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Crisp herb mushrooms

Nigel Slater makes a quick and tasty starter from mushrooms, herbs and stale bread. The lemon and herbs are essential! Serves 2. From Nigel Slaters Simple Suppers S02

100g/3½oz butter
olive oil
10 medium-sized open mushrooms
4 spring onions, roughly chopped
the leaves from a bushy sprig of rosemary
a large clove of garlic
250g/9oz stale bread
the finely grated zest of a lemon
a handful of roughly chopped parsley
salt and black pepper

Warm 60g/2½oz of the butter and a little olive oil in a large non-stick frying or roasting pan. Put the mushrooms into the pan and leave to cook over a moderate heat.

Meanwhile, in a second pan, put the remaining butter; let it melt then add the chopped spring onions and chopped rosemary leaves. Peel and finely chop the garlic, and add it to the second pan too.

Turn the mushrooms over as soon as they have started to soften and colour.

Tear up the bread and blitz to coarse breadcrumbs in a food processor. Tip the breadcrumbs into the spring onion mixture with the lemon zest and chopped parsley and fry until the breadcrumbs are crisp and golden-brown. Season generously with salt and black pepper.

Transfer the mushrooms to a warm serving platter as soon as they are cooked then scatter over the breadcrumb mixture.