MUSHROOM, CHORIZO & THYME PASTA

Arabella is a really good eater however she puts her foot down over a few things - aubergines, duck and mushrooms. I don't know what she has against these 3 ingredients as Pascal and I love them all. However I don't force them down her as she eats pretty much everything else and she has been known to even enjoy the odd mushroom if it is covered in breadcrumbs and garlic mayo!!

Anyway as Arabella was with her father last weekend, I thought it would be a good opportunity to cook a mushroom pasta and as Pascal and I are huge chorizo fans, this definitely hit the spot.

Ingredients for 4 people:

350g of penne or other pasta like conchiglie, farfalle or fusilli
2 tbsp olive oil
400g button mushrooms, sliced
250g chorizo, cut into 5mm slices
150ml single or double (we used double)
150ml chicken stock
1tsp chopped fresh thyme leaves
80g Parmesan, shaved, to serve

Slice the mushrooms and chorizo, make up the stock and chop the thyme. 

If you are using dry pasta, you will need to start cooking this first in salted boiling water. We had fresh pasta which only took a few minutes so we didn't start yet.

Instead we started by putting a frying pan on a high heat, adding the oil and then the mushrooms once it was hot. 

Cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until they are softened and lightly golden.

This is when I started cooking the pasta (which took 3-4 minutes). Once the pasta is cooking, drain and set aside, retaining about 50ml of the cooking water.

Back to the mushrooms, add the chorizo to the frying pan with them, and fry to 1-2 minutes.

Stir in the cream, stock and thyme and then season. Reduce the heat to medium-low so the sauce is bubbling.

Finally add the pasta and cooking water to the sauce and mix well.

Serve in bowls and scatter with Parmesan.

This was absolutely delicious  - the chorizo gives the pasta a bit of a kick and the cream just adds a little flavour without being rich. Plus I adore mushrooms…I just used button mushrooms but you could mix it up a bit with oyster or wild mushrooms, like chanterelles, or even a combination. Another alternative would be to turn it into a pasta bake by baking it in a dish and covering it in cheese….I will definitely try this next time!!!