Meatless Monday: Spinach, Mushroom & Brie Pasta
The Creamy Brie, Leek & Butternut Squash Pasta I posted a few weeks back was quite at hit at home, as well as the blogosphere, so I'm here with a recipe today that is just as simple and delicious. As I noted in the recipe above, brie cheese makes the most sumptuously creamy sauce with literally zero work. Summer is in full force and while a cheese sauce may seem a bit heavy, the brie melts into almost more of a glaze as I mentioned in the butternut squash recipe.
Speaking of minimal effort, the only thing that really requires any chopping in this recipe is the onion (which I suppose you could purchase pre-cut), otherwise I just threw in a bag of baby spinach and pre-sliced mushrooms. And if you count cutting the cheese much work, I guess you'll have to factor that in too, but we're talking about brie. And who doesn't like to cut the cheese?! Ahh, jokes aside, you're gonna love this.
Spinach, Mushroom & Brie Pasta
Serves: 2
Preparation TIme: 15-20 minutes
Ingredients:
2 tbsp. butter, divided
1/2 red onion, diced
1 package mushrooms, sliced, rinsed & dried
splash dry white wine or vermouth (water or broth would work, too)
1 bag baby spinach
8 oz. pasta (this is usually half a bag)
reserved pasta water
1 small wedge of brie cheese, rine removed on all sides & roughly chopped
salt/pepper/red pepper flakes (optional), to taste
Method:
1. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. In a large saute pan with high walls or a Dutch oven, melt 1 tbsp. butter over medium-high heat. Once melted and shimmery, add in diced onions and saute until transluscent. Add in sliced mushrooms and saute until browned. If too much liquid accumulates in the pan, turn up the heat until it has evaporated. Add more butter if needed.
2. Add pasta to boiling water. De-glaze mushroom and onion pan with the liquid you're using (I almost always just use vermouth), and then pour in the bag of spinach. Saute until wilted.
3. Once pasta is al dente, remove from water with a pasta scoop and add to saute pan, allowing some of the pasta water to drip in. Add chunks of brie cheese, bit by bit, stirring, and adding more pasta water as needed. Finish with the last tbsp. of butter and stir again until everything is well coated and creamy. Finish with salt, pepper and red pepper flakes (optional) to taste.
