A rich and satisfying vegetarian pasta that’s perfect with oyster mushrooms, sweet peppers, and the first baby greens of the fall of the season. You will find oyster mushrooms, sweet peppers, onions, garlic, and baby arugula at the market this week!
- 8 ounces uncooked pasta
- 6 cups oyster mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
- 1/2 cup raw walnuts
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 cup onion, diced
- 1 1/2 cups sweet peppers, chopped small
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 4-5 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon flour
- 1 cup half-and-half
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 2 cups (packed) arugula, rinsed and chopped
- Salt, black pepper, and red pepper flakes to taste
- Freshly grated Parmesan cheese to taste
Cook your pasta al dente according to package directions. If you use gluten-free pasta you’ll likely need to rinse it under cold water to keep it from over-cooking. Before draining, reserve a few tablespoons of the pasta water and keep hot.
Meanwhile, sauté the sliced mushrooms in a large skillet over medium heat until they are lightly browned. You’ll do this in batches with 1/2 tbs olive oil in each batch. If your mushrooms are wet to begin with (mine were, as they had been rained on and I had to wash them) I recommend cooking them in a dry pain for a few minutes first so they release the water, then add the oil and continue to sauté.
When all the mushrooms are cooked, put them in a food processor with the walnuts, Italian seasoning, and salt and pepper to taste. Pulse the mixture a few times until it is chopped small, but not too finely ground. You want a ground pork or TVP type texture.
Heat 1 tbs olive oil in the skillet on medium heat. Add the oyster mushroom mixture to the skillet and saute, stirring frequently, for about 5 minutes. Remove mixture from the skillet and set aside, keeping warm.
Add 1 tbs olive oil to the skillet on medium heat. Add the onion and peppers, and saute until the onion is lightly browned and the peppers have softened up (8-10 minutes). About halfway through add the arugula to the skillet.
Add the butter and garlic to the skillet. When the butter has melted, sprinkle in the flour and cook for about a minute, stirring well.
Stir in the cream and Dijon mustard, getting rid of any lumps the flour may have formed. The sauce will thicken quickly, so it will only take about a minute before the next step.
Add the oyster mushroom mixture and stir into the skillet to warm through.
Add the reserved hot pasta water to the skillet and stir in. Then stir in the drained pasta until it is coated with the sauce. Add more salt and pepper as needed, and either stir in Parmesan to taste (I used about a half cup) or serve with Parmesan sprinkled on top.
