Mushroom Julienne casserole

When I first researched different variations of this recipe I was very surprised to find out that's it is considered a Russian dish. For some reason I always thought of it to be of a French origin. The word Julienne is a term used to described certain way of cutting vegetables, however I think the idea was just to cut mushrooms in small pieces. Original recipe calls for wild mushroom, since it is not widely available at all times I used baby Bella (small Portabello) mushroom that has a lot of flavor to offer. It also had bechamel sauce, which I chose to omit and make it lighter and faster.

Take 2 boxes of small mushrooms and cut in a small thin slices. Do NOT wash it, just clean with a wet bounty sheet. Since mushrooms are like sponges it will absorb and retain all the water. Start your saute pan with olive oil on a high heat. Once oil is hot saute mushrooms till brown for about 10 minutes.

Next add one tbsp of organic ketchup and 4 tbsp spoons of organic sour cream. Add salt and pepper and mix it all together, lower the heat and simmer on lower for 15 minutes till mushrooms are soft and creamy.

When ready to finish this dish transfer mushroom mixture to an oven proof casserole dish and top with one cup of grated Gruyere cheese. Place it under the broiler for about 10 minutes till cheese is melted and slightly browned. Remove from the oven and let stand for 10 minutes before serving. This dish makes an excellent hot vegetarian appetiser course.

Enjoy and Happy Eating!