Pasta With Wild Mushroom Sauce

Saturday morning a wild mushroom hunt will be held at a nearby woods led by a local expert who does this annually. I now can positively identify three Fall wild mushrooms. My husband only trusts the commercially grown mushrooms and not his wife. I also prefer a fresh mushroom to a dried mushroom as dried mushrooms are never tender after they become hydrated. I must admit the dried porcini mushrooms do add a great flavor.

Pasta With Wild Mushroom Sauce

Ingredients:

1/4 cup dried porcini mushrooms

1/2 cup boiling water

14 oz. dried pasta

1 lb. mixed mushrooms, such as black trumpet, chantrelle, portobella and shitake, cleaned and tough stems trimmed

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 large shallot, finely chopped

1 garlic clove, peeled, halved and germ removed

1 tablespoon finely diced oil packed sun dried tomatoes

A large sprig of thyme

Freshly ground black pepper

1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Truffle oil, optional

Grated Parmesan cheese

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Directions:

Place the dried mushrooms in a small bowl and pour over the boiling water. Set aside to soak for 30 minutes. Remove the mushrooms from the water, then strain the soaking liquid carefully, discarding any grit or sand. Set the mushrooms and liquid aside.

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Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. When boiling add the pasta. Stir and cook al dente. Meanwhile cut the mushrooms into 1 inch chunks.

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In a large frying pan with a lid, heat the butter over medium heat. Add the shallot and cook, stirring until it just begins to color, about three minutes. Add the garlic, sun dried tomatoes, and thyme, stir then increase the heat to medium-high and add the mushrooms. Cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes or until the mushrooms begin to stick. Reduce the heat to low, pour in the strained liquid, stirring to deglaze the pan. Season the mushrooms with salt and pepper, cover and cook for 5 minutes or until the mushrooms are tender. Remove the thyme and garlic.

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When the pasta is cooked, skim 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid from the pot and set aside. Drain the pasta and then add the reserved cooking liquid to the sauce. Stir over low heat to coat the pasta with the sauce. Sprinkle with parsley and drizzle with truffle oil if using (olive oil will do). Serve with grated Parmesan cheese. Serves four.