Mushrooms have not always been my favourite. As a small child growing up in a countryside I was obviously surrounded by forests full of delicious and also fatally poisonous mushrooms. I still remember the joy of finding little ‘hats’ hidden at the bases of trees. But back then I was not so keen on eating them. Of course there was that fascination with the knowledge of the pickers on which ones are good and which ones you mustn’t touch.
We used to have a large loft in our house and it was perfect for drying sliced mushrooms. The aroma would fill the house for a few weeks and I used to love it. My mother was very puzzled by my obsession with the smell but my absolute disgust when it came to eating mushrooms. I think I started appreciating mushrooms only recently. It was mushroom risotto that completely changed my mind. But I am also slowly learning how limited they are in the usual supermarkets. Thank goodness some of us are lucky with a local deli that offers a selection of random and glorious mushrooms. So I have decided to experiment with some mushrooms, red wine and thyme. What could possibly go wrong?
Mushrooms on Toast with Red Wine and Thyme
(serves 1-2)
Ingredients
6 small portobello mushrooms
dash of olive oil
4-5 slices of sourdough or multi-seeded bread
3 cloves of garlic
a dash of red wine
4-5 springs of thyme
