Red & Green Pasta

Let's talk mushrooms for a sec. I am not a huge fan of them....or so I thought. Turns out, I'm not a fan of white button mushrooms. However, I had no idea the huge variety of mushrooms there are! Lately, I've been reading about shitake (shi-TOK-ee) mushrooms. They are high in vitamin D. As I said in an earlier blog entry, vitamin D is usually absorbed from sunlight through our largest organ: the skin. During colder months, we tend to stay indoors more and don't get this important vitamin which can lead to depressed mood, seasonal depression or full-on major depressive disorder.

So, back to shitake mushrooms. Turns out, they are sometimes used medicinally! So, I went on a shitake hunt...yes, I do try things that previously I haven't liked. You should do it sometime. ;)

I found them at Whole Foods, and I immediately knew I needed to be open. The texture was totally different from button mushrooms! I actually got kind of excited! See recipe below for how I prepared it.

Red & Green Pasta

1 lb pasta (I used brown rice spaghetti, broken into quarters)

2 c diced shitake mushrooms

chopped onions

1/2 c raw sunflower seeds

4 garlic cloves, minced

whole wheat flour

2 c finely chopped broccoli

1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes, or blend 28 oz fresh tomatoes

2 T extra virgin olive oil

sea salt, to taste

black pepper, to taste

fresh or dried basil

a sprinkle of fennel

1/4 c shredded parmesan cheese

Cook pasta. While it is cooking, saute mushrooms, sunflower seeds, onions and garlic in oil. Add some flour to thicken. Add broccoli and tomatoes, then season with salt and pepper, basil and fennel. Drain pasta and toss into saute pan. Mix together and sprinkle with cheese.

The result? Shitake mushrooms are on the chewy side...but chewy in a good way! I really liked them and will buy them again. Don't be put off by the price. They were $10/lb at Whole Foods, but I got about 2 cups worth and only paid a few dollars.