Directions: First, ‘mise en place’ all ingredientsRemove the cream cheese from the refrigerator and let it come to room temperature. Give the nuts a rough chop.
Remove the mushroom stems, wipe the mushrooms with a paper towel, and slice mushrooms 1/4” thick.
Wash and slice green onions. Keep a few of the sliced greens to use later as extra garnish for the pâté.
Strip the fresh thyme off of its stem, and set aside.
Chop the fresh parsley and set aside.
Zest and juice the lemon.
Trace the bottom of three 4 oz. ramekins onto parchment paper. Cut out the circles. Spray the ramekins with non-stick spray, place the parchment paper circles into the bottom of the ramekins, and spray again with non-stick spray. Please note: you can use any small bowl, loaf pan, etc., for this purpose, as you are only using this as a form to create the finished pâté. Depending on the container used will determine the number of containers needed. Typically, this takes three 4 oz. ramekins.
Directions: Beginning to cookHeat oven to 300 degrees. Spread walnuts on a baking pan. Bake nuts for about 5 - 8 minutes or until you begin to smell them. You may even want to shake the baking pan periodically while they are in the oven. Remove nuts from the baking pan and set aside to cool.
Using a large skillet, melt butter on medium-low heat. Sauté the mushrooms uncovered with a dash of salt for about 5 - 8 minutes, stirring gently periodically.
Add green onions (whites and some of the greens), and cook for another 5 minutes or until most of the moisture has evaporated.
Add the thyme, salt and pepper. Cook for 1 more minute. (If you would like to add any other favorite spices, such as garlic powder, dried oregano, basil, etc., feel free to add them here.
Add the sherry, lemon juice and zest to deglaze the skillet, and continue to cook until all the liquid has been cooked out.
Remove from heat, and set aside for 15 minutes until the mixture has partially cooled.
Once slightly cooled, remove about 15 ‘pretty or nicely sliced’ mushrooms to use as decorations once the pâté is removed from ramekins and ready to serve.
Mix the mushrooms, walnuts, tabasco, cream cheese, and most of the parsley in a food processor, and blend to completely incorporate all ingredients, and the mixture is smooth.
Place the mixture into the ramekins and press to ensure that the mixture is fully in the container and there are no air bubbles. Cover with plastic wrap, pressing the plastic slightly onto the mixture so that the mixture does not achieve a skin on it. Refrigerate for 4 - 24 hours.
Run a butter knife carefully around the edge of the ramekin, and turn the pâté over onto a serving platter. If the pâté does not loosen from the ramekin, you may need to dampen a kitchen towel with hot water and wrap it around the ramekin for just a few minutes to loosen the pâté from the loaf pan.
If using gluten-free toast points, slice the gluten-free bread into small squares or rectangles and toast until desired crispiness. You may also use gluten-free crackers instead of toast points.
Once the pâté is out of its container, garnish the top with reserved mushrooms, green onions, and parsley.
Enjoy with either gluten-free toast points or crackers.