Pine Nut and Carrot Bake with Herbed Porcini Sauce
This delightful vegetarian (vegan if you do not use any butter) dish is a crowd pleaser for veg and meat eaters alike. It is more than hints at Italian flavours with the inclusion of pine nuts, marjoram, porcini mushrooms and garlic, and is perfect with a homemade loaf of thick hearty bread to mop up all the extra mushroom sauce juices.
I buy my pine nuts from the health food store in order to get an organic brand that is not preserved with chemicals, and this is often where I pick up my porcini mushrooms as well. Though they are becoming easier to find at specialty stores though, and certainly at Italian delis. There is no need for them to be dried with chemicals, but check the labels just to be sure.
If your bladder is already a bit feisty by the time Christmas day roles around, this can be the perfect tame dish to keep it from getting worse. Use whatever type of onion you can handle for both the carrot bake and the mushroom sauce. It also makes a great Boxing Day lunch if you've overdone it on turkey or cookies the day before.
Pine Nut and Carrot Bake with Herbed Porcini Sauce
For the Pine Nut and Carrot Bake
2 cups of finely grated peeled carrots
1 large white onion peeled and finely sliced or 1 cup of green onions, washed and finely chopped
2 sticks of celery finely chopped (omit if sensitive to oxalates and increase the carrot)
1 ½ cup of lightly toasted pine nuts, finely chopped
2 large eggs (preferably organic and/or free range)
3 tbsp fresh marjoram (or 1tbsp dried)
Kosher salt (or sea salt) and freshly cracked black pepper to taste (both optional)
½ tsp fresh lemon zest or lemon extract (optional)
¼ tsp freshly grated nutmeg (or to taste)
1 ½ tbsp butter or vegetarian margarine
For the Mushroom Sauce
7 grams (¼ ounce) dried porcini mushrooms, rinsed
1 cup of white or brown mushrooms, cleaned and finely sliced
2 cups of water
1 ½ tbsp butter or vegetarian margarine
1 small onion, finely sliced or 2/3 cup of washed and finely sliced green onions or snipped chives
2 tsp of cornflour or arrowroot powder
2 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely diced
Preheat your oven to 180°C/350°F.
Melt the butter or vegetarian margarine in a large frying pan over medium heat and add in the onions for the carrot bake (loaf), and gently fry for a few minutes until they are lightly golden. Add in the sliced celery and carrot and continue to cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes (uncovered), stirring occasionally.
Remove the frying pan from the heat and stir in the pine nuts, eggs and lemon zest or extract (if using), as well as the nutmeg, salt and pepper (if using).
Grease the sides and bottom of a 1lb (500 gram) loaf tin and pour the carrot mixture into it. Bake for 40 minutes in your preheated oven, or until golden brown on top and the centre feels firm when lightly touched. (If you see that it is browning too quickly cover it with a layer of tin foil, and just remove it for the last five minutes of baking time.)
To make the mushroom sauce while the carrot loaf is baking, add the dried mushrooms to a large saucepan with the 2 cups of water. Bring the mixture to a boil and remove the pot from the stove. Allow the mushrooms to soak for half an hour. Drain the mushrooms through a sieve into a bowl so that you can catch and reserve the yummy mushroom soaking liquid.
In a large frying pan melt the butter or vegetarian margarine for the sauce, add the onion or green onion and saute until golden brown. Cut the rehydrated dried mushrooms into thin slices and add them to the onions with the diced garlic and white (or brown) fresh mushrooms, continue cooking for a few minutes, string occasionally.
Next combine the cornflour or arrowroot with the reserved mushroom liquid (strained if need be before combining to remove any debris) and stir until the cornflour has dissolved. Briskly whisk into the onions and bring to a gentle boil.
Reduce the heat to medium low and stir frequently until the sauce has thickened by about a third. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Remove the carrot bake from the oven once it is finished cooking, allow to cool in the tin on a baking rack or bot holder (trivet) for 10 minutes. Gently slide a knife or sturdy spatula along the sides of the tin and turn the loaf out onto a warm serving platter.
Cut into generous slices and dress with the warm mushroom sauce. Any leftovers can be kept well covered in the fridge for up to three days and reheated in a warm oven or the microwave before serving (store the sauce and the carrot loaf separately).
Serves 6 people