Mushroom white sauce pasta

Put 30 to 40 g of dried mushrooms in a sauce pan and top with 500 g of water.

Bring to a hard boil, drop to medium low and simmer five to ten minutes to make what is essentially mushroom tea.

Kill the heat and leave the pot to steep another 10 to 15 minutes.

Trim the enoki stem end and break the cluster apart, cut the oyster mushrooms into quarter inch strips, and quarter and thinly slice the king trumpet stems and caps; 375 g in total, sliced thin.

Heat a large pan over medium high, add olive oil and 30 g of butter, and once melted add all 375 g of mushrooms with a strong pinch of salt.

Stir and sauté over high heat five to six minutes until the mushroom water has cooked off and a little caramelization shows.

Add 50 g diced shallots, 20 g minced garlic, 2 to 3 g chopped thyme and another strong pinch of salt.

Sauté another three to four minutes to soften everything and get a decent amount of browning.

Salt the boiling water generously and cook 225 g of Campanile nine minutes to just about al dente, stirring once.

Deglaze the pan with about half the mushroom broth to lift the fond and soften the mushrooms and shallots.

Cook until the broth is pretty much fully evaporated and the mushroom shallot mixture is golden brown, softened and jammy, about three to four minutes.

Add 250 g heavy cream, bring to a simmer and reduce by half, until a spoon leaves a trail.

Drain the pasta, saving no pasta water, and add it to the pan.

Toss, then add about 100 to 150 g more mushroom broth and stir until it looks loose and saucy.

Off the heat, add 50 to 60 g grated aged Parmesan, a pinch of black pepper and a gentle squeeze of lemon.

Toss off heat so the parm melts gently into the cream without curdling, adding a little more parm if it is thin, then taste for salt.