Mushroom, Goat's Cheese, Pear, and Walnut Fettuccine
Servings: 4 people
Ingredients
- 1 pound fettuccine (bean, lentil, buckwheat, whole wheat, regular, or spiralized vegetables) enough for 4 servings
- 2 tablespoons butter or olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic peeled
- 2 sprigs fresh rosemary leaves picked from stalk
- 20 leaves fresh sage
- 500 grams ( 1 lb) mixed mushrooms (baby shitake, cremini, portobello, morel, or bolete) cleaned
- 50 grams (1 cup) baby spinach or other baby greens
- 200 grams soft goat's cheese crumbled
- 1 teaspoon Kosher salt plus more to taste
- 5-6 turns fresh cracked pepper
- ½ cup pasta cooking water
Toppings
- 1 pear firm but ripe, thinly sliced
- ¼-1/2 cup pecorino or other hard cheese freshly grated
- 2 handfuls walnuts toasted and roughly chopped
- extra-virgin olive oil or walnut oil or butter
- balsamic vinegar
- ¼-3/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Bring a large stockpot filled three-quarters with water to a boil. Add a teaspoon of salt, then the fettuccine you've selected, and cook for the minimum recommended time (until just al dente). Reserve ½ cup of the pasta cooking water. Drain the pasta and toss the cooked noodles with a drizzle of oil to keep them from sticking.
- Meanwhile, heat the butter or oil in a large, wide skillet over medium-low heat. Finely chop the herbs and garlic, then add them to the pan with the butter. Saute for one to two minutes, until fragrant.
- Thinly slice the mushrooms, add them to the pan with the herbs and garlic, increase the heat to medium-high, and saute without stirring for about 5 minutes. Once the mushrooms are golden on the bottom, turn them over and continue cooking another 5 minutes, until golden on both sides and tender. Depending on the size of your pan, you may need to do this in two batches.
- Remove the pan from the heat and quickly stir in the goat's cheese and baby greens, until the greens wilt and the cheese melts in. Season to taste with salt and pepper, adding in some of the reserved pasta cooking water if the sauce is too dry.
- Fold the cooked fettuccine into the sauce, then serve topped with slices of the pear, a sprinkle of pecorino and chopped walnuts, plus additional seasonings as desired (olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes).