Clonakilty Veggie Sausage Carbonara

Clonakilty Veggie Sausage Carbonara

Serves: Serves 4Prep Time: Cook Time: 30 mins

Enjoy this Veggie Sausage carbonara with mushrooms for an easy family meal. A classic Italian dish now full of fresh vegetables.  A tasty recipe to add to your repertoire!

Ingredients

320g dried pasta (Spaghetti or linguine)

2 tsp salt (to cook the pasta)

2 whole garlic cloves minced

8 Clonakilty veggie sausages

250g chestnut mushrooms sliced

1 large whole egg

3 large egg yolks

100g finely grated Parmesan or Pecorino-Romano cheese

Salt to taste

Oil for cooking

 

To Garnish:

2 tbsp finely chopped flat-leaf parsley

½ tbsp per person of finely grated Parmesan or Pecorino-Romano cheese

Freshly ground pepper

Method

  1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, add the salt.  Cook the pasta for1 to 2 minutes less than the pack instructions state, around 8 minutes, it should be al dente (still have a bit of bite to it)
  2. While the pasta is boiling, add oil to a frying pan, fry the sausages on all sides for about 6 minutes over medium heat until nicely coloured then set them aside. Next, add your sliced mushrooms and cook until golden, stir in the minced garlic and cook for 1 minute more.
  3. Put the egg, yolks and grated cheese into a large bowl and whisk together to combine using a balloon whisk or a fork.
  4. Drain the pasta, reserving about ½ cup of the starchy pasta water as this thickens up the sauce.
  5. Working quickly, add the hot pasta to the bowl containing the egg and cheese mixture and toss it together to combine. Add a little of the reserved pasta water, one tablespoon at a time, gently mixing until the carbonara sauce is silky smooth and has a creamy consistency.
  6. Chop the sausages, add the sausages and cooked mushrooms to the pasta, giving it one last gentle stir.
  7. Divide into serving plates, garnish with parsley, freshly ground black pepper and some grated Parmesan or Pecorino-Romano cheese.

Notes

  • You can substitute in any pasta you wish
  • You can add in chopped cooked Clonakilty rashers if you are not going for a vegetarian option
  • You can use cheddar cheese if you don’t have the above-mentioned cheese

Thanks to the talented Jennifer Opperman for creating this delicious dish.