This recipe is pretty flexible on the quantity and type of some
of the ingredients. The first time I made this for my brother was in the fall
when the wild mushrooms are plentiful in the Northwest; I used some Matsutaki
and "Green and Orange" (we're not sure what their real name is,
that's just what Grandma called them) he'
d foraged, but if
you don't have access to wild mushrooms Cremini would be fine too. Since he
prefers Fideo, or "cut" spaghetti and we didn't have any, I just
broke up Angel Hair pasta (I'm impatient--who has 7 minutes, when you can cook
it in 4 minutes?). However, this recipe would be good with most any type of
pasta.
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| Grandma Irene |
5 - 6 slices Bacon
2 - 3 cloves garlic, minced (or use jarred)
1-1/2 to 2 cup sliced and/or chopped mushrooms
Pasta of your choice
Salt and pepper
about 3/4 cup Heavy cream
about 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Start large pot of water to boil for pasta. In a large
skillet fry the bacon until desired crispness (strips to be crumbled after
frying, or chop it first--up to you).
Meanwhile, add salt to boiling water and start cooking your
preferred pasta--this recipe comes together rather quickly, so try to time it
so the pasta is cooked correctly by the time the remainder of the recipe is
done.
Remove bacon to drain on paper towels and pour off some of
the bacon grease if you feel there is too much. Add mushrooms to skillet,
seasoning to taste with salt and pepper. Cook until browned and excess moisture
has cooked off. Add garlic during last few minutes, so it won't burn.
Push mushroom and garlic mixture to the edges of the skillet
and pour heavy cream into center. Stir cream as it warms and add the grated
cheese to incorporate into a sauce, add the crumbled bacon, stirring together
with the mushrooms and sauce. Drain and add pasta, reserving a little of the
cooking water which you can add to the mixture to thin the sauce somewhat--the
starch in the water also helps the sauce cling to the pasta.
Season to taste with additional salt, pepper and grated
Parmesan. Makes 2 or 3 servings.
