I had to bite the bullet and get over my horror of the mushroom for the next of our Great Bear adventures.  One of the requisites of creating a movie star dish appropriate to the station stop on Simon Patterson’s reimagined Northern Line is that it can be eaten on a station platform.

It doesn’t always work that way (Rip Torn’s Omelet Mexicali springs to mind) but it’s best if the dish is portable in Tupperware

even if it has to be constructed in situ.

I presented the goodies to the roundel as per tradition

and bit the bullet.

Mr R wasn’t really sure about these either…

But I guess that if you like mushrooms, you’ll like these.  I used some very fancy mushies from Harvey Nichols and mixed the other bits and bobs through them.

Usually after we’ve scoffed a Great Bear recipe on a station platform, we go to a local hostelry for refreshments but alas, Mr R did a bit of research on the day of our trip and realised there were NO PUBS NEAR THE STATION.  My word!

We headed to the next stop on the line (Golders Green) and went to a restaurant I’d had my eye on for quite a while, L’Artista, underneath the bridge near the tube. I’ve always thought it looked like a strange place and indeed, it was BONKERS.

All of the photos we took of each other the rest of that afternoon were pretty bonkers too, so I shall draw a veil over that and just give you the recipe and the station factoids!

Cary Grant’s Mushroom Canapés

1 x 8oz can mushrooms

2 tablespoons oil or fat

1 cup spinach

1 fresh tomato

1 tablespoon French Dressing

2 drops Tabasco Sauce

8 rounds bread

Saute chopped mushrooms in hot fat gently for 5 minutes being careful not to brown. Add to finely chopped spinach and tomato with French dressing and sauce. Toast bead to golden colour on one side and butter other side. Arrange mushroom mixture on buttered side of toast and serve.

Serves 8

Mr Rathbone’s Station Factoids

The first stop on the extension from Golders Green to Edgware, the station opened in 1923 after the Great war had significantly delayed its construction.
It was designed by Stanley Heaps, the assistant to Leslie Green, then chief architect for the Underground electric Railways Company of London and its attractive station building and adjacent shopping parade are Grade 2 listed.

Originally intended to be named Woodstock, after the nearby Woodstock House, it finally opened as Brent owing to its proximity to the River Brent, and was only renamed Brent Cross in 1976 to coincide with the opening of the vast new shopping centre situated a short distance away.
A new high tech overground station, Brent Cross West, is due to open late in 2022 though this is situated even further away from the shops!
Next stop on the Great Bear Project will be…
Golders Green aka Grace Kelly!

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