Garden Pan (Rcp# 0011)

A simple yet versatile dish you can prepare beforehand when you have friends over. And it even gives you the luxury of extra time to enjoy the company.

Ingredients for ‘Garden Pan’

• ½ cauliflower, florets only, sliced (about ¾ cm thick, easy to fry, not too thin so it doesn’t fall apart)
• 250 g brown edible mushrooms (e.g. cremini, porcini, oyster mushrooms, shitake …), heads and stems separated
• 80 g dried tomatoes, small pieces (sliced then chopped)
• ½ medium fennel, small pieces (sliced then chopped)
• Canola oil for browning/frying
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 200 ml hot water
• Freshly ground nutmeg
• Pinch of salt

Preparations for ‘Garden Pan’

1. Brown the cauliflower, remove from the pan and set aside on a plate.
2. Brown the tomatoes and fennel in the same pan, then add the sliced mushroom stems and sauté together. Turn down heat to low and wait, till temperature has reduced.
3. Pour 200 ml of hot water (careful, no cold water or fat might explode!!!) into the frying pan and add the mushroom heads, sliced into fourths or fifths depending on size. Simmer over low heat for 10 minutes or until mushrooms are tender.
4. Remove from heat and add nutmeg and salt.
5. Before serving, gently reheat to lukewarm, then add the olive oil and cauliflower slices.

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Side Notes:

• This goes well with a variety of breads and sauces. We simply placed the pan on the table and paired its contents with a heavily staked bread basket. Also, a salad (arugula, lamb’s lettuce) with a fruity sauce works really well with this recipe.
• To go along with the dish, I also made up a quartet of sauces [‘The Sauce Brothers‘] and a delicious herb butter [‘Cousin Herb’]. I am sharing the recipes for these (all plant-based), too, in another post as they work really well with any garden party buffet or barbecue of the season.
• For this year’s garden party, you can also make this and let it cool to serve with grilled foods.

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