Preparation 1. Place your trusty cast-iron skillet in the middle of your oven and preheat to 500 degrees. This will take thirty minutes. 2. Prepare the mushrooms. With a damp towel wipe off any dirt. If you must rinse them, do so gently and pat dry. 3. Create various shroom shapes. Slice crimini and button mushrooms in half. Remove the bottom tuft of the king oyster mushrooms and discard, then slice lengthwise into four or five long pieces before cutting down the middle so you have short rectangles. Rip the oyster mushrooms into halves by hand. Slice the portobello into quarters or eighths as desired. 4. Remove the pan and add all the mushrooms. Return it to the oven for five minutes. Then remove again, and stir the shrooms so that any sides unexposed to the hot iron can't help getting a good sear. Cook for an additional five minutes. 5. Remove the pan and add the shallots, butter, and toss. Return to the oven for another five minutes. 6. Final removal: add the garlic and parsley. Let sizzle in front of your drooling friends for three to five minutes. Salt generously, pepper profusely, and signal the attack. BEVERAGE Avery The Kaiser Imperial Oktoberfest Lager SOUNDTRACK Shit Robot "Simple Things" Reprinted with permission from The Hot Knives Vegetarian Cookbook: Salad Daze by Alex Brown and Evan George, © 2011 Mark Batty Publisher