Mushrooms come into season in the autumn with a whole spectrum of flavours, textures and shapes to be explored. To help you get inspired by funghi this season, here are eight of the best from Ottolenghi – including a selection from his latest cookbook, Ottolenghi FLAVOUR.
This ultimate meat-free lasagne is packed with a variety of mushrooms to create a complex ragù that has its roots in the Tuscan village of Acone where Ixta spent her formative childhood years. You can easily make this vegan by skipping out the cream or serve the mushroom ragù straight up with pasta or polenta.
Nutty, robust pot barley is the grain of choice in this twist on a lentil mejadra. Teamed with earthy, rich porcini mushrooms and meaty Portobellos, spiced with cinnamon and cumin and served with lentils, crispy onions and plenty of fresh herbs, this is hearty comfort food at its best.
Meaty Portobellos are slow-roasted in a spiced garlicky flavoured oil until tender and packed with punchy flavour. Serve with a creamy butter bean mash and plenty of aromatic oil for a comforting, simple and weekend worthy dinner.
These herby, garlicky and truffle-flavoured mushrooms are piled onto oozy, Taleggio-rich polenta for a comforting autumnal dinner with a ‘Northern Italian mountain lodge’ feel.
Get a mixture of mushrooms to make this dish all the more interesting – cooked with sweet onions, cumin and sticky balsamic, and combined with bulgur, fresh dill, feta and chilli flakes, this works just as well as a side or a weekend brunch with some wilted greens.
Here, buttery mushooms are topped with herby pearl barley, pops of feta cheese and preserved lemon. This is a great meat-free starter or nibble.
