Penne pasta with mushrooms in a light butter garlic herb sauce with Parmesan is an easy 30-minute meal. This recipe is easy enough for weeknight dinners but great for special occasions, too. The combination of butter, mushrooms, garlic, and pasta is so delicious.
For an easy, delicious dinner, you can’t go wrong with mushrooms and pasta. This is a dish we like to make when we’re craving pasta but don’t want a heavy sauce.
With this mushroom pasta recipe, I’m showing you how to cook mushrooms for pasta and then combine them with a brown butter garlic sauce. The sauce is rich, but light and the combination of flavors are classic. Plus, it only takes about 30 minutes to make. It’s one of our favorite mushroom and pasta recipes.
Ingredients in Mushroom Pasta
- Penne
- Olive oil
- Sliced portobello mushrooms
- Minced garlic
- Chopped onion
- Ground thyme
- Unsalted butter
- Salt and pepper
- Grated Parmesan cheese
- Chopped parsley for garnish
How to Make Mushroom Pasta
Boil the pasta and reserve at least one cup of the pasta water. Once you’ve drained the penne, place it back in the pot and add a little olive oil. Toss the pasta in it, and it will keep the pasta from sticking in clumps.
Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the mushrooms and cook them for three to five minutes or until they’re softened. Take them out of the skillet and set them aside.
In the same pan, cook the onions for two minutes and then add the garlic. Cook them together for 30 seconds, and then add the butter.
To brown the butter, let it melt while whisking continuously. Bring it to a boil, and then let it foam up. At this point, it will start to brown – once it does, turn off the heat.
Add the cooked penne, mushrooms, and half of the cheese to the pan. Stir to combine and add some of the starchy pasta water to get a sauce consistency that you like.
Place the skillet back on the heat and warm the mushroom pasta up for a couple of minutes. Season with salt and pepper and garnish t with parsley before serving.
Side Dish Ideas
This easy pasta dish pairs with a lot of different side dishes. Here are some we like to make:
- A side salad with Italian-style dressing or vinaigrette.
- Crusty bread like a baguette or Italian loaf.
- Or, add a simple vegetable like cooked broccoli, green beans, or another veggie that you like.
This is such an easy dinner that is great for quick meals or for date-night and other special occasions. If you love mushrooms, it’s the recipe to try – I hope you enjoy it!
Other Pasta Dishes You'll Enjoy
Mushroom Pasta Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 pound penne pasta
- 1 ½ tablespoons olive oil
- 8 oz baby portobello mushrooms sliced
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- ½ medium onion chopped
- ½ teaspoon ground thyme
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
- Salt and pepper to taste.
- 1 ½ cups fresh parmesan cheese grated and divided
- Parsley for garnish
Instructions
- Cook pasta in boiling and salted water per instructions on the package. Drain and put back in saucepan. Be sure to save some of the pasta water, at least a cup. Add just a bit of olive oil and toss to keep pasta from clumping.
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add mushrooms and cook for 3 -5 minutes or until soft. Set to the side.
- Add onions in the same skillet for about 2 minutes. Then add garlic for 30 seconds. Then add butter and let it melt. Whisk continuously. The butter will then come to a boil and start to foam. In a short time, it will start to brown. Turn off heat once browning. Be careful not to leave it on too long.
- Add in pasta, mushrooms and half of the parmesan cheese. Mix well together. You can add in small amounts of pasta water and stir in to get the consistency you want. Put back on the heat for about 2 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat and serve. Put remaining parmesan in a bowl for the table and garnish with parsley.
Nutrition
If you’re looking for an easy, delicious dinner, you’ve got to try this Mushroom Pasta. This is a great alternative when you want pasta without a heavy sauce.
Mel is an IT guy turned blogger and is discovering his love of cooking and photography. If you ever have Fantasy Football questions, he's your guy.
Made the Mushroom-pasta recipe. Oh my goodness! It was delicious and so easy to make. I'll be fixing it again real soon.