Recipe, very loose recipe. I cook with what's fresh, and what sounds good to my stomach at the moment. Feel free to substitute things, or use whatever floats your boat. The amounts are approximates, since I cook in a very alchemical sense, do what tastes and smells right to you.
1 oz. Dried porcini mushrooms
1 oz. Sundried tomatoes. (Not the oil-packed type.)
Boiling water as needed.
1 cup shallots, chopped
5-7 cloves of garlic, coarsly chopped
2-3 spring onions, cleaned and chopped. (You can subst. scallions)
One large Portabella Mushroom, cleaned, cut in half, then in fillets
1/2 pound crimini mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
1/2 pound common white mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
1/4 to 1/2 pound fresh shitake mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
Olive oil, extra virgin
Red wine, to taste. I used a Sangiovese in this one.
1 large bunch fresh basil, the most flavorful you can find. Washed, dried, stemmed, cut chiffonade.
1 tbsp. Dried rosemary, crumbled
1/2 cup chopped italian parsley. (I forgot this one yesterday, and food still came out good.)
Cheeses: I used the following to taste yesterday:
Freshly shredded parmesan and freshly grated Pecorino with black truffles. You can also use other cheeses, just find flavorful ones. I like asiago or dry jack with peppercorns.
Dried pasta-I used gemelli yesterday. Good quality dried. 1 pound box.
Salt and pepper to taste.
Optional ingredient:White or black truffle oil.
Start off by re-hydrating the porcini's and the sun dried tomatoes in boiling water to cover for about 20 minutes. Drain the porcini's, then rinse them under cold water, rubbing to remove any grit. Drain again and chop. Save the soaking liquid. Drain the sundried tomatoes, and cut julienne. Save the soaking liquid from these as well.
Sweat off the onions, garlic and shallots in a small amount of olive oil on medium heat. Use a large, heavy saute pan for this. Stir constantly and do not allow to brown, just start to get a slight golden hue. Add salt and pepper to taste and remove to a bowl. Reserve.
Get a pot of water boiling for the pasta.
Over high heat, add a small amount of olive oil to same pan. Add the common mushrooms, crimini's, and the Portabellas. Stirring often, lightly brown them. Add the porcini's and the shitakes. Turn down heat to medium. Lightly salt and pepper. Allow some of the liquid from the mushrooms to sweat out, then raise the heat and reduce the liquid. Deglaze the pan with about half a cup of wine, then reduce again. Add the cooked onion mixture, a handful of the basil, the rosemary and half of the parsley.
Strain off about a half cup each of the soaking liquids from the mushrooms and the tomatoes. Try to leave the grit behind. Turn up the heat on the pan, and add the liquids, along with another splash of wine. Reduce this mixture again, until the mushroom gently begin carmelizing. You DO NOT want them dark brown. Just get them to release those delightful, meaty flavors. Stir, stir, stir... While the stuff is reducing, put pasta on to boil. Be sure to salt the water.
When the pasta is just about al dente, reserve about a cup or so of the pasta water, then drain the pasta well. Add some of the pasta water to the pan of sauce. Not only does this provide the sauce with a bit of moisture, it also adds a tiny bit of thickening and body to the sauce as well from the starches in the water. Toss the pasta in with the sauce and about a tablesp0on of olive oil. Stir to blend, and add a tiny bit of the cheeses. (IF you want a vegan pasta, omit the cheese.) Stir and fold the mixture until all of the pasta is coated. Turn heat to low. Add all of the fresh herbs, except for a tablespoon of the basil for garnish. Allow the flavors to marry, and the pasta to finish getting tender. It should only take a few minutes.
If using truffle oil, drizzle a tiny amount over the entire dish and fold in. Check for salt and pepper. Garnish with the remaining basil. Pass cheeses at the table. Pour a hearty red wine and enjoy. Be prepared to want a nap when finished.
Don't know how many servings it makes. It can feed several people as a pasta course, probably 3-4 as a main course. Very rich. Have fun cooking with this. Experiment with different mushrooms, cheeses, add cooked chicken at the final reduction if you want something different. For real decadence, add about a quarter cup of whipping cream when you do the final reduction. Beware, that version goes directly to the thighs, and does not pass go......
Enjoy,
Spinbear
Denise
(5/9/02)
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