Tuesday 9 February 2021

Pasta with Mushroom Cheese Sauce and Basil

Regular readers may be aware that I'm not a huge pasta fan, especially if it comes floating in a sea of tomato sauce.  Darn those Spanish conquistadors.  Did they have to bring the tomato back to Europe, after invading the Aztec empire?  Ah well, at least they brought back chocolate, for all the chocoholic fiends (who? Me?).  

So you're probably thinking, what's going on here?  Well, this is pasta enveloped in a cheesy sauce, made with Mersey Valley spreadable cheese.  I decided to make (nearly) the ultimate sacrifice, and give this recipe a go for the blog.  Mr P. was very happy, as he looooves pasta.

This recipe is on the packet, and normally I shy away from such things, but this one caught my eye, so here we are.  I added bacon to it for a meaty zing, but make it without and you have an easy vego dinner.  This soft cheese is described as 'Vintage Club Cheddar, sharp and creamy', so you get the idea if you're hunting up a similar cheese.  Apparently a Club Cheddar is a mix of cheeses, blended till it becomes soft in texture.


creamy, cheesy, herby - delish!


Serves 4:

ingredients:


300-350g./10.5-12.3oz pasta (fusilli or penne)

2 tbs olive oil

1 brown onion, chopped

3 rashers (about 100g./10.5oz) rindless bacon, chopped

1-2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

250g./8oz of mushrooms, sliced

375 mL (1½ cups) of cream - thickened or pure

1/2 bunch basil leaves, chopped or torn

150g./5oz of Mersey Valley Spreadable cheese

a hefty dash of dried oregano, and of lightly dried chives (optional)

sea salt and black pepper, to taste

40g./1.4oz of parmesan cheese, grated


Method:


Fill a large saucepan with cold water, bring to the boil (see next step now), tip in your pasta of choice and cook it for the requisite number of minutes as per the packet - or to your favoured degree of al dente

While the water decides to boil, get on with the sauce - i.e. start chopping!

Grab a large saucepan or frypan, pour in the oil, let it heat up, then tip in the onion, bacon, garlic and mushrooms

Stir till everything becomes tender, golden and smells delicious

Now pour in the cream, and let it simmer till the sauce starts to thicken

Grab a wooden spoon and stir in the Mersey Valley cheese

Turn down the heat, and season with the salt and pepper

Throw on the basil leaves, and the dried herbs, toss the drained pasta and sauce together, and sprinkle with the parmesan cheese

Serve with a chopped tomato and red onion salad - tomato, red onion, olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper


Notes:


Their recipe says to cook up the pasta after the sauce is done, but that seems odd to me, as your sauce will be sitting around getting cold and gluggy for up to 20 minutes!  I reckon start the pasta when you start chopping, so they're ready at the same time

They say use 350 grams of pasta - this is a lot!  You can easily use less, unless you really love lots (and lots) of pasta with your sauce


gather your ingredients

sauté the veg.

add the cream and basil

get Mr P. to stir in the pasta

grate the parmesan

and eat!

This is a very rich dish, so you may not need a lot of it.  The salad helps cut the kilojoules (if only!).  I've been giving meals to our elderly neighbour during Covid, so we took a bowl over to her.  I hope she doesn't think I'm trying to do her in - death by cholesterol:-)


(Joining up with Marg from the Intrepid Reader for Weekend Cooking.)


artwork © Sherry's Pickings


38 comments:

  1. I would eat anything with real raw Parmesan cheese! I don't mind cholesterol at all :-))

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    1. you are lucky angie about the cholesterol. some of us have to worry about it; not that i really spend much (none) time on it :-)

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  2. Can’t go wrong with cheese and pasta. I love the Mersey Valley cheese on crackers too.

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  3. This looks delicious Sherry but unlike you I prefer pasta sauces based on tomato these days, cream based and cheese sauces with pasta are too rich for me. I could be tempted to give it a go in Winter though.Looks nice and comforting and great photos.

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    1. thanks pauline. you're right about creamy cheesy sauces being very rich:) and thanks re the photos. it's hard to get good ones sometimes, but i'm finding nighttime ones are easier for some reason. less shadows maybe and one light source...

