Lumberjack Mushroom Penne (+ a cookbook review)

October 31, 2012 in pasta

Oh man. This pasta.

It might be my favorite pasta in the history of pastas. And just wait until you see the ingredient list. It’s so simple.

I’m participating in a blogging book tour (hosted by Ginny of Cooking with Chopin, Living with Elmo) for the cookbook A Family Farm in Tuscany. I chose to make this pasta which in Italian is called Penne alla Boscaiola - that just sounds delicious, right? Like I said, it’s so simple! It’s just a basic red sauce but with a ton of mushrooms. My kids don’t eat mushrooms but they gobbled this up and asked for seconds.

I cannot even get over how much I loved this. I, sadly, am low-carbing it until my husband comes homes (I know!) so I only allowed myself one serving of it. It KILLED me to heat up the leftovers for the kids the next day. The smell of the sweet Italian sausage I used with the mushrooms and the sauce was too much. I can’t wait to make it again so I can eat my weight in it.

The book is an absolutely gorgeous cookbook with photos of Fattoria Poggio Alloro as well as recipes. It’s written by Sarah Fioroni who is the chef, cooking instructor, sommelier, and the manager of the farm. The first 40 pages of the book is all the history of the farm and of San Gimignano, the small city where the farm is located. It’s fascinating and made me really want to visit! The recipes in the book are divided by month and showcases the ingredients that are in season during that time. (This recipe is from the October section – imagine that!) The recipes all use simple, fresh ingredients and all of them sound delicious. There are recipes for pasta, cakes, soup, crostini, mousse – you name it, it’s in here.

A Family Farm in Tuscany is available for purchase at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and other booksellers.

One year ago: Pumpkin Snickerdoodles
Three years ago: Apple Custard Pie

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Lumberjack Mushroom Penne

serves about 8

Ingredients

1/2 cup red onion, cut into small dice
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 cups fresh white mushrooms, cut into small pieces
10 ounces ground pork sausage
3 cups tomato puree
1/2 cup warm water
1/2 - 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper, or to taste
3 pinches salt, or to taste
4 to 6 quarts water
2 tablespoons salt
1 pound penne pasta
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese (optional)

Instructions

  1. Cook the onion with the olive oil in a medium, heavy-bottomed pot for about 5 minutes. A the mushrooms and cook an additional 10 minutes. Use your hands to break the sausage into smaller chunks and add to the pot. Cook for 10 to 15 minutes or until the sausage is cooked. Ad the tomato puree, warm water, red pepper, and salt. Simmer for 30 minutes over medium-low heat.
  2. In another large pot, bring water to a rolling boil. When the water is boiling, add salt and the penne pasta. Cook pasta until al dente, about 7 minutes, using the package instructions as a guide. Remove and drain.
  3. Put the sauce in a large frying pan and add the pasta. Stir over medium-high heat for 3 minutes and serve. Top each serving with Parmesan cheese, if desired.
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