I think my brain actually freezes when suddenly the weather changes to Autumn (or in some years, straight to Winter) and it takes a dose of delicious cold-weather grub to give it a proper reboot! Mushroom Casserole https://bit.ly/1SXsFke is undoubtedly the right tool for the job.
Mushroom Casserole
Serves about 8
225g brown mushrooms (Portabellinis), cleaned and chopped
1 large onion, well chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
3 cups cooked brown rice, room temperature
2 large eggs
1 cup cottage cheese
½ cup sour cream
½tsp fine grain sea salt
⅓ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
a bit of fresh tarragon, chopped
Method
1 Preheat oven to 175°C. Rub a medium-large baking dish with a bit of olive oil or butter and set aside.
2 In a large skillet over medium-high heat, sauté the mushrooms in a glug of olive oil sprinkled with a couple pinches of salt. Stir every minute or so until the mushrooms have released their liquid and have browned a bit.
3 Add the onions and cook for another 4 or 5 minutes or until they are translucent. Stir in the garlic, cook for another minute and remove from heat. Add the rice to the skillet and stir until combined.
4 In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, cottage cheese, sour cream, and salt.
Combine the rice mixture and cottage cheese mixture in a large bowl, stir until well combined and then turn out into your prepared baking dish.
5 Sprinkle with ⅔ of the Parmesan cheese, cover with foil and place in the oven for 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake for another 20 or 30 minutes more or until hot throughout and golden along the edges. Sprinkle with the chopped tarragon, and the remaining Parmesan and enjoy.