Mushroom Steak Sandwich

I was pottering about on a lazy Sunday afternoon, hungry but too lazy to do anything strenuous and the fridge was practically empty.

Spotting the Portobello mushrooms, I was reminded of a Nigella Lawson recipe, that turned this humble fungus into a deliciously "meaty" vegetarian steak sandwich. 

I remembered the unctuous, sweet garlicy juices dripping out of the sandwich all over my hand, whilst I was still a student, trying to revise.  And even though it's essentially just a mushroom between two slices of bread, it's a completely satisfying lunchtime meal, so I set to it...

I couldn't remember her recipe exactly, so I improvised and devised my own variant :

Garlic & Herb Butter
This is such a good stand-by for most savoury dishes, I tend to have some ready and waiting in the fridge to be used whenever.

1. Finely crush your garlic and mix with your chopped herbs.  You can use the herbs I mentioned above, or anything you want, I'd say Rosemary or Tarragon will go well with this dish.
2. Mix into the softened butter.

The Sandwich

1. Rinse your mushroom and pat try with some kitchen paper.
2. Use a sharp knife to cut out the stalk in the middle.
3. Spread the garlic butter all over the underside of the mushroom where all the gills are.
4. Place the mushroom gills-up on a baking tray and stick it in a 180 degrees C oven.
5. After about 5 minutes take the mushroom out and add a splash of Noilly Prat or a dry vermouth.  You can skip this part if you want, but I feel that it adds a certain something.
6. Put the mushroom back in the oven for a further 15 minutes, or until it's gone all dark and soft, cooked all the way through.
7. Meanwhile cut a seeded bun in half lengthways.  I used a poppy, linseed and sunflower seed bun.  You won't need to butter it since the mushroom will be buttery enough.
8. Take the mushroom out and squeeze a bit of lime over it.  I think Nigella called for Lemon, but I only had lime, and I tend to prefer lime over lemon. 
   
9. Season with salt and pepper.
   
10. Carefully lift the mushroom and place inside your bun, letting the bread absorb all of the buttery juices.  Try not to waste a single drop.
11. Tuck in.