L'Artusi's Mushroom Ragu

Words really can’t describe my love for this dish.

I am a huge mushroom fan, as you have probably noticed in earlier food posts (and you’ll see in future ones). They have amazing health benefits. They are filled with protein, antioxidants and vitamins. They are said to help strengthen bones and promote heart health. The list goes on!

This dish is adapted from L’artusi NYC’s Mushroom Ragu and can be found on Food52 (one of my favorites). Mushroom and non mushroom lovers will fall in love with it too. It doesn’t taste super mushroomy and has the consistency of a meat bolognese. You can be easily fooled! In fact, my dad thought it was meat at first and asked,

“what’s the sweetness in it?”

“Aha! it’s all in the mushroom.”

Some comments:

• We used a thicker bucatini pasta (in substitute of the fresh garganelli). We like the brand Garofalo. Bucatini is one of my favorites. (Spaghetti is somewhere in between Angel Hair and Bucatini - I don’t love it. It doesn’t know what it wants to be…)

• The prep work take a bit of time, mainly due to the cleaning, chopping and processing of the mushrooms (it is worth it!). So grab a cooking partner, pour yourself a drink and get to it!

• Really can’t emphasis the need to stir and simmer throughout the process. Like a typically meat bolognese, this really gets the flavors in concert.

• Delicious paired with an Italian red like a Chianti Classico.