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Pasta spiral with a mushroom filling, a light cheese sauce and truffle vinaigrette

This is a wonderful vegetarian dish, but if you do not want to present this dish as described in the recipe, simply rearrange the ingredients. Cut the pasta into linguini or fettucini, mix the mushroom filling and the cheese sauce and spoon it over the pasta.  Drizzle the truffle (if using) over the mushrooms and sprinkle with some chopped parsley and chives.

pasta-spiral4.jpg

The filling:
1 tablespoon olive oil
500 g/17.6 oz mixed mushrooms, finely chopped (reserve a few whole ones for garnish)
2 shallots, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
4 tablespoons chicken stock, heated
1 tablespoon parsley, finely chopped
1 tablespoon dried porcini mushrooms, finely ground
salt and freshly ground black pepper

The vinaigrette:
¼ cup olive oil
3 shallots, finely chopped
1 teaspoon fresh parsley, finely chopped
⅓ cup white wine vinegar
2 teaspoons truffle oil (optional)
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons preserved truffle (finely chopped if using)

The pasta:
100 g/3.5 oz strong flour
100 g/3.5 oz Durham wheat
2 eggs

The cheese sauce:
2 cups chicken stock
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 bay leaf
2 sprigs of fresh thyme
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons flour
50 g/¾ oz Gruyère cheese
4 tablespoons fresh cream
½ teaspoon nutmeg, ground
salt and freshly ground white pepper
2 teaspoons Parmesan cheese

The garnish:
the reserved mushrooms
1 tablespoon parsley, finely chopped
1 tablespoon chives, finely sliced
truffle vinaigrette (if using)

  • Preheat the oven to 180° C/356° F.
  • For the mushrooms, heat the oil and brown the mushrooms (also the whole ones for the garnish), add the shallots, garlic, the chicken stock, parsley, and the porcini mushroom powder.
  • Simmer for a few minutes until the liquid has reduced, season to taste, then set aside to cool.
  • Retrieve the whole mushrooms and set aside.
  • For the vinaigrette, mix all the ingredients together and store in a squeeze bottle in the refrigerator.
  • For the pasta, place all the ingredients in a food processor and process until it becomes smooth and silky. Roll in plastic film and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
  • Roll the pasta out thinly and cut into 2 x 4 cm/1.5 in x 50 cm/19.6 in long strips.
  • Spread the mushroom mixture over each noodle ribbon and roll the ribbon up in a spiral.
  • Place each spiral in a steam basket lined with cabbage leaves (rubbed with some oil to prevent it from sticking to the basket) and steam for 10 minutes.
  • Carefully remove each spiral and arrange in a greased oven-proof dish. Discard the cabbage leaves.
  • Pour the ¾ of the cheese sauce over the spirals and top with the Parmesan cheese.
  • Bake in the oven for 10 – 15 minutes until the top is golden and the sauce is bubbling.
  • For the cheese sauce, heat the chicken stock in a saucepan with the garlic, bay leaf and thyme.
  • In another saucepan and over medium heat, melt the butter, stir in the flour and cook for 2 minutes whilst stirring.
  • Strain the stock then whisk into the flour mixture, ½ cup at a time and whisk until smooth.
  • Bring the liquid to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes.
  • Remove from the heat then add the Gruyère cheese, cream and nutmeg, and season with salt and freshly ground white pepper.
  • To serve:
    Place a spiral on each heated serving plate, spoon around the rest of the cheese sauce and garnish with a whole mushroom and the chopped parsley and chives. Finally, lightly drizzle the vinaigrette over.
STELLA's avatar

By STELLA

I have had no formal chef’s training. Classical piano was my parents’ choice, and that took care of the first 20 years of my life. Journalism and radio followed (my own choices, this time), and these opened many doors for me into different countries, people, cultures — and, of course, foods. In a six week series on radio I used it as a platform for my love of food and shared lots of interesting recipes and food news with listeners.
My earliest memories of food come from the family kitchen at home; I can still remember the wonderful smells of the dishes my mother prepared. I became aware of the flavors of her creations at an early age. Some I enjoyed and preferred, while others depressed me with their lack of interesting flavors. My mother was a good cook, but not a gourmet, and sadly this often showed. What I did appreciate was that she always involved me in the preparation, sharing her knowledge of nutrition, flavor, color, and the harmonies of each plate she dished up. She was also a genius with leftovers and quick meals when unexpected guests arrived. This is one of the things that stands out in my mind, and it inspired me to create wonderful dishes from leftover foods myself.

I carried on with the tradition of carefully planning meals to combine nutrition, color and flavor, while at the same time offering variety and elegant presentation. In the process, I developed a passion for seeking out the best available products, adhering to each season’s offerings, and treating it with the respect it deserves, which eventually became part of my daily culinary life and travels. I did these things not because I wanted to become a chef, but to satisfy myself, family and friends with creations of gorgeous food and exciting flavors. All of which, I hope, is reflected in this blog.

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