Portobello Pasta

Well…we were making Mushroom Burgers for dinner the other night and just the topping on our burgers had us craving anything and everything mushroom…so later that week, I made this Portobello Pasta too.

I love this pasta for so many reasons…but one in particular is that if you’re trying to keep things vegetarian, you can simply omit the sausage and just double the amount of mushrooms.

This meal is hearty and full of great flavor while being versatile and simple too.  Enjoy!

And pssst: One more little tip…you could make this mushroom sauce and top quinoa or brown rice instead of pasta.  They both would be excellent with this!

This recipe serves up four big dinner portions.

Shopping List
1 pound of short cut pasta (I used penne)
2 shallots, chopped (or use a red onion if you can’t find shallots)
3 cups chopped Portobello mushrooms (more if this is vegetarian)
1 pound of ground pork sausage (spicy or sweet, you pick!)
at least a cup or so of white wine (I used Chardonnay but you can use whatever you like…or use chicken stock if you don’t have wine on hand)
about half a cup of grated Parmesan cheese plus a little more to garnish
Chopped chives to garnish
Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO)
Salt and Pepper

Bring a large pot of water to boil over medium-high heat.  Drop your pasta and cook to al dente (about 7 minutes or so).

Meanwhile, in a very large skillet over medium-high heat, add your chopped shallots to a drizzle of EVOO.  Saute about a minute before adding your chopped portobello mushrooms.  DO NOT SALT AND PEPPER ANYTHING YET. (Salting mushrooms too early will draw out the water and not allow them to brown.)  After about eight minutes, the mushrooms will begin to caramelize and brown.  Add in your ground sausage and cook until browned and crumbled.

Once your sausage is browned and crumbly, pour in your wine and deglaze the pan (scrape the little bits off the bottom with your wooden spoon).  Reduce heat to low and then add in a big pinch of salt and pepper.  Stir in your Parmesan cheese.

Drain the water from your cooked pasta and add hot pasta to mushroom sauce.  Toss and combine before adding just a touch more Parmesan and chopped chives.

Serve.

  This is one of those pasta suppers that work year around.

Enjoy!