mushroom pâté.

the whole word "pâté" can set my mind, heart and stomach a'churnin' (for obvious reasons) so i should really think of a better name for this recipe (other than "mushroom dip"). however! my friend forwarded me this recipe by chowhound ruth lafler which i adapted for my thanksgiving feast. and i write "my thanksgiving feast" because if you're a vegan at my family gatherings, you're on your own. yep. i packed up a buncha stuff for me to eat, including a nice container of this recipe. it looks a little grey, but it is truly delish.

mushroom pâté thingy

3/4 pound mushrooms, mixture of white and shitake
1 cup walnuts
1 clove garlic
1 small yellow onion
3 tbsp., plus 2 tbsp. olive oil (you want something mild for this, not a peppery one)
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper
2 tsp. truffle oil (or to taste)

using a food processor fitted with a steel blade process garlic, onion and mushrooms with on and off bursts until finely chopped. heat 3 tbsp. oil in frying pan over medium heat. add garlic, mushrooms, onion, salt, pepper and thyme.

cook, stirring occasionally until almost all the liquid has evaporated (this takes quite a while; the drier you can get it, the firmer your pâté thingy will be. i cooked it until the mixture was wet but no liquid drained out when i stirred it). process walnuts until coarsely chopped. remove 2 tablespoons walnuts and set aside. process remaining nuts to form a paste.

with the processor running, pour remaining 2 tbsp. olive oil down feed tube and process until creamy. add mushroom mixture and process until smooth. add remaining walnuts and blend with 2 bursts.

add 2 tsp.white truffle oil and stir. spoon into bowl for serving, cover and chill. it's better made 24 hours in advance so the flavors have time to blend together and it firms up a little.

makes 2 cups. serve with wasa crackers.

since i don't subscribe to tofurky ideology, i also made balsamic roasted vegetables (green beans, cherry tomatoes, tahitian squash, carrots, zucchini, mushrooms) and kale with tofu, based off of a (sort of high-maintenance) recipe in fine cooking. i brought along those mean cookies, too. i'd be happy to share the recipes for the veggies and kale dish if anyone would like.