Roasted Potatoes and Mushrooms

Preheat the oven to 220oC.

Soak the porcini in 1⁄2 cup boiling water for 20 minutes. Remove the mushrooms and slice. Strain the liquid through muslin to remove any grit and reserve.

Heat the 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil in a large sauté pan over a medium heat. Add the porcini, cook for a few minutes, add the leeks and salt and cook until soft. Finely chop two of the garlic cloves with the thyme and add to the pan. Add the mushrooms, cooking the denser ones such as portobello first, along with the reserved porcini liquor. Cook until soft and the liquid has evaporated. Add 3⁄4 of the flat leaf parsley and set aside.

Slice the potatoes 1⁄2 cm thick, pat dry with a clean tea towel and mix with the 4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, 2 cloves of thinly sliced garlic, and the mushrooms. Season with salt and pepper and put into a wide baking dish, lined with a Teflon sheet or baking paper. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 15 minutes until golden. Scatter with the rest of the parsley and serve.
Serves 6

Dried porcini: Known in Italy as porcini and in France as cépes, this mushroom has a meaty texture and a unique woodsy flavour. See page 146 to order.