Pappardelle with Mushrooms
I LOVE mushrooms! I've even had those poisonous ones that get you high. That wasn't a lot of fun though - not to mention they tasted like shit! Whenever I go to an Italian restaurant, I always look for a pasta dish with mushrooms. I thought it was about time I created my own. I really like Pappardelle - especially for this dish! It's long, wide and holds the sauce nicely. Even though I used half and half, it's still pretty light. A lot of recipes for a creamy pasta dish calls for actual cream. Using the half and half instead still makes it nice, but just way more on the lighter side - not so heavy. To lighten it even more, you could cut back on the half and half and instead use some of the starchy pasta water! I always keep some of the pasta water after cooking just in case. You could easily serve this with some sort of roasted chicken and a nice salad. If you love mushrooms as much as I do, I promise you are really gonna love this dish!
Ingredients
- 8 oz uncooked pappardelle pasta noodles
- 1/2 cup dried porcini mushrooms
- 2/3 cup water
- 2 TBS extra virgin olive oil
- 1 TBS butter
- 1 shallot, minced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tsp fresh thyme leaves, chopped
- 8 oz wild/mixed mushroom blend, sliced/roughly chopped
- 1 cup half and half
- 2 oz creamy goat cheese
- 2 oz fresh grated parmesan reggiano cheese, plus more for garnish
- Salt and pepper to taste
Directions
- Step 1 Cook pasta according to package directions or until al dente, rinse, drain and set aside
- Step 2 In a small sauce pan add the water and bring to a boil
- Step 3 Turn the heat off and add the dried porcini mushrooms
- Step 4 After about 5 minutes, KEEPING THE PORCINI MUSHROOM BROTH, drain the broth from the mushrooms into a measuring cup or small bowl and squeeze the liquid out of the mushrooms
- Step 5 Finely chop the reconstituted porcini mushrooms – RESERVE THE PORCINI BROTH FOR LATER USE
- Step 6 In a large deep sided skillet, add the olive oil and butter and heat on medium low heat
- Step 7 Add the shallots, garlic and thyme and saute for about 1-2 minutes or until fragrant and translucent. Be careful not to burn the garlic
- Step 8 Add the mixed mushroom blend and the chopped porcini mushrooms
- Step 9 Season with a little salt and pepper and continue cooking for about 3-4 minutes
- Step 10 Add the reserved porcini broth, half and half and goat cheese and mix to combine
- Step 11 Check for seasoning and add additional salt and pepper, if needed
- Step 12 Add the cooked pasta and gently toss to combine
- Step 13 Turn off the heat, add the parmesan cheese and gently mix well
- Step 14 Place pasta in a serving dish and garnish with additional parmesan cheese
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