Mushroom & pancetta pasta with thyme-infused cream

Ingredients

For the pasta:

• 250gr gluten-free fusilli or shape of choice

For the mushroom and pancetta cream:

• 1 large onion

• 2 garlic cloves, crushed

• 250gr chestnut mushrooms halved, sliced and patted dry

• 250ml single cream (I use Soya cream)

• 170gr unsmoked pancetta

• 1 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO)

• 1 tsp dried thyme leaves (if fresh, use 3 tsps)

• 1 large bay leaf

• 1/2 mushroom stock cube

• 1 leftover Parmesan rind (optional)

• Handful of finely chopped flat-leaf parsley for garnish

• Freshly grated hard cheese (like Parmesan or Grana)

• Salt and pepper to taste 

Method

I start by pouring the EVOO into a large pan. Once hot, I tip the pancetta into it and leave it to render and crisp up. In the meantime, I chop the onion finely. Using a slotted spoon, I transfer the crisped-up pancetta into a bowl and set aside, leaving the pancetta rendering in the pan. To this, I add some freshly cracked pepper and a large bay leaf. As it starts to make a sizzling sound, I add the chopped onion, followed by the crushed garlic and I occasionally stir until translucent and golden. I, then, mix in the mushrooms and sprinkle a little bit of salt to extract the moisture out.

In a separate pot, I pour in the single cream, add the thyme leaves and allow it to come to a gentle simmer. This will allow the thyme to infuse the cream with its beautiful flavor. Once this is done, take it off the heat and pour it into the pan with the onion and mushroom mixture through a tea strainer or small sieve, so that none of the actual thyme leaves get into the sauce (to avoid any bitterness). I leave this to come together on very low heat and add the mushroom stock cube, as well as the leftover parmesan rind.

In the meantime, I add water and salt to a large pot and set it on high heat to bring to a boil for the pasta. I cook the pasta for about 7 minutes (or 3 minutes less than the recommended cooking time). Before draining the pasta, I add two ladles of pasta water to the cream sauce.

I discard the parmesan rind and bay leaf before folding in the pasta and pancetta into the creamy mushroom sauce and then serve up. Every plate is sprinkled with parsley, freshly ground black pepper and covered in a soft blanket of freshly grated cheese. This recipe serves 2-3 people and I can guarantee, it will become a firm household favourite. Enjoy!