Chestnut Mushroom Pate

Ingredients:

• 60 g unsalted butter
• 1 onion chopped
• 4 garlic cloves finely chopped
• 500 g chestnut mushrooms
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 100 g cream cheese
• 100 ml fromage frais
• 1 cup slivered almonds reserve a handful for garnish
• 1 cup walnuts chopped

Steps:

• Chop the chestnut mushrooms
• melt the butter and saut the onion and garlic for 5 minutes Add the mushrooms and thyme
• and saut for 8 minutes or until the mushrooms are cooked
• Reserving the juices in case you need to add a little moisture in step three
• drain the onion/garlic/mushroom mixture
• and blend it with the cream cheese and fromage frais
• Reserving some slivered almonds for garnish
• process the nuts in the food processor then add them to the onion/garlic/mushroom mixture OR
• if you prefer a finer
• smoother pat
• add the onion/garlic/mushroom to the food processor and process OR
• for a more varied texture
• process some of the onion/garlic/mushroom mixture with the nuts
• then fold both mixtures together until they are well-combined If the mixture becomes too dry which is unlikely
• add a little of the juice reserved in step two
• Chill the pat for 2 hours
• then scatter the reserved slivered almonds on top and serve the pat with crusty bread
• pita bread
• crackers or vegetable sticks This pat is best eaten within 2 days
• Chefs Note Chestnut mushrooms are a closed cup mushroom with a wonderfully rich flavour If you cannot find these
• use flat field mushrooms which are always great
• but may need a little more cooking