If you haven’t experimented with wild mushroom powder, now is the time to start. The secret weapon of the spice drawer, this powder is the key to infusing food with the magic of the wild mushroom flavor and a great way to get the most of these expensive treasures.
Here, homemade vegetable stock is infused with the mushroom powder then combined with a duo of roasted fresh shiitake and portobello mushrooms (roasting, rather than offers a more dense and intense mushroom flavor) and finally tossed with an earthy, full-flavored spelt pasta, made with the nutty French épeautre or Italian farro.
Wild Mushroom Pasta
4 servings / Equipment: A baking sheet; a large, deep skillet with a lid; a 5-quart (5 l) pasta pot fitted with a colander; 4 warmed shallow soup bowls
Ingredients
1 pound (500 g) mixed mushrooms, such as shiitake and portobello, trimmed and wiped clean with a damp kitchen cloth
6 tablespoons toasted sesame oil or extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
3 tablespoons Cèpe Mushroom Powder (see Note)
1 cup (250 ml) Vegetable Stock
2 tablespoons coarse sea salt
8 ounces (250g) corkscrew-type spelt pasta, such as rotini
Grated Pecorino sheep’s milk cheese, for garnish
Fresh parsley leaves, for garnish
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
2. Cut the mushrooms lengthwise into thick slices. In a bowl, toss the mushrooms with the oil and salt. Spread them in an even layer on the baking sheet and roast until tender and golden brown, about 15 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, in the skillet (one large enough to hold the mushrooms and pasta later on) combine the vegetable stock and mushroom powder. Bring to a simmer, cover, and remove from the heat. Set aside for 10 minutes to infuse the stock.
4. Fill the pasta pot with 3 quarts (3 l) of water and bring to a rolling boil over high heat. Add the coarse salt and the pasta, cooking until a dente, or slightly resistant to the bite, according to package instructions. Drain the pasta quickly in the colander, but do not shake off every drop of water. Reserve the pasta water to add as necessary to the cooked pasta and sauce. Immediately transfer the pasta to the skillet with the stock. Add the mushrooms. Stir to coat the pasta with the mushrooms and sauce, adding additional reserved pasta water as necessary. Cook until the sauce thickens and easily coats the pasta. Taste for seasoning.
5. Transfer the pasta to the warmed bowls, garnishing with grated Pecorino and parsley. Serve immediately.
Note: To prepare cèpe powder, coarsely chop or cut with scissors about 2 ounces (30 g) of best-quality dried cèpe (porcini) mushrooms. Working in batches, grind them to a fine powder in an electric spice mill. This should yield about 8 tablespoons of powder. Store the powder in a small jar, tightly sealed, in a cool, dry place, for up to 6 months.
This is a Nourish the Planet recipe, part of a collaborative series by Patricia Wells and Emily Buchanan.
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