*Watch whipped tahini being made in our Botanica at Home – Mother Sauces: Whipped Tahini video!*

Does the combination of seared mushrooms, garlicky whipped tahini, mint, dill, sumac and pimentón sound good to you? It should, because it is EXTREMELY delicious. This tartine works all year long; turn to it whenever you’re craving something hearty but still fresh and brightly flavored (thanks, sumac and herbs!). It works as well during the day, with a poached egg and a cup of coffee, as it does at night — with or without the egg*, and preferably with a glass of a light, zippy red wine. Keep this one in your back pocket as a low-key-but-impressive brunch/dinner party dish!

…And keep the whipped tahini in your fridge at all times. At the restaurant, it’s a staple on our crudites plate and in the market.

*If omitting the eggs, up the mushroom quantities by half.

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• 1 cup tahini
• 2 large garlic cloves, peeled
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 cup cold filtered water
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 6 cups of lovely mushrooms - ideally maitake, oyster and shiitake - cut into large pieces (discard any woody stems)
• Sea salt
• 2 medium shallots, thinly sliced
• 1 heaping tablespoon sumac
• 1 teaspoon pimentón (aka Spanish smoked paprika)
• Zest of 1 large lemon
• 4 thick slices of crusty bread, toasted
• 4 poached eggs
• ½ cup mint leaves (roughly chopped if they're giant, whole if they're small)
• ½ cup dill leaves

To make the whipped tahini: Blend garlic and lemon in a food processor until the garlic is minced. Add tahini and salt. With the food processor running, stream in enough water to reach a creamy consistency. It will first break, fear not! Keep adding water slowly until it comes together light and smooth and holds a soft peak (it will firm up substantially when refrigerated). Season to taste. (Keeps in the refrigerator for a week (at least).)

To make the mushrooms: Warm the olive oil in a large, heavy saucepan (we love cast-iron!) over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms, shower with sea salt, and let cook, undisturbed, for at least 1-2 minutes; you want a nice caramelized sear on these, which will only happen if you don’t fuss with them too much! Add the sliced shallots to the pan, give a good stir, and saute until the mushrooms are soft and the shallots have taken on some color. Turn out into a bowl and season with the sumac, smoked paprika and lemon zest and another heavy sprinkle of sea salt.

To serve: Spread a fat smear of whipped tahini across each piece of bread. Place a poached egg on one end of each slice and season the egg with sea salt, a sprinkle of smoked paprika and a drizzle of olive oil. Add the fresh herbs to the mushrooms (if you do this too early, they’ll wilt — so wait until just before plating), stir to combine, and then pile the mushrooms over the rest of the bread. Serve with a serious knife (and eat any leftover whipped tahini with cucumber spears throughout the week)!

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