Creamy Garlic & Mushroom Alfredo

So I’m back marooned on my island with Brad Pitt in tattered clothes, near nude, and we have exhausted our potato supply. What to do? Get the next best thing, of course, noodles!

Ok so I don’t love noodles as much as I love potatoes but man do I love a good noodle. Whether it’s a buckwheat soba, Asian ramen, whole wheat spaghetti or a simple egg noodle…I will eat it with gusto!

Despite this recipe today, I’m not one of those pasta lovers who can’t go without sauce. Sure I love Alfredo, Bolognese, ratatouille or plain old tomato sauce, but I love a nice lemon and olive oil as much. In fact I absolutely adore a nice scampi—with or without shrimp but ALWAYS with anchovies. YUM!

I found these dunkel (dark whole wheat) noodles that kind of remind me of those noodles that used to come in those Lipton 20-minute packages. Remember those? They were mostly salt and powdered goo but in college we could pair those with anything and be happy. With this flat sorta-short noodles and a batch of crimini mushrooms I knew we’d have a nice Alfredo.

But none of that jar Alfredo sauce for me; I mean really, cream cannot sit on the shelf for years on end so what the hell is in those jars anyway! Nope this is where I splurge: whole cream. It needs to be actual cream; no skim milk because it won’t thicken properly and you’ll end up with creamy garlic and mushroom soup. Gross, I know, which is why I splurged.

The store was out of my favorite Pecorino Romano so I turned to my trusted old friend Parmigiano Reggiano. I just can’t get enough of the tangy flavor with a semi-mild flavored dish like this.

Now I get a little heavy handed with the garlic because not only is it delish, but it is also mad healthy with all kinds of benefits. It’s cooked so you won’t burn off your taste buds and it has great immune-boosting properties because nothing sucks worse than a summer cold.

Without further ado…

Servings: 2

Ingredients

5 garlic cloves, chopped

3.5 tbsp. Parmigiano Reggiano

1 cup, heavy cream

1.5 cups sliced crimini mushrooms

1 tbsp. olive oil

1 cup whole wheat pasta

Directions

1. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and follow pasta instructions.
2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
3. Add mushrooms to skillet and cook until water is cooked out and the edges begin to crisp, about 15 minutes.
4. Add in garlic and cook an additional 3 minutes.
5. Add heavy cream to skillet and reduce heat to a simmer until it thickens, about 5 minutes.
6. Top pasta with Alfredo sauce and sprinkle with Parm.
7. I enjoyed this meal with a local Riesling, but feel free to pair it with your favorite wine.