Orecchiette with Pancetta and Mushrooms

Orecchiette with Pancetta and Mushrooms

serves 4-6

Ingredients:

5 ounces pancetta, diced (you can sub bacon if you need to)

8 ounces Barilla Orecchiette pasta

8 ounces mushrooms, thinly sliced

½ cup medium red onion, diced (about ½ medium onion)

pinch of red hot chili pepper (optional)

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided

2 teaspoons fresh thyme, minced

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

¾ cup grated parmigiano reggiano cheese

sea salt to taste

2 tablespoons fresh parsley, minced

Instructions:

Put a large pot of water to boil on the stove for the pasta (I do not salt the water in this instance since the pancetta adds saltiness to the dish). Heat a large saute skillet over medium low heat. Spray with a little cooking spray and add the pancetta. Fry pancetta until crisp, about 8 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon onto paper towels to drain. Pour off any oil but do not wipe out pan.

Add pasta to boiling water and stir. Time the pasta to cook for about 12 minutes (different brands cook for different times).

While pasta is cooking, add one tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil to the skillet in which you fried the pancetta. Add the onions, mushrooms, chili pepper and black pepper. Add about ¼ cup of water to the pan. Toss everything together well. Cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Mushrooms should be golden and greatly reduced in volume and most of the liquid should be evaporated. Lower heat. Add the thyme and cook over low heat for one more minute. Return pancetta to pan, along with 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Stir mixture. Test pasta to make sure it is done (it should be al dente - don't overcook it) and remove from pot with strainer and add to the sauce, letting a little pasta water transfer over with the pasta. Turn off heat and add cheese. Mix well. If the pasta is too dry, just add a little more hot pasta water.

Taste pasta and if it needs a little salt, add it at this point. Add the fresh parsley and mix well. Add more grated cheese, if you like.

The Italian Dish

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