A delightful side dish for any roasted meat. With virtually no stalk, oyster mushrooms have a tender flesh, velvety texture, and mild flavour which makes them a very versatile ingredient.

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS

250 g of oyster mushrooms

5 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil

100 g of home-made breadcrumbs

1 clove of garlic, finely minced

50 g of grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese

1 teaspoon of parsley, finely chopped

Black pepper, freshly grated to taste

Salt

METHOD

Preheat the oven to 180°C/Fan. In a bowl toss the mushrooms with 1 tablespoon of extra-virgin olive oil and a pinch of salt.

Grease a shallow oven-proof baking dish with 1 tablespoon of oil, placing the mushroom – gill facing up – neatly in to it.

In the same bowl used before to toss the mushroom, mix together the breadcrumbs, garlic, Parmigiano Reggiano, parsley, black pepper and another little pinch of salt – not  too much as the cheese is already pretty salty.

With a fork, blend in the remaining 3 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil with the dry mixture, until evenly incorporated.

Top the mushrooms with the breadcrumb mixture and lightly sprinkle with some water until lightly moist. This will prevent the topping from drying out too much, leaving the breadcrumbs beautifully golden.

Bake them for 30- 35 minutes, until golden-brown. Serve hot.

TEMPTING TIPS

Use a spray water bottle to lightly moist the topping. It will make your job much easier.