Ingredients

Pasta

• 400g fusilli

Mushroom Sauce

• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 250g mixed mushrooms, finely sliced
• 20g mixed dried wild mushrooms
• 175 ml dry white wine
• 200g double cream

To Serve

• 150g watercress leaves
• 25g pine nuts, toasted
• 50g Parmesan shavings
• salt and freshly ground pepper
• 2 plum tomatoes, finely diced

Method

1. Sauce: Place the dried wild mushrooms in a bowl and pour over 250ml of boiling water and leave for 10 minutes. Strain the mushrooms reserving the liquid. Chop the wild mushrooms roughly and set aside. Melt the butter in a saucepan and add the garlic, sauté for a couple of minutes, then add the mushrooms and sauté for 5 minutes over a medium low heat. Remove the mushrooms from the pan and set aside. Pour the wild mushroom liquid and wine to the pan over a high heat and leave to reduce for 8-10 minutes so that it is reduced by 2/3s (while reducing you may cook the pasta). Mix in the cream and simmer for a couple of minutes, then add the mushrooms. Set aside until ready to serve.
2. Pasta: While the sauce is reducing bring 1.5 liters of water to the boil in a saucepan add the pasta and cook 5-8 minutes until al dente. Strain the pasta and set aside.
3. To Serve: Bring the sauce to a simmer add the pasta, watercress, tomatoes and pine nuts and mix so that it is well distributed and hot. Season the pasta to taste and place in 4 or 6 bowls and sprinkle over the Parmesan shavings. Serve

• Why not try making an Oriental version by using dried shitake and fresh oyster mushrooms, a Chinese green such as shredded bok choy instead of the watercress and chopped cashews instead of the pine nuts. You may also wish replace the cream and wine with coconut cream and shaoshing wine.