Le Voltaire Mushrooms

This dish makes a perfect, if slightly alternative, starter. The inspiration for the frozen Foie Gras come from a dish served by David Chang in New York. We have mentioned that the Foie gras is optional, in fact Jo has hers without, but in my opinion it is well worth the addition.

Serves 4

Ingredients

4 Large portabello mushrooms
8 slices smoked dry cure bacon
250ml rosé wine
3 sheet leaf gelatin
25g butter
2 cloves garlic peeled & crushed
1 small tin foie gras (optional)
salt & pepper

Method

If you are using the foie gras, ideally you need to remove the foie gras from the tin the day before serving, wrap it in cling film & put it in the freezer.
First make the wine jelly. Soak the gelatin leaves in cold water (if you are using powdered gelatin, follow the instructions on the packet, using the correct quantity required to set 250ml) until soft. Measure out 250ml of the wine & pour into a mixing bowl. Remove the gelatin from the water and squeeze out any excess water, place in a small pan together with 3tbsp of the wine. Place over a very low heat and warm until the gelatin has melted. It is crucial not to overheat the gelatin. As soon as the gelatin has melted, remove from the heat and pour into the remaining wine, mix well. Pour the jelly into a large flat container, so that the jelly is approximately 1 cm deep. Place somewhere cool or in the fridge to set.
Once the Jelly has set remove from the container & cut into 1 cm cubes.
Just before serving, remove the stalks from the mushrooms and chop finely. Fry the chopped stalk in the butter until golden. Add the garlic & stir through, cooking for no more than 1 minute. Remove from the pan reserving the fat, and set aside somewhere warm.
In the same pan fry the bacon until crisp & golden. Remove from the pan & again reserve the remaining fat in the pan. Cut the bacon into 2 cm lengths and set aside again somewhere warm.
Fry the mushrooms in the pan until the bottoms are golden & the gills turn very dark, season with salt & pepper. The dish is now ready for assembly.
Arrange the cubes of jelly on the serving plates around the outside rim, leaving enough space for the mushroom in the middle, intersperse with some of the bacon. Place the remaining bacon in the cooked mushroom & top with the chopped stalk.
If you are using the foie gras, remove from the freezer and finely grate a generous amount over the top of the mushroom.
Place the mushrooms in the centre of the plates & serve immediately.