My Love Letter to Pasta: Mushroom Chickpea Cacio e Pepe

Hello all! Today I'm bringing to you an awesome pasta dish that was partially inspired by @rabbitandwolves recipe: Vegan Herb Butter Roasted Mushrooms and Chickpeas. Check out her website at rabbitandwolves.com and make sure to take a look at her recipe! Lauren Boehme Hartmann's website is truly an awesome resource if you're looking some vegan friendly and super innovative recipes.

Anyways, this pasta is a PERFECT opportunity to show off some fresh flavor profiles, and is a great way to add some decadence to your dinner plans this week.

I decided to make this dish for the first time on a Friday night at the end of a particularly tough week. That week I had two of the hardest midterms I've had in awhile, and I was looking for a way to pamper myself (and my body, which had taken quite a hit from all the late night studying). I highly recommend this dish if you're hoping to make something you know you can be proud of and indulge in.

Here's a few things I think are particularly important to keep in mind while making this dish:

1. WASH YOUR PRODUCE! Fresh veggies have been exposed to a whole lot of things during their stay at the store. No big deal! Clean off your mushrooms, fresh herbs, chickpeas (yes, even though they are in a can), and anything else that might want a little rinse.

2. Prep as you go. There will be plenty of time to prep for each step of the meal. Try to recognize what the stages of the recipe are, and take some time to plan what parts of the cooking process you feel most comfortable preparing what food. Spend time prepping your mushrooms, onions, herbs, and chickpeas while the oven preheats. Then as the veggies bake consider cutting the garlic, shredding your cheese, or getting the lemon ready for use. Consider what time in cooking process would be best for you to start boiling your pasta water. You get the point. Plan, relax, and follow what feels right. Cooking is a learning process, and you can control these factors every step of the way.

3. Slow down and take some time to plate your meal at the end! Meals looks so wonderfully decadent when you go the extra mile to find a dish (be it a plate or bowl or whatever else you like) that you like. It's even better when you add some extra toppings at the very end (For this particular dish, I added extra parmesan, ground pepper, salt, parsley, and lemon zest after I plated my dish, but do whatever feels right to you).

And there you go! Enjoy this recipe on a day where you have a little extra time to spend on yourself. If you're over 21, I suggest complimenting this meal with your favorite white wine either while you're making this or while you're eating it (or both). As always, be kind to yourself as you make this dish; I promise you will have something to be proud of by the end of it.

Signing Off,

Madison Rhe

Works Cited

Grace, Julie, and Lauren Boehme Hartmann. Rabbit and Wolves, 11 Mar. 2022, https://www.rabbitandwolves.com/.