Creamy Fiddlehead and Mushroom Pasta

Ingredients

1. 1 cup fiddleheads

2. 1 cup baby bella mushrooms, roughly chopped

3. 2 cups pasta - preferably something round like paccheri or calamarata

4. 1/4 cup heavy cream

5. 3 tablespoons salted butter, divided

6. 1 tablespoon olive oil

7. 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

8. Salt & pepper to taste

9. Shaved pecorino romano, to garnish

Prep time: 15 mins

Cook time: 20-25 minutes

Total time: 35-40 minutes

Servings: 2

Steps

1. Boil two pots of water on the stove - one to blanch the fiddleheads and one to boil the pasta. Set aside a small ice bath next to the stove.

2. Meanwhile, clean the fiddleheads. You want to clean them thoroughly before cooking. Under running water, gently rub off the brown skins from the fiddleheads. Once the skins are removed, soak them briefly in a bowl of water until any remaining skin or debris falls to the bottom. Then, gently snap off the woody ends of the fiddleheads and set aside.

3. Next, rinse the mushrooms, pat dry and roughly chop them. Set aside.

4. Once the pots of water are boiling, cook the pasta in one until al dente and blanch the fiddleheads in another for 2 minutes. Then quickly transfer fiddleheads to an ice bath for another 2 minutes.

5. While pasta is boiling and fiddleheads are cooling in the ice bath, melt 1 tablespoon butter in a sauté pan over medium heat. Once melted, add in the sliced garlic and sauté for 2 minutes. Add in the mushrooms and fiddleheads and sauté for about 5 minutes.

6. Remove the vegetables and then add in the remainder butter and let melt. Once melted, add in the cream and let that reduce down until it becomes thickened, about 5 minutes.

7. Add the mushrooms and fiddleheads back to the pan and cook for about 5 more minutes.

8. Test the sauce and season with salt and pepper to taste.

9. Finally, strain and add in the pasta to the pan and mix until combined.

10. Serve with shaved pecorino romano and more black pepper to taste.