Mushroom Fresh Ricotta Pasta – Spreading Jittery Cook

Everywhere I go these days I wind up telling everyone I meet to check out the Jittery Cook blog (seriously, everyone; the cashier at the pharmacy, the RVH card renewal lady, the x-ray technician, the health food store manager, the Club Intrawest phone lady…). They all seem very enthusiastic and respond like I’ve just given them a gift. A personal invitation in an impersonal world. Whenever I’m asked what my goal is, I can’t really think of a precise goal, except to say that it is exciting to see the numbers grow. Ok, that and I want to be known worldwide by my first name only, just like all those other first namers.

Today’s post was inspired by Maryse Constantinou from Monsieur Basilic. When Maryse heard about my passion for blogging about food she kindly offered me a case of the most beautiful oyster mushrooms to experiment with. Can you imagine? I knew this blogging would pay off some day. Hmmmm, what about the gourmet stores, fish monger, butcher, baker, kitchen supply store, appliance companies? Don’t they all need their products touted?

Maryse’s words of advice were few. She told me I could do no wrong. Well, now that I told her what I did, she’s full of advice. Oy! The correct way to cook these magnificent beauties is quickly, on high heat, searing in the juices. They should be broiled gill side up first, with a little oil and garlic, being careful not to burn, or seared quickly in a pan, a few at a time, adding the garlic close to the end. Flavourings that Maryse mentioned include either port and balsamic vinegar or white wine and lemon juice. I say that I should get a second try now that I have all this great advice.

While this tasted good with oyster mushrooms I recommend that you use regular mushrooms for this recipe and follow Maryse’s recommendations above to get the most out of oyster mushrooms.

Mushroom Fresh Ricotta Pasta

• 4 c mushrooms, sliced
• 1 c fresh ricotta cheese (or you can use store bought)
• 1 T butter
• 1 T olive oil
• 1 dry shallot, finely minced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 c dry sherry
• 1/3 c parsley, finely chopped
• 1/3 c parmesan, grated
• sea salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1 box de Cecco pasta, wide noodles, cooked as per the instructions

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Maryse did offer to sell her products directly to the public in case you want to go directly to the source. Monsieur Basilic is an amazing local produce company that specializes in growing their own mushrooms and herbs. Maryse emphasized the incredible health properties of oyster mushrooms. Click on the link for details from the FungusAmongUs site.