100g Swiss brown mushrooms
  • 100g Enoki mushrooms
  • 100g Oyster mushrooms
  • 1 cup Kale leaves
  • 3 tbspn Marjoram leaves
  • to serve Parmesan
  • 1/4 cup Pesto
Print Recipe

Preheat a fan forced oven to 200°C.

Place the Vegetable Stock into a medium sized sauce pan over high heat and bring to a boil.

Slowly pour in the polenta and stir until the mixture thickens. Turn the heat down to low and continue to cook for 5 minutes.

Stir through the cream and season to taste, then set aside and keep warm.

Place the shallots and garlic onto a lined baking tray and drizzle with 1 tablespoon of Extra Virgin Olive Oil.

Place the Portobello and Shitake mushrooms onto another lined baking tray, drizzle with 1 tablespoon of Extra Virgin Olive Oil, sprinkle over the thyme sprigs and season with sea salt.

Place both trays into the preheated oven and roast for 15 minutes, then remove and set aside.

Place 50 grams of butter into a large non-stick fry pan over a high heat and cook until nut brown. Add 1 tablespoon of Extra Virgin Olive Oil to inhibit the butter from burning.

Add the Baby King and Swiss mushrooms to the butter and sauté for 5 minutes then deglaze with 1 teaspoon of Verjuice.

Continue to cook for 1 minute, then remove from the pan, set aside and keep warm. Repeat this process to cook the Enoki and Oyster mushrooms.

Tip: These mushrooms are available at all good supermarkets, but if unavailable this recipe works just as well using 1 or 2 varieties of mushrooms.

Blanch the kale in a pot of boiling water for 3 minutes, then strain and add to the cooked mushrooms.

To make the nut brown butter, place 100 grams of butter into a small fry pan over a high heat. Cook until the butter starts to change in colour, then remove from the heat and pour into small bowl or jug to stop it cooking any further.

To serve, spoon the polenta onto a serving platter and top with the mushrooms and kale. Sprinkle over the marjoram and shaved parmesan, then drizzle with the warm nut brown butter and pesto.

Tip: To make this dish dairy free replace the cream with stock and remove Parmesan.