Possible Cooking Methods: Stovetop Pressure Cooker
This is a pasta recipe for those times when you feel decadent. It’s rich and fulfilling and is sure to warm you up on a cool fall or winter evening. What type of wild mushrooms you use is completely up to you and depends on what is available. I’m particularly fond of chanterelles and porcini mushrooms, but they can be expensive and hard to find. Most grocery stores have a pre-mixed package of wild mushrooms or packaged shiitake mushrooms that will work perfectly here. The key to this recipe is to resist the urge to shake or stir the mushrooms while they are cooking. Let them sit in the pan for a few minutes and don’t season them with salt right away. The salt will draw out the moisture and inhibit any browning. Once they have some color on them, then you can toss them around. The fettuccine cooks right in the pot with the sauce, which lets it take on the earthy mushroom flavor. The cream and Parmesan cheese adds the luxury to the meal, and who doesn’t like luxury?
1 tablespoon butter
1 shallot, finely chopped
16 ounces assorted wild mushrooms, sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
salt and freshly ground black pepper
½ cup dry sherry
3½ cups vegetable or chicken stock
1 pound dried fettucine*
2 cups heavy cream
⅓ cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
*Quantity changes for alternate methods
Stovetop Directions
Serves:4
Cooking Time:25 minutes
1. Pre-heat a large 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add the butter and sauté the shallot for a minute. Add the mushrooms and continue to sauté without stirring or shaking the pan. Don’t toss the mushrooms in the pan until they start to brown on one side. Then, toss the mushrooms to flip them over, add the garlic and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Continue to cook until the mushrooms are evenly browned.
2. Deglaze the skillet with the sherry, scraping up any brown bits on the bottom of the pan. Bring the liquid to a boil for a minute or two. Add the stock and once it has returned to a boil, add the dried pasta and simmer uncovered for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Add the heavy cream and simmer for another 5 minutes.
4. Remove the skillet from the heat and stir in the Parmesan cheese. Let the pasta sit for a few minutes and then stir in parsley and serve with more Parmesan cheese to sprinkle on top.
Additional Cooking Directions for
Pressure Cooker Directions
Serves:4
Cooking Time:6 minutes
Change Ingredients: Use nests of fettuccine egg noodles or break long noodles in half
1. Pre-heat a 6-quart multi-function pressure cooker using the BROWN or SAUTE setting.
2. Add the butter and sauté the shallot for a minute. Add the mushrooms and continue to sauté without stirring. Don’t stir the mushrooms in the cooker until they start to brown on one side. Then, stir the mushrooms to flip them over, add the garlic and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Continue to cook until the mushrooms are evenly browned.
3. Deglaze the cooker with the sherry, scraping up any brown bits on bottom of the cooker. Bring the liquid to a boil for a minute or two. (If your cooker doesn’t have a brown setting, use a skillet on the stovetop for the steps above and transfer the contents to the cooker now.) Add the stock and heavy cream. Add the nests of dried fettuccine or break long fettuccine noodles in half. Stir to cover the pasta with the liquid. Cover and lock the lid in place.
4. Pressure cook on HIGH for 6 minutes.
5. Release the pressure using with the QUICK-RELEASE method and carefully remove the lid. Stir in the Parmesan cheese. Let the pasta sit for a few minutes and then stir in parsley and serve with more Parmesan cheese to sprinkle on top.