Creamy Mushroom and Spinach Pasta Recipe
A rich and creamy mushroom and spinach pasta featuring tender linguine tossed in a luscious cooking cream sauce infused with garlic, basil, and Parmesan cheese, topped with toasted pine nuts for an added crunchy texture. This quick and satisfying dish combines earthy mushrooms and fresh spinach, perfect for a delicious weeknight meal.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 2 servings 1x
- Category: Main Course
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
Scale
Pasta and Sauce
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 8–10 mushrooms, sliced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 150 g linguine
- 1 cup cooking cream
- ½ teaspoon crushed black pepper
- ⅓ chicken stock cube
- ½ teaspoon dried basil leaves
- ¼ cup Parmesan cheese, grated plus extra for topping
Vegetables and Toppings
- 1 cup baby spinach
- 2 tablespoon pine nuts
Instructions
- Cook the pasta: Begin cooking the linguine according to the package instructions. Time the pasta so that it finishes cooking just as the sauce is ready, ensuring the pasta can be added directly to the sauce without rinsing.
- Sauté mushrooms: Heat the olive oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Add the sliced mushrooms and cook until they turn brown and caramelized, developing deep flavor and color.
- Add garlic: Once the mushrooms are caramelized, add the minced garlic and sauté for 2 minutes carefully, ensuring it does not burn to maintain a mellow, aromatic flavor.
- Simmer cream sauce: Reduce heat to medium-low and pour in the cooking cream. Add crushed black pepper, crumbled chicken stock cube, and dried basil leaves. Let the sauce simmer gently for 4-5 minutes until it starts to thicken slightly.
- Add Parmesan: Stir in the grated Parmesan cheese and continue stirring until the cheese melts smoothly into the sauce, enriching it with its distinctive savory taste.
- Toss pasta in sauce: Drain the cooked pasta (do not rinse) and immediately add it to the pan with the sauce. Toss well to coat every strand evenly with the creamy mushroom sauce.
- Add spinach: Turn off the heat and mix in the baby spinach. Stir gently until the spinach wilts softly from the residual heat, adding freshness and color to the dish.
- Toast pine nuts: While the pasta is resting, heat a small pan over high heat and toast the pine nuts until golden brown and fragrant, taking care not to burn them.
- Serve: Transfer the pasta to a serving dish. Top generously with the toasted pine nuts and a final sprinkle of freshly grated Parmesan cheese for extra flavor and texture contrast.
Notes
- If the cream sauce does not thicken as expected, sprinkle around half a teaspoon of white flour into the sauce and stir well on low heat to avoid lumps, helping to achieve the desired consistency.
- Do not rinse the pasta after cooking to ensure the sauce adheres properly to the noodles.
- Carefully toast pine nuts on high heat for a short time; they burn very quickly.
Keywords: Creamy mushroom pasta, spinach pasta, linguine recipe, vegetarian pasta, easy pasta recipe, pine nuts pasta, Parmesan pasta sauce
