A simple, easy, savoury pasta dish that can be thrown together quickly. The toasted walnuts are a great touch: some crunch to go along with the nutty flavour. Note, though – when you’re toasting them, keep a close eye on the pan! Those things’ll burn before you know it!
You can use whatever pasta you have in the cupboard. I made my first batch with penne, but you could use spaghetti, rigatoni…anything your heart desires! Also, while this is a vegetarian recipe, if you have some prosciutto in the fridge, it goes quite nicely for a salty bite.
Serves 4.
Ingredients
3/4 lb pasta
3 tb extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 c unsalted butter
3 large portabello mushroom caps, gills discarded, caps thinly sliced and cut into 2″ pieces
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2/3 c loosely packed fresh sage leaves
1/3 c toasted walnuts, coarsely chopped
1/2 c freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano
Directions
1. Boil water and cook pasta according to directions. Reserve 1c cooking liquid.
2. Meanwhile, heat the olive oil and 2 tb butter in a medium sauce pan. Add mushrooms, sprinkling with salt & pepper. Cook roughly 5 minutes until mushrooms are tender and brown. Set aside on a plate.
3. Using the same pan, add in 8tb butter (it’s a lot, I know, but it’s the sauce!) and heat to medium. Add sage leaves, stirring occasionally until dark and crisp. (3 to 5 min.)
4. Add the mushrooms back to the pan along with the pasta, the walnuts and half a cup of the reserved liquid. Season with salt & pepper and toss until the pasta is well coated. Add in more liquid if you need it.
5. Serve in warm bowls and top with a generous portion of the grated Parmigiano Reggiano.
Food Nurd 