Baby Portobello Fettuccine

Now this would have been the recipe to break out the pasta maker. It was delicious, but could have been even more so with freshly made pasta. Maybe we’ll make it again this week, and post about the results.

We added thyme and hazelnuts to the original recipe, and used baby portobello mushrooms instead of Porcini (for affordability reasons and the fact our store didn’t have porcini… it’s not like we even had a choice). I’m sure any mix of mushrooms would suffice for this dish – which is true proof that pasta doesn’t need to be slathered in sauce to be good.

Baby Portobello Fettuccine

Makes 4 servings.
Recipe inspired by 101cookbooks.

Ingredients
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2-3 fresh porcini mushrooms, chopped (1-2 cups)
fine grain sea salt
5 cloves garlic, chopped
1 pound fresh egg fettuccine noodles
scant 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground
1/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated
zest of one lemon
1 teaspoon fresh thyme, chopped
1/4 cup chopped hazelnuts

Directions
Bring a large pot of water to a boil.

In the meantime, heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in your largest skillet over high heat. Add the mushrooms and a big pinch of salt. Saute the mushrooms until they release their liquid and begin to brown. Now stir in the garlic and 1/2 of the thyme and cook for another 30 seconds or so. Remove from heat and set the skillet aside.

Salt the pot of water generously and cook the fettuccine noodles according to package instructions. Drain. Transfer the noodles to the skillet with mushrooms, and stir in the black pepper, cheese, lemon zest, hazelnuts and the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil and thyme. Sprinkle with cheese and enjoy!