FRESH SHIITAKE MUSHROOMS SAUTEED WITH PRAWNS & WHITE POLENTA

SERVES 4

This dish is perfect with scallops or diced blue-eye trevalla, and artichokes or fennel are great substitutes for the shiitakes. Use whatever mushroom variety takes your fancy: I like soft oyster mushrooms, too.

125 ml (4 fl oz/½ cup) extra virgin olive oil

500 g (1 lb 2 oz) fresh shiitake mushrooms, stems removed and caps roughly diced

8 raw large king prawns (shrimp), peeled, deveined and roughly chopped

1 garlic clove, finely chopped

½ lemon

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

POLENTA

200 g (7 oz) white polenta (cornmeal)

60 g (2¼ oz/½ cup) grated fontina cheese

6 tablespoons freshly grated parmesan cheese

100 g (3½ oz) unsalted butter

For the polenta, fill a large saucepan with 600 ml (21 fl oz) water, add a good pinch of sea salt and bring to the boil over high heat. Add the polenta and cook, stirring constantly with a whisk, for 2 minutes.

Reduce the heat to low and cook, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, for 50 minutes or until smooth. Stir in the fontina, parmesan and butter. Remove from the heat and keep warm.

For the mushrooms, heat the olive oil in a frying pan over medium–high heat and cook the mushrooms until tender. Add the chopped prawns and garlic and cook for 1 minute or until the prawn meat is just cooked through. Season to taste with lemon juice, salt and pepper.

To serve, spoon the warm polenta onto serving plates and top with the mushrooms and prawns.

NOTE: You can use yellow polenta or whatever type you like but I prefer the delicate flavour of white.