Fillet of Pork with Garlic and Mushrooms

Tender medallions of pork swathed in a garlic cream sauce with mushrooms – a delightful dinner party dish which can be prepared in advance then gently re-heated as required but, do make the effort to blanch the garlic which removes its astringency, leaving behind a rich deep flavour note for the sauce.

1. Slice the pork into medallions of about 2cm thickness. Half each clove of garlic and remove the skin. Using a small saucepan filled to 3cm with water, blanch the garlic for 2 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon, discarding the water. Repeat twice more with fresh water each time then rinse and wipe the saucepan then heat the stock. Add the blanched cloves of garlic and simmer over a low heat for 15 minutes, adding a couple of tablespoons of water if the stock evaporates too quickly. Remove from the heat then blend the contents of the pan to a pulp in a liquidizer. Pour in the cream then whiz again. Reserve.
   
   Heat a small knob of butter in a frying pan, sautéing the mushrooms until soft. Remove and wipe the pan. Heat a second small knob of butter together with 1tbs olive oil in the frying pan. When it is hot, add the medallions of pork and cook for about 3 minutes on each side until golden brown. Turn each piece, adding the wine to de-glaze the pan then add the garlic sauce and mushrooms. Simmer over a low heat for about 3-5 minutes more until the sauce has thickened a little and the meat is cooked. Season, serve and garnish with chopped parsley.
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