Some of my favorite meals to cook are Italian dishes. Maybe it’s because I’m Italian? Maybe it’s because it’s a significant part of the cuisine that I grew up on. Maybe because I just like to cook it? Either way…I love to cook Italian dishes, and I’m not afraid to admit it.

If you’re like me, then you should wander over to the Proud Italian Cook. She’s got a lot of great recipes that not only taste amazing, but look absolutely delicious. She makes Italian cooking very user-friendly. When I came across this recipe, I immediately bookmarked it in my reader – and couldn’t wait to make it. It’s a vegetarian twist on one of my favorites – chicken marsala.

Mushroom Marsala with Onion & Thyme

adapted from The Proud Italian Cook

• 12-16 oz mushrooms, quartered
• 12 oz rigatoni
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 1 3/4 cup marsala wine
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 tbsp butter
• fresh thyme
• olive oil, salt & pepper

1. Preheat oven to 400*. Start the water on the stove to boil your pasta. Once the water is boiling, add your pasta!
2. Once the oven is to temperature, place the mushrooms & onion onto a baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil, salt & pepper. Bake for about 10 minutes til everything is caramelized.
3. While the vegetables caramelize and the pasta boils, heat a saucepan over medium-high heat. Warm the olive oil & butter, then add the garlic. Once the garlic is nice and golden, add the wine, and thyme (‘needles’ from 2-3 springs).
4. Let the wine reduce for several minutes, then whisk in the milk. Reduce the heat and let the sauce slowly thicken. (it will take a little while)
5. When the sauce has thickened, add the caramelized mushrooms & onions. Add your cooked pasta & stir to coat.

As you can see, I made a few edits to the original recipe – why? Because I didn’t read the recipe thoroughly enough. Always read your recipe thoroughly enough! I completely didn’t see the memo about mascarpone cheese. As far as the cipollini onions go, I wanted to use some onion that I had on hand. I did also use more pasta than what was asked for, because I wanted some leftovers for Mike to take to work. The sauce made this possible.

Hands down, I loved this dish. I served it with a green salad & it was a delicious, filling meal. The leftovers are GONE, too, which means it really was a hit. 🙂 A perfect ‘comfort food’ meal on a chilly fall evening.