Vegan Walnut and Mushroom Pâté

On Saturday night I went to my friend Melanie’s house for an impromptu Thanksgiving.

She felt bad that this was my 5th Thanksgiving away from home, and decided to host a special dinner in honor of my missed American holiday.

She’s a good friend like that.

Everyone brought delicious food to share but the hit of the night was the vegan walnut and mushroom Pâté. Erica, the impressive vegan cook, promised the recipe but I was too impatient and decided to attempt the dish on my own.

Besides, I had another Thanksgiving the next day and knew I had to bring the Pâté. Although my version wasn’t spot on to Erica’s, it was still very tasty!

You just need to get over the fact that Pâté looks gross regardless of its contents.

I used more herbs than pictured here.

The soy sauce, balsamic vinegar and vegetable broth were an afterthought, added post picture taking.

Vegan Mushroom and Walnut Pâté

2 cups walnuts, lightly toasted

2 cups brown mushrooms, sliced

3 cloves garlic, crushed

1 medium onion, minced

2 Tbsp. olive oil

1 handful fresh thyme, leaves picked

1 handful fresh parsley, roughly chopped

1 tsp. soy sauce

1 tsp. balsamic vinegar

no more than 1/4 cup vegetable broth

1/3 cup cooked potatoes (leftover mashed potatoes work well)

Method

1. Heat 1 Tbsp. olive oil in a non-stick pan over medium heat and cook the onions and garlic until tender. Add the mushrooms and continue to cook until the mushrooms are cooked, about 7 minutes.
2. Place the walnuts, thyme and parsley in a food processor and pulse until a very fine consistency.
3. Add the mushroom mixture and potatoes to the food processor and continue to process drizzling in the remaining olive oil, soy sauce, balsamic vinegar and vegetable broth. Taste the pate and season with salt, pepper and additional spices as desired.
4. Place the pate in a serving dish and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. The flavor will improve with time. Serve with crusty bread or crackers.

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