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    2. Interesting about the photos Sherry, Ill keep that in mind. photos for the blog are a challenge.

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  4. I DO like pasta, so I join Mr P. in being happy you made this. :-) Cheesy pasta dishes are incredibly comforting. Like the bacon in this, too. Thanks!

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    1. yes i think many people do like pasta KR - just not me. i mean I eat it, but i prefer other things. I always laugh when tv chefs say - oh everyone loves pasta...

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  5. Haha - I do love a good creamy pasta sauce! Mr. P must have been on Cloud 9 with a bowl of this pasta. It sounds like it's packed with flavor...and easy to make, too! And I'd venture to guess that your neighbor was quite ok with this one. :-)

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  6. Love pasta but minus the mushrooms! Nice to learn about this Australian cheese - there is lots of info on the internet including your recipe.

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    1. oh judi - no mushies? oh dear. I love me some tasty little 'shrooms. You know, you have taught me something. I always thought this cheese was English but i see it is in fact from Tasmania! tee hee...

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    2. I always thought I would outgrow my dislike for mushrooms - no such luck. I mean everyone likes mushrooms! Any time I see something new (like this cheese) I research it. Great recipe Sherry - I like this melting cheese. It's not on Amazon but other places sell it.

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  7. 1. Thank you for your ultimate sacrifice - that's a really delicious pasta recipe!
    2. "350 grams of pasta - this is a lot!" For 4 servings. Here, Ben giggled and embarrassedly decided to agree with this statement :)

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    1. thanks muchly Ben. Once i had cooked up the 350 grams of pasta, it seemed like a huuuuuge amount, so we only put about half of it in with the sauce. Hubby happily eats the rest.

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  8. Well, yum!!! I'm not familiar with the spreadable cheese, but can surely find a substitute.

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    1. yes i hope you can Mimi. there must be something similar around. it is pretty delish! and great on crackers too.

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  9. Creamy sauce and mushrooms are my favourite sauce for a pasta, loving this recipe

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  10. I love Mersey Valley cheese, I've never seen a spreadable version. I love a good pasta situation so this is right up my eat street!

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    1. hi sammie
      yes we've been spreading mersey valley on our crackers for quite some years. very delish! and so good in this dish.

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  11. That sounds great, so lush. I like a pasta with lots of yummy ingredients. I'd double the mushrooms

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    1. i think you're right tina. definitely more mushies would increase the flavour here.

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  12. What a great combo of ingredients! Pasta is so comforting, and it's perfect with anything cheesy. And mushroomy!

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  13. My idea of a perfect dinner.
    Amalia
    xo

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  14. Well if I was being done in by a dinner of cholesterol...I think I'd think what a great way to go! Sounds great Sherry and what a nice thing you are doing!

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    1. thanks Abbe. I think her neighbour on the other side feeds her too and her daughter brings meals so she is doing well:-)

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  15. It's interesting reading the comments and finding the different like and dislikes of commenters. I guess I'm a bit odd as I love all pasta dishes, although cream and cheese based ones are off limit these days. I love mushrooms cooked in any fashion or raw on their own. Tomatoes, we're never without them. Either garden fresh in the summer and frozen or sun dried in the winter.
    Cholesterol, some are immune to the effects,I suppose. I thought I was.
    Take care...

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    1. oh yes i adore the 'shrooms, just not pasta. and no to tomatoes:-)

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  16. Wow - that is a surprise about pasta, Sherry. I am with Ron - I love it all! Including this nice, cheesy dish with lots of basil. This is a no brainer for a dinner this coming week - and homemade fusilli might even happen! (Depends on the work schedule...)

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    1. i must be one of the few who don't like pasta David. an oddity! i suggest adding more mushrooms as tina above mentions. homemade fusilli? clever.

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  17. YES!! First time here (popped over from Tina's). I am so happy to hear someone else say they are not a fan of pasta!! I never have been. My husband loves it with loads of red sauce! I do enjoy a cream sauce which he would never even try until late last year and he is finally a convert. So I can make pasta once in a while now.

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    1. lovely to have you jackie. always nice to find a new blogger:) i am so glad too to see someone else who isn't a pasta fan. it's very unusual it seems. We are in a select club!

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  18. P.S. this is my kind of pasta.
    New follower!!!

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