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COOK'S NOTES ON MUSHROOM TOPPED WITH PANCETTA TAPA
There is story behind this recipe, so if you don't want to read just skip down the page a bit and start at the ingredients section.

First we tried to cook this dish as many normal tapa recipes suggest, on the hob in olive oil. Don't do it! The amount of fat splashed up is phenomenal. Even if you then try to cover the pan, it's impossible to get the heat of the oil correct.

So we then tried to oven cook the filled mushrooms in less olive oil but the inside of the oven required a major clean out after cooking.

Finally we oven-cooked the stuffed mushrooms in an oven proof tray with only a small coating of olive oil and that worked a treat.

You will see below that we top the pancetta with a couple of pinches of sweet paprika and one of of cayenne pepper. We think the hint of warmth from the cayenne adds real depth to this tapa without masking any of the flavour of the mushrooms or pancetta. but this was only discovered because in one trial we mistook paprika for cayenne pepper!

We hope you enjoy this mushrooms topped with pancetta tapa and benefit from our trials designing it.

WHAT SPECIAL KITCHEN EQUIPMENT?
Baking tray.

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PREPARATION
Pre-heat the oven to 180°C / 350°F / Gas Mark 4
Peel the mushrooms and remove all of the central stalk.
Cut the pancetta into small pieces.

METHOD FOR MUSHROOMS TOPPED WITH PANCETTA TAPA

Place about 1 slice worth of chopped pancetta into to middle of each mushroom. Evenly sprinkle two pinches of paprika and one pinch of cayenne pepper over the top of the pancetta. Brush the base of the baking tray with a minimal amount of olive oil. Place the mushrooms in the baking tray and then place it in the preheated oven.

Cook the topped mushrooms for about 10 minutes until the mushrooms have browned slightly. Serve immediately because this tapa tastes best when eaten warm.

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