By Kathryn Reed

By day three of eating the same thing I’m usually ready to move onto something else. Not with this recipe. I could have eaten it multiple times a day and for a week or more if I had had enough.

For those who think mushrooms are just the white ones found in salads and relish trays, this dish will show you how rich fungi can be. (Of course you might be poor by the time you figure this out! – they aren’t cheap.)

In the vegetarian world, mushrooms are often the hearty, protein-rich answer to meat. Like animal proteins, mushrooms come in a variety of choices. This recipe blends several of them together. The Raley’s at the Y in South Lake Tahoe sells a preassembled mix of wild mushrooms that was perfect.

For the wine lovers out there, start letting a full bodied red open up. This dish will hold up just fine to that bottle.

Wild Mushroom Pasta

2 pounds mixed fresh wild mushrooms, chopped

½ C olive oil

12 large garlic cloves, peeled and halved

8 thyme sprigs

1 tsp pepper

1 tsp kosher salt, divided

12 ounces bow tie pasta

1½ C reduced-sodium vegetable broth

1/3 C loosely packed flat-leaf parsley leaves, divided

1/3 C loosely packed tarragon leaves, divided

¾ C parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 475 degrees with a rack in top third of oven and another in lower third.

Combine mushrooms, oil, garlic, thyme, pepper, and ½ tsp salt in a large bowl. Place mixture on rimmed baking sheet. Bake mushrooms 15 minutes.

Cook pasta according to package instructions. Drain, reserving at least ½ cup pasta water.

Warm broth on stove.

Combine mushroom mixture, pasta, half of parsley, half of tarragon, and remaining 1/2 tsp salt in a large bowl. Divide pasta into four shallow bowls, then drizzle with broth and pasta water if needed. Top with remaining parsley, tarragon, and the parmesan.