Thursday, September 13, 2018

Creamy Pasta with Pancetta and Mushrooms

You can never go wrong with bacon and mushrooms! This creamy and delicious pasta with pancetta is our comfort food for sure.  

I am so happy to be living in New Haven, CT! Two yummy reasons are – Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s! When we were in  Michigan the nearest Trader Joe’s was 3 hours away – to the west in a Chicago suburb and to the east in a suburb of Detroit. That means when we visit either store, we tend to hoard as we don’t know when we will return. My hubby is such a huge fan of their salsas so we haul loads of them back home.

But now, instead of 3 hours – either Whole Foods or Trader Joe’s are minutes away from where we live. I am so enjoying this! Anyway, the other day we went to TJ’s and got myself some pancetta (Italian Bacon) and mushrooms which I intended to use for different recipes. However, as it would usually happen, there were change of plans on the menu and instead I opted to just use both in one recipe – a yummy pasta dish. As you can imagine – the marriage of Pancetta and mushrooms with cream and pasta as special guests (not to mention the presence of wine, too!) made such a wonderful dinner! Yes, it felt like we were having a dinner feast indeed! Enjoy this easy and tasty pasta dish!

Ingredients
  • 1 (12 oz) package of Pasta of your choice*
  • 1-2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
  • 4 oz Pancetta, cubed*
  • 3 Garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 (8 oz) package Baby Bella mushrooms, chopped
  • ¼ cup dry White (or Red) wine*
  • 1 cup Heavy/Double Cream
  • 1/4 – 1/3 cup grated Parmesan Cheese 
  • Freshly ground Black Pepper, to taste
  • Salt, if needed
*I only had Spaghetti but Penne and other tube pasta would be great for this, too.
*You can replace this with regular bacon.
*You can replace the wine with chicken broth.

Procedure
  1. In a heavy-bottomed pot, bring to a boil lightly salted water. Add the pasta and cook until al dente. While cooking the pasta, begin the process of cooking the sauce.
  2. In a large skillet or sauté pan, heat the oil. Cook the pancetta until browned but not crispy. Add the garlic and sauté briefly. 
  3. Add the mushrooms and cook until the mushrooms have released its liquid. Pour in the wine. Increase the heat and reduce the wine/liquid to about half. 
  4. Lower the heat and stir in the cream. Cook until the cream is just heated then add the parmesan. Simmer until the sauce has thickened slightly. Season with some freshly ground Black Pepper, to taste. If you think it needs salt, add some, to taste. 
  5. Drain the Pasta and mix with the sauce. Serve immediately with extra parmesan on the side. Garnish with some fresh parsley, if desired. Enjoy!
  6. If you wish to print the recipe, there’s a print-friendly icon at the end of the post. Click on the “remove images box” for easy printing.
  7. If you like what you see and would like to receive new recipe updates, we’d love you to subscribe to our posts via email or through our feed or join our site. Needless to say, we’d love you to like us on Facebook or follow us on Pinterest where you can get more recipes and updates. Thanks and happy browsing!