The dish with the funghi //Mushroom & Thyme Tagliatelle

To all the meat eaters out there, try this and tell me you don't want it again and again and again. It's beautiful.

This recipe consists of a few techniques which over time you'll really come into your own. To begin with it may be new territory but stick at it!

So without further adieu, here's my recipe. I try and use a mixture of mushrooms to mix up the flavour profile but any type of mushroom will do.

Ingredients

For the pasta, head over to my pasta recipe.

Mushroom sauce

4 dried mushrooms + 60ml boiling water to steep

4 x sprigs of fresh thyme

1 x handful of sliced mushrooms (these can be porcini, chestnut, button, field etc)

150ml cream

1 x white onion finely diced

2 x cloves garlic crushed

25g butter

60ml white wine

Olive oil

Method

Tip the 60ml of boiling water over the dried mushrooms in a glass bowl and set aside to steep for 5-10 mins.

Melt half the butter with a dash of olive oil on a medium heat and cook the mushrooms. Dependent on the type of mushroom you have, these could take up to 10 mins. You're trying to remove excess moisture here so you're left with a rich and velvety sauce, not a watery one. Remove and set aside once cooked, check for a nice caramelisation on the outside.

In the same pan, add the remaining butter and a splash of olive oil again. Add the onions and garlic, stirring to begin with and ensure the garlic doesn't burn. Once cooked, add the mushrooms back in and deglaze the pan with the white wine. After the wine has cooked off, add the liquid you steeped the mushrooms in and let the liquid reduce, then add the cream and stir. to combine, then turn the heat down for it to simmer away. Add the thyme flowers in and let steep.

In a separate pot, cook your pasta until just before al dente. Al dente means to the tooth so it still has some give in the pasta. You will be tipping the pasta into the sauce so it will keep cooking in there for a few minutes. Timing is important here so if you're using fresh pasta then it'll take less time than store bought.

Once a few minutes away from being done, add to the pan with the sauce and stir together. Serve straight away.

Buon Appetito, TFB