Rapini and Portabello Mushrooms with Gobbetti

The fog of Sweden subsides – I promise more frequent postings!  Our first farm market visit finds us loaded with the most beautiful produce – recipes are flying out of me faster than I can keep track of them!

Bionaturae makes the most delicious organic whole wheat pasta imaginable – not grainy or dense, but toothy and flavorful, ready to absorb whatever flavors the sauce imparts.  It is far better than any other readily available whole grain pasta in my estimation.  Gobbetti is a fun curly twist with ridges – a real sauce catcher!  You could substitute fusilli or penne rigate.  The sauce is designed for whole grain pasta – robust and flavorful.  Portobello mushrooms, when allowed to concentrate flavors, assume a bacon-like character, smoky, chewy, delicious.

2 T olive oil
2 T ghee or butter
2 large portobello mushrooms
5 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp fine sherry vinegar
1/4 C white wine (optional)
salt and pepper to taste

1 bunch (about 1#) rapini, washed and chopped into 1 inch lengths
1/2 # bionaturae gobbetti pasta, or equivalent

Slice portobello mushrooms in half crosswise, then slice each half in half lengthwise.  Cut across the slices into 1/2 inch widths, yielding slices about 1/2 in square.  In large sauté pan, heat oil and butter until butter is melted and add garlic and portobello mushrooms.  Sauté while stirring until mushrooms are glazed, then cover pan and turn heat to low to release juices, leave for about 20 minutes.  Season mushrooms with salt and pepper and add 2 tsp fine sherry vinegar and optional white wine to pan and stir to concentrate flavors.  Remove from heat and set aside while preparing pasta.

Bring large pot of water to boil, add a small handful of salt and the pasta.  Return to boil and cook, stirring occasionally, until past is almost done.  Add rapini to the pot and return to a boil.  When rapini is bright green and just al dente the pasta is done.  Remove 1/2 C of pasta liquid and set aside.  Drain pasta and rapini and place in serving dish.  Add reserved liquid to pasta along with contents of mushroom pan.  Toss to combine, add 1 C grated excellent parmesan or asiago and toss again.

Note:  We tend to use less pasta to go with our veggie sauces, placing the emphasis on the vegetables rather than the pasta.  This is not traditionally Italian, but the carb balance feels right for us, and the whole grain pasta further enhances that balance.

Comments

[Dennis]

This looks delicious, and to me, the pasta balance looks correct, because it's really an American pasta salad, rather than an Italian pasta course. The vinegar in the sauce argues it that way, as well as the ratio of veggies to pasta. I would imagine this would be best chilled. I appreciate light pasta courses in restaurants, when they are part of a larger meal. The tradition of following pasta with a big veal steak is great, but I hardly need the extra calories. In some restaurants, it's like eating two entres.

[greensgal]

Actually, we didn't try it cold. If it were to be eaten cold, I would have left out the ghee (which lends a spectacular warmth to the dish), perhaps increased the vinegar and shaved the cheese instead of grating it. Good idea!