According to chef/author Suzy Karadheh, this is hands-down the BEST mushroom pasta recipe without cream. Rich and velvety with loads of mushrooms, garlic, shallots, a little parmesan, and a lighter silky-smooth sauce.
An easy recipe, it has two main components: the pasta and the mushroom sauce. Once you cook the pasta and sauté the mushrooms, everything will come together with a light sauce in one pan.
A typical pasta with mushrooms usually involves a heavy cream-based sauce that you would likely cook separately and then spoon over the pasta. Making a hearty garlic mushroom pasta without cream or too much butter is fairly simple. The science behind this is using a little of the starchy pasta water.
Walnuts were in the original list of ingredients, but you know how The Hubs detests those little nuggets, claiming they taste like soap. I personally love them, but to keep the peace they went by the wayside. And the dish didn’t seem to suffer without them!
Garlic Mushroom Pasta
Ingredients
- 8 oz. dry pasta, such as orecchiette, campanelle or farfalle
- Kosher salt
- ⅓ cup extra virgin olive
- 1 Tbsp. butter
- 2 shallots, minced
- 5 garlic cloves, minced
- 8 oz. cremini mushrooms, sliced
- 8 oz. white mushrooms, sliced
- 8 oz. portabella mushrooms, roughly chopped
- Black pepper
- 1 tsp. rosemary
- 3 Tbsp. of tomato paste
- ¼ cup dry red wine
- ½ cup of grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
- ½ cup packed parsley, chopped
- Red pepper flakes to taste, optional
Directions
- Cook the pasta to al dente in boiling salted water according to box instructions. Keep 1 cup of the pasta cooking water then drain the pasta.
- In a large skillet, heat the olive and butter over medium-high heat, add the shallots and garlic and cook, tossing regularly for 2 to 3 minutes (manage the heat so that the garlic does not burn).
- Add all the mushrooms and toss them around in the pan for a couple of minutes, adding another drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Season with a good pinch of kosher salt, black pepper and the rosemary. Cook the mushrooms for about 7 to 10 minutes, tossing occasionally, until they turn color and release their juices.
- Add the tomato paste, wine and about ½ to ¾ cup of the pasta cooking water. Cook over medium heat for about 4 to 5 minutes (this becomes your mushroom pasta sauce).
- Add the cooked pasta to the mushroom sauce. Toss to combine. If needed add a little bit more of the pasta cooking water.
- Stir in Parmesan cheese and finish with a sprinkle of parsley and red pepper flakes. Serve immediately.
Adapted from a recipe by Suzy Karadheh
Accounting for Taste 
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