Dinner for two or a Sunday night family main, Creamy Mushroom Carbonara Pasta is made with sautéed mushrooms, sprouts, shallots, and garlic. Tossed in a cream cheese and parmesan sauce, this is a very delicious pasta that everyone will love!
I’ve paired with Chef’s Plate to bring you this dish. It’s a flexible subscription service which allows you to customize to suit your lifestyle. Boxes are delivered weekly, and there’s the option to skip weeks whenever you want. Chef’s Plate is a division of Hello Fresh.
Under the pricing tab on the Chef’s Plate website, you can choose the type of subscription you want – meat/vegetarian, etc. You can also choose box sizes based on the number of persons in your family or household. It’s great, because you get the amount of ingredients you need without any waste.
CREAMY MUSHROOM CARBONARA PASTA
When Chef’s Plate asked me to re-create one of their signature dishes at home to share with you, Dear Reader, I was automatically drawn to their Creamy Mushroom Carbonara Pasta for two reasons. First, I wanted to make a dish that was vegetarian, so that all three of us could enjoy it.
Secondly, when I saw that this dish was made with Brussels sprouts, I had to try it! In our home, both myself and John.e love sprouts. McKenna, on the other hand, does not like them at all.
I prepared the dish exactly as the recipe was written. By the way, if you do decide to order meals from Chef’s Plate, a fully detailed recipe card will accompany each recipe you select. With full-colour photographs, it’s easy to follow along and make a delicious meal at home.
The whole time I was preparing the pasta, McKenna was upstairs working on her last bit of homework before the Christmas break. When she finally came downstairs, she was famished. I had already photographed the Creamy Mushroom Carbonara Pasta, and had tossed everything together. Since she dearly loves mushrooms, she wanted a big bowl of it.
She couldn’t see the sprouts. I guess she thought they were leeks or even onions. She ate almost the entire portion before realizing that there were sprouts in the dish. That, Dear Reader, is how delicious that cream sauce can be! It will make you forget all about the sprouts – that is if you’re like McKenna and don’t care for them that much.
SUBSTITUTIONS, ADD-INS, OMISSIONS, ETC.
Personally, I think the recipe is perfect just the way it is, but as I always say here at Lord Byron’s Kitchen, you can make just about anything your own way. Take for instance, the Brussels sprouts, if you don’t like them, you can totally leave them out.
If you’re looking for a substitution, you can use shredded cabbage instead. You can also add more shallots, or even use Swiss chard or kale. Just be sure to wash them and slice them thinly so that they cook up fast and marry well with the cream and the cream cheese.
As for the shallots, you can add more or less of those. You can also omit them completely and use regular onions instead. Onions tend to be a bit stronger than shallots in terms of taste, so keep that in mind.
Other ideas include using button mushrooms rather than cremini. Cook them a bit longer to get rid of some of the moisture. Button mushrooms tend to have more water content. You can use low fat cream cheese. And, you can substitute the cream with half and half or whole milk.
HERE’S WHAT YOU’LL NEED TO MAKE THIS DISH:
- Spaghetti – You can use white, whole wheat, etc. You can also use fettuccini or linguine.
- Brussel Sprouts – Peel off the outer leaves and wash them well. Cut them in half lengthwise and slice them thinly.
- Cremini Mushrooms – The best of the mushroom family, if you ask me. They are meatier and firmer, which I tend to like in a mushroom.
- Parmesan Cheese – You can use an expensive parm for this dish, or you can use the parmesan found in a shaker can.
- Shallots – I love shallots, so I always add extra to any dish I prepare with them in it. You can use onions instead.
- Garlic – Please use fresh garlic. Don’t use the garlic in a jar or substitute it with powdered garlic. The fresh stuff is cheap and makes a world of difference.
- Soy Sauce – Light, sodium free, gluten free, etc. It doesn’t matter.
- Smoked Paprika – This gives the mushrooms a nice smoky flavour. If you have regular paprika, you can use that instead. If you want extra smokiness, try adding a splash of liquid smoke to your mushrooms.
- Cream Cheese – This dish simply cannot be made without it. It’s the glue that holds everything together, and it’s really delicious.
- Vegetable Broth – The little concentrated broths are great for this. They are quick and easy!
- Cream – I used 35% heavy cream, but you can lighten it up with half and half or whole milk if need be.
TIPS AND TRICKS:
This is one pasta dish that you most certainly will want more of. In fact, Creamy Mushroom Carbonara Pasta is so good, I would highly recommend doubling the recipe. If you have any leftovers, toss everything together well and transfer to a food-safe container. Keep refrigerated for up to 3 days.
To reheat, you can use your microwave. Cook on high heat in 1 minute increments until the pasta is reheated to your liking. Alternatively, you can add the pasta to a large skillet with a little bit of butter and a splash of milk. This will loosen up the pasta and breathe new life back into the cream sauce. Reheat over medium-low heat until pasta is heated through.
Creamy Mushroom Carbonara Pasta
Ingredients
- 450 grams spaghetti
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 cups cremini mushrooms, sliced 1/4" thick
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 2 cups Brussels sprouts, washed well, halved lengthwise, and thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup shallots, peeled and thinly sliced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 8 ounces cream cheese
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 cup pasta water, reserved from drained spaghetti
- 2 portions vegetable broth concentrate
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
Instructions
- In a large, non-stick pan, add the olive oil and mushrooms. Over medium-high heat, cook the mushrooms for 6-8 minutes. Season with half the salt and pepper. Toss to combine.
- While mushrooms are cooking, whisk together the soy sauce, smoked paprika, and sugar.
- In the meantime, prepare the spaghetti according to the package instructions. When cooked, drain, reserving half cup of the pasta water.
- Add the soy sauce mixture to the mushrooms and continue to cook for 1 additional minute. Set mushrooms aside. Wipe pan clean with paper towels.
- In the same large, non-stick pan, add the butter, Brussels sprouts, and shallots. Season with the remaining salt and pepper. Cook over medium-high heat for 4-5 minutes.
- Add the garlic, stir well, and cook for 1 more minute.
- Next, add the cream cheese, heavy cream, reserved pasta water, and vegetable broth concentrate to the sprouts mixture. Mix well to combine and cook for 2 minutes.
- Lastly, plate the pasta, top with the sprouts and cream mixture, and then add the mushrooms. Sprinkle with cream cheese, garnish, and serve family style.
Notes
Nutrition
Linda Lum says
Not clear how much “two portions” of the veggie broth concentrate is — 2 teaspoons?