Crafts and Life

This is so rich and delicious you don't miss the meat at all. We like to use a selection of mushrooms as listed, but you can just use one sort if that's what you have. Serve this with pasta if you like, but it's also great alongside a potato and celeriac dauphinoise (see page 174) or simply spooned over a baked potato – not one the size of a football though. Don't forget you're watching the calories. 

Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan and add the button onions or shallots. Fry them over a high heat until they're browned on all sides, then put them on a plate. Add all the mushrooms to the pan and cook them very briskly until they are lightly browned but are not releasing any liquid. Remove the pan from the heat and set it aside. 

15ml olive oil

12 button onions or shallots, peeled 

500g portobellini mushrooms, thickly sliced 

250g chestnut mushrooms, halved

250g large white button mushrooms, halved 

15g butter

1 onion, very finely chopped

1 carrot, very finely chopped

1 celery stick, very finely chopped

2 sprigs of thyme

1 sprig of rosemary 

1 bay leaf

3 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 tbsp plain flour 

250ml red wine

250ml mushroom stock 

1 tbsp tomato purée

sea salt and black pepper 

Heat the butter in a large saucepan or a flameproof casserole dish. Add the finely chopped onion, carrot and celery, together with the thyme, rosemary and bay leaf. Cover the pan and cook for 15 minutes until the vegetables have softened, then remove the lid and continue to cook until everything is lightly caramelised. Add the garlic and cook for a further minute, then season well with salt and pepper. 

Sprinkle the flour over the vegetables and stir, then pour in all the wine. Stir to combine, making sure nothing catches on the bottom, then leave to simmer until the wine has reduced by half. Add the stock and tomato purée and stir until the tomato purée has dissolved into the sauce. Add the cooked mushrooms and onions or shallots, then bring the mixture back to the boil. 

Turn the heat down and simmer for about 15 minutes, until the onions or shallots are tender and the sauce has reduced down. Serve with pasta or a dauphinoise (see page 174) and some green vegetables. 

Serves 4 to 6 – Taken from The Hairy Dieters Go Veggie