Roman Kitchen Notes

One of the things that I was looking forward to the most in Rome was the ability to cook. I've always been a baker, a damn good one too, but cooking has been slow to draw my attention. Part of the reason is that it usually seems like more of a chore than anything else -- Cooking is a necessity, baking is honest to goodness fun. And, after getting home from work at 7:00 or later, choosing between a well cooked meal or, really, anything else that still needed to be accomplished always made me choose quick over wholesome, or even appetizing.

But here, I've been reminded of the fact that I can cook and with Amy, we've been going to the produce markets and trying out different things. This recipe for pasta with porcini mushrooms sprang from a desire to copy what we've been having in restaurants.

Pasta with Porcini Mushrooms

4 tablespoons olive oil
2-3 Porcini mushrooms, chopped (about 1-2 cups)
Fine grain sea salt
5 cloves garlic, chopped
1 pound fettuccine
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 cup Pecorino or Parmesan cheese
Zest of one lemon

Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add mushrooms and large pinch of salt. Saute mushrooms until they release their liquid and begin to brown. Now stir in the garlic and cook 30 seconds more. Remove from heat.

Cook noodles according to package directions. Transfer cooked noodles to skillet with mushrooms and stir in black pepper, cheese, lemon zest and remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil.

Serve immediately.

Also, I should note that although the mushrooms act as the protein, we added some chicken to our leftovers the following night and it still worked.