Miso Mushroom Pasta

I was instantly obsessed with Jun and Tonic as soon as I saw this recipe on a Food52 youtube video - this recipe is straight up copied from 

https://junandtonic.com/blog/miso-mushroom-pasta 

Miso Mushroom Pasta

Serves 2

Ingredients

200g dried pasta (I recommend bucatini or rigatoni) (about 8oz)

120g mushrooms (I use an equal mix of shimeji, eryngii, and oyster mushrooms, but most other combinations are good too) (about 4oz)

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 teaspoon sherry vinegar, or balsamic/white wine vinegar

2 teaspoons red miso paste

3 tablespoons butter, softened

5 garlic cloves

120ml heavy cream (about 1/2 cup)

1 stalk of scallion, finely sliced

1 pinch salt

1 pinch black pepper

Directions

Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil. Season generously with salt until it's nearly as salty as the sea, then add dried pasta. Cook the pasta until just under al dente (a minute less than on its package directions), then drain the pasta and set aside.

Chop or pull apart the mushrooms into large, bite-sized chunks. Then, heat a large skillet over high heat with a tablespoon of vegetable oil, and sauté the mushrooms for 3-5 minutes until nicely browned. When they are done, add a little sherry vinegar to the pan with the mushrooms, give them a little toss, and set aside. It’s best to cook the mushrooms in 2-3 batches and not overcrowd the pan to allow them to brown evenly.

To start on the sauce, whisk the red miso paste and butter together in a small bowl until it comes together to form a smooth, fluffy paste.

In a medium saucepan, add the minced garlic and a tablespoon of oil, and stir-fry over medium heat for 30 seconds to a minute until fragrant. Add in the sautéed mushrooms. Then, add in the miso-butter mixture and cream, and bring this sauce to a boil, stirring gently. Finally, add the cooked pasta into the sauce, and stir until the pasta is well coated. Salt it to taste, and cook for 1-2 minutes until the pasta is al dente, then remove from the heat.

Portion the pasta into two bowls, and top with sliced scallions and freshly cracked black pepper.

Fresh Pasta

A day of pasta making with Scott and Fred has been planned for this Saturday! I have never made fresh pasta without my mom or grandmother, I know Scott has made it, but not in a while and Fred has never made fresh pasta (but I am counting on him to be the sauce guru!) So I am collecting some web resources here so I am not scrambling for them on Saturday!

Pasta Tips
Well reviewed pasta recipe (but most users have subbed in at least some semolina and/or bread flour and replaced 1 T of H2O with Olive Oil and noted that it must rest before rolling!)
Whole Wheat pasta
Ravioli dough (with pictures!)

Smoked Salmon Ravioli
Mushroom & Spinach Ravioli
Lobster Ravioli with Crabmeat Cream Sauce
Shrimp & Lobster Ravioli
A Whole Blog Dedicated to Lobster Ravioli (for real!)
Roast Butternut Squash Ravioli
Easy Butternut Squash Ravioli


Vodka Sauce

Linguine with Tomato-Almond Pesto [Pesto Trapenese]

Linguine with Tomato-Almond Pesto [Pesto Trapenese]Adapted from Gourmet

3/4 cup slivered almonds
1 large handful fresh basil leaves
1 to 2 large garlic cloves
Several sprinkles of sea salt
6 ripe plum tomatoes, quartered
1/2 cup grated Pecorino or Parmesan
1/4 to 1/3 cup olive oil
1 pound linguine

In a large skillet, sauté the almonds in a little olive oil until toasted. Let cool, then blend them in a food processor or blender until they are in coarse pieces. (“The size of orzo,” the original recipe suggests.) Scoop them out of the processor and set them aside.

Put the basil, garlic and a few pinches of sea salt into the food processor and chop. Add the almonds back to the food processor (keeping them separate will keep them from getting too finely chopped as you get the basil and garlic to the right texture) with the tomatoes, cheese and olive oil and whirl briefly. Season it with freshly ground black pepper.

Cook your linguine until it is al dente and could use another minute of cooking time. Reserve one cup of pasta cooking water and drain the rest. Immediately toss the hot linguine with the pesto and mix quickly so that it drinks the sauce up a bit. Add more pasta water if needed. Serve this lukewarm, or at room temperature, with a glass of wine, after you get the baby to bed.

Baked Ziti

1 lb Barilla PLUS pasta (penne)
1 jar Francesco Rinaldi Tomato and Basil sauce
1 can diced tomatoes
1 small bag of baby spinach
1 egg
1 15 oz container of ricotta cheese
1 8 oz bag shredded cheese (I use a 4 cheese pizza blend from my supermarket)
1 handful of grated Parmesan, salt/pepper/parsley to taste

Preheat oven to 350. Make pasta to package specs (leave it a little al dente so it doesn’t get mushy when baking.) Combine ricotta, ½ the shredded cheese, the parm, salt, pepper and parsley in a small bowl, mix well and take a taste – when it meets your approval, add one egg to the mix and combine well (the egg helps hold the ziti together, but its good to taste before you add it if you are worried about salmonella or whatever.) When the pasta is done, drain, put back in pot, dump in all of the ingredients and stir to combine. Put the mix into casserole dishes – I leave sizes and shapes up to you, but this usually fills about 2 large (2 qt +) Corningware casseroles for me, but I have been known to put them in smaller crocks for individual servings.) Sprinkle with the remaining shredded cheese, cover and bake for 30 minutes, remove cover and give it another 10-15 until it is starting to brown a bit. Let it sit for about 10 minutes, serve and enjoy!

Parmesan Orzo

1 tablespoon butter
1 cup orzo
1 can (14.5 oz?) fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
Water to equal 2.5 cups when added to broth
1/4 cup (1 ounce) grated fresh Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper – add more to taste

Heat butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add orzo, and cook 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Stir in broth and water; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer until liquid is absorbed and orzo is done (about 15 minutes). Remove from heat; stir in cheese, basil, salt, and pepper.

The recipe could have used more basil and more pepper – ¼ cup of basil doubles the amount Cooking Light calls for, but it still may not be enough. It also could have benefitted from more freshly ground black pepper – I will be sure to add more next time. But it was tasty! Scott even said “It’s just as good as the boxed stuff!”