April 23, 2022

Flavourful Penne Boscaiola

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Penne Boscaiola is an incredibly hearty pasta dish packed with onion, herbs, mushrooms and tomato. This hearty dish is a perfect a one pan meal, and I’m sure it will become a favourite in your home as it is in mine.

If you read this blog with any frequency, you’ll know that I adore Italian food. Chicken Cacciatore has been a favourite of mine since I was a child, and I’ve since perfected my own version of the classic dish. One day I wanted a hearty flavourful pasta dish but didn’t have chicken, so I started looking for other flavourful pasta meals. I stumbled upon Penne Boscaiola, a hearty savoury pasta dish with all the ingredients I already had in my fridge, and decided to make it my own.

Penne Boscaiola is an incredibly hearty pasta dish packed with onion, herbs, mushrooms and tomato. This hearty dish is a perfect a one pan meal, and I’m sure it will become a favourite in your home as it is in mine.

This Penne Boscaiola layers many different flavours to create a deliciously complex dish. Crispy bacon is accentuated by garlic and onion, while earthy mushrooms and fresh thyme perfectly compliment the bright tomato sauce that is finished by the heavy cream. This delicious meal comes together in about thirty minutes, making it a perfect weeknight meal.

TOTAL TIME

Preparation Time – 5 minutes
Cooking Time – 30 minutes
Total Time – 35 minutes

INGREDIENTS FOR PENNE BOSCAIOLA

All the ingredients for this Penne Boscaiola are easy to source from any grocer.

6 Crimini Mushrooms, diced
1 tsp Kosher Salt
1 Medium Onion
4 Cloves Garlic, minced
796 ml Canned Crushed Tomatoes
1 lb American Bacon, chopped
8 sprigs Thyme
3/4 cup Heavy Cream
1 box Penne (~500g)

WHAT ARE CRIMINI MUSHROOMS?

Crimini mushrooms are also called Baby Bella Mushrooms because they are miniature Portobello mushrooms. They have a lovely nutty flavour that I enjoy in this dish.

WHAT IS PENNE BOSCAIOLA?

Boscaiola is an Italian word with a dual meaning. I found that it can mean both woodman and “with mushrooms”, which both apply perfectly to this dish.

WHAT IS AMERICAN BACON?

American bacon comes from the belly of the pig, and is a thinly cut, flavourful, fat streaked cut of meat. It adds a flavourful smokiness to this rustic dish.

INGREDIENT SUBSTITUTIONS

CAN I USE A DIFFERENT KIND OF MEAT IN THIS RECIPE?

This recipe works best with a salty smoked meat like bacon. You could substitute pancetta or prosciutto easily.

CAN I USE ANOTHER KIND OF MUSHROOMS?

You can use whatever mushrooms you’d like in this recipe. Portobello mushrooms would also be lovely, but a simple white Button would work as well. I like the nuttiness of Cremini which is why I use them.

CAN I MAKE THIS RECIPE PESCATARIAN?

If you would like, you could substitute smoked salmon for bacon in this recipe. I would recommend cooking it no longer than five minutes. This obviously won’t be the same dish, but it would still be very tasty.

CAN I USE DRY THYME INSTEAD OF FRESH?

Dry Thyme doesn’t have the same potency as fresh ones. Given the importance of Thyme in this dish I wouldn’t recommend using dry herbs.

CAN I USE LIGHT CREAM INSTEAD OF HEAVY CREAM?

This depends on your taste, but I would suggest not. The taste of this sauce is impacted by the rich cream you use in this dish, and I don’t believe that light cream will be hearty enough in this sauce.

CAN I USE PASSATA INSTEAD OF CANNED TOMATOES?

Passata is velvety smooth, crushed and strained tomatoes. Canned tomatoes can be purchased whole, diced, or crushed and are mostly interchangeable in terms of taste, but the resulting texture is very different. I use canned tomatoes because they result in a more texturally interesting sauce which goes perfectly with the rustic style of this dish.

Vertical of two plates of penne boscaiola

EQUIPMENT FOR PENNE BOSCAIOLA

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Below is a list of the main equipment/kitchen tools needed to make this scrumptious Penne Boscaiola:

Le Creuset Braiser

Wooden Spoon

Kitchen Knife – Zwilling J.A. Henkel Kitchen Knife a good kitchen knife is a necessary tool for any home cook. Quality and price point varies widely. This is what I use at home. It’s a perfectly decent knife, while still being very affordable.

Cutting Board

Pasta Pot

Add your cooked pasta and bacon to the pan, mix and add the heavy cream. Turn the heat to medium and simmer for a few more minutes.

COOKING DIRECTIONS

This Penne Boscaiola is as simple to prepare as it is delicious as long as you follow a few tips:

Crisp your bacon before adding the tomatoes.
Use only fresh thyme and garlic for maximum flavour.
Use full fat cream: fat equals flavour.

MAKE AHEAD STORAGE

If you’d like, you can cut your onions and mushrooms in advance and store them in the fridge.

This delicious dish can be stored in the fridge for up to four days, and can be frozen in an airtight container if needed.

FINISHED DISH

Enjoy this delicious Penne Boscaiola!

OTHER MEAT WITH PASTA DISHES

Dutch Oven Chicken Cacciatore

Baked Rigatoni with Pancetta

Beef and Zucchini Cannelloni

Lasagna with Sausage and Beef

DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE?

I’d love to know how it turned out! Please let me know by leaving a comment and rating below and share a picture on Instagram with the hashtag #cooking.with.carbs.

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