Yotam Ottolenghi's mushrooms, garlic and shallots with lemon ricotta recipe

If you are not put off by peeling lots of shallots and garlic cloves, you're in for a winter treat with this hearty, oniony mushroom stew topped with ricotta. You don't need much more, though a chunk of sourdough would not go amiss. To help with the peeling, soak the shallots and garlic in water for half an hour. Serves four. 2 tbsp olive oil, plus extra to finish 60g butter 24 baby shallots, peeled 24 garlic cloves, peeled 2 sprigs of thyme 2 cinnamon sticks 200g portobello mushrooms, quartered 250g chestnut mushrooms, quartered 100g buna-shimeji or wild mushrooms Good pinch of chilli flakes 200ml vegetable stock 1¼ tsp salt ¼ tsp coarse ground black pepper 100ml Pernod 5g tarragon leaves, chopped 10g parsley leaves, chopped 10g mint leaves, chopped 250g ricotta Zest of 1 lemon Heat the olive oil and two-thirds of the butter in a large pan and gently sauté the shallots, garlic cloves, thyme and cinnamon for about five minutes, until the onions begin to soften. Add the portobello and chestnut mushrooms, stir well so the mushrooms pick up the oil, and cook for a couple of minutes on a medium-high heat. Add the buna-shimeji and chilli flakes, and cook for a further minute. Pour in the vegetable stock and simmer over a high heat for eight to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the liquid has almost disappeared, and the shallots and garlic are cooked through. Season, then pour in the Pernod. Cook for a minute or two to allow the alcohol to evaporate, then stir through the remaining butter and all the chopped herbs. Mix the ricotta with the lemon zest in a small bowl. Divide the warm mushrooms between four plates and top each serving with a quarter of the ricotta mixture. Finish with a drizzle of olive oil. • Yotam Ottolenghi is chef/patron of Ottolenghi in London.