Porcini Mushrooms in a Cognac Cream Sauce

Mushroom and cream sauce fans alike with love this recipe.  The dried porcinis make this an extremely flexible dish as far as scheduling goes.

Another great plus for this recipe is that it’s a great one to have on hand when a vegetarian’s coming to dinner. It isn’t vegan, but it is meatless and elegant.  The recipe is from the book Pasta Presto, available on Amazon.

What You Need:

•  1 ½ ounces of dried porcini mushrooms
• 1 ½ cups of cognac or brandy (Korbel is an affordable brand.)
• 6 tablespoons of unsalted butter
• 4 large shallots, finely chopped
• 4 medium garlic cloves, finely chopped or pressed
• 3 cups heavy cream
• ¾ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh chives

What You Do:

 Place mushrooms in a bowl with the cognac and let soak until soft (10 minutes, at least).  Drain the mushrooms (reserving the cognac), and coarsely chop them.  Melt the butter over medium heat in a large skillet. Add shallots and garlic, sautéing until tender. Add mushrooms and sauté 1 minute more.  Add the reserved cognac to the pan, raise the heat slightly, and simmer for 1 minute. Then add the cream and gently boil until the sauce is thickened and reduced by half (about 20 minutes). Season with salt and black pepper and serve over linguini. Garnish with the chopped chives.

What I Love:

I love that this is another one of those elegant, flavor-packed recipes that short on expensive ingredients. Korbel brandy is a wonderful (and affordable) substitute for the cognac, and an herb garden will save you the cost of fresh chives. Dried porcini mushrooms are one of many affordable items at Costco, and loose, package-free garlic is always cheap at my local Save-A-Lot store. That leaves butter, cream and shallots. Compared to other gourmet ingredients, these are relatively affordable and don’t require a trip to the gourmet cooking store or a special-delivery mail order. Lovers of mushroom flavor may want to check out my Truffles on the Cheap article over at Wise Bread, featuring loads of ways to enjoy truffle recipes on an average budget.

Menu Pairing:

I’m going with my old standby favorite on this one – a crisp salad of mixed organic spring greens. With a dish this heavy, I like to lighten it up. Also, this one is a rinse and dump type of side dish that works well in this case with a light coating of garlic-flavored olive oil. Too saucy a dressing, and you’ll be competing with the cognac-based cream sauce. That would be a shame. Serve with your wine of choice, followed by a round of tiramisu.

Photo Credit: Norwich Nuts

*This article was submited to the April 28, 2010 edition of Wanderlust and Lipstick’s Wanderfood Wednesday food carnival.