Pesto Cavatappi

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This recipe was awesome. I give it a 9.5. Ignore the picture, which looks gross. Mine looked so much better, which is a first. Here is what I did differently. I only used 2 T. white wine and I used 50% cream and 50% milk, or basically half and half. This was so awesome. I will make this again and again.

Ingredients
7 oz. pesto (about 1 cup)
10-16 oz. sliced mushrooms
2 large tomatoes, diced
3-4 garlic cloves, minced
14 oz. spiral pasta (cavatappi, fusilli, rotini, etc.)
1/2 cup white wine
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream (still trying to find a healthier substitute -- ideas anyone??)
Shredded parmesan-style cheese (vegetarian) for topping, optional
Salt/pepper
Directions
Cook pasta according to package directions until slightly undercooked. Drain in colander.
Meanwhile, saute mushrooms in a large skillet with salt until slightly softened.
To the skillet, add cooked pasta, garlic, and about one of the diced tomatoes. Stir and saute over medium heat for 1 minute.
Add wine, stir thoroughly, and cook a few minutes to let the wine reduce.
Add whipping cream, stir, and wait for it to reduce/thicken.
Add remaining tomatoes and heat for a couple minutes.
Turn heat to low, add pesto and stir well to combine. Salt/pepper to taste.
Serve hot with shredded parmesan cheese on top (optional).

retrieved from http://www.thegardengrazer.com/2012/04/pesto-cavatappi.html

Comments

  1. thejohnmfamilyJuly 28, 2020 at 8:44 PM

    So, I tried this in the pressure cooker and it was good, but needed tweaking. I put the pesto and the cream in with 4 cups of chicken broth after I had sautéed the mushrooms, removed them, added the wine, boiled it down a bit, and then stirred everything together before adding the pasta and then the mushrooms on top. I cooked it on high for 2 minutes and then let it sit for 4, almost 5 minutes, and it was too much cooking time and the sauce wasn't strong enough in flavor. Next time, I think I would sautee the mushrooms, remove them, add the wine, reduce it down a bit, cook the pasta in the chicken broth or even water for less time (maybe 2 on high and 2 on keep warm and then depressurize) with the mushrooms on top, drain any excess, then stir in the pesto and cream. I think this would still be easier than all the pots but not be overcooked or decrease the flavor.

    ReplyDelete
  2. thejohnmfamilyJuly 28, 2020 at 8:52 PM

    Here's info I found on instant pot pasta:

    Add pasta to the pressure cooker pot
    Add liquid: 1 1/2 cups of liquid for every 4 ounces of pasta
    Add salt: 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt for every 1 1/2 cups liquid and 4 ounces of pasta
    Add fat: 1/2 tablespoon oil or butter for every 4 ounces of pasta
    Cook pasta for half the lowest package time, minus 2 minutes (examples below). When pressure cooking is complete, do a quick release of pressure (see below for what to do if starchy liquid spurts through valve)
    Reserve some of the starchy pasta water if you're combining it with a sauce, then drain the pasta. Rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process if you're not using it right away. A light drizzle of oil will keep it from sticking


    https://tidbits-marci.com/perfect-pressure-cooker-pasta/

    ReplyDelete

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