Today is a good day to stay indoors and do whatever needs to be taken care of. Cleaning, laundry, working out, deep conditioning your hair, vegging to the television, blogging and of course-cooking.

I always find pasta to be a great to-go-to meal because it is a comfort food and can be prepared with so many different ingredients. You can eat it with just some fresh herbs and drizzled with extra virgin olive oil, a heavy sauce , with or without meat, just vegetables or like this combination I prepared, a bit of this and a bit of that. Bring all of these ingredients together and you have great taste and textures, and best of all, in no time at all. Leaving you more time to do whatever you had on your list.

In Italy, people really enjoy their wine, cheese and that delicious, salty, pork meat-prosciutto. It’s a great alternative to other meat to add to your pasta. A little goes a long way for taste and texture. Toasting them to a crispy texture, allowing them to cool slightly and then breaking them up into your pasta makes any pasta meal a very happy meal!

The walnuts provide a nice crunchy texture that also provides omega-3 fatty acids that are great for your heart health. They also may help reduce the risk of diabetes, lessen depression and cancer. So eat up and as always, Enjoy!

Linguine with Sautéed Mushrooms, Toasted Walnuts and Crispy Prosciutto

Ingredients: Serves 2

• Linguine pasta for 2
• Sea salt for Seasoning
• 1 cup walnuts, toasted
• 3 slices prosciutto, cooked crispy
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
• 4 cups baby bella mushrooms, sliced
• 1 shallot, sliced lengthwise
• 1 clove garlic, sliced paper thin
• ½ cup dry red wine
• ½ cup fresh parsley, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons fresh thyme, finely chopped
• ½ cup Parmesan Cheese, grated, plus extra for topping

Preparation:

Place a pot of generously salted water on the stove and bring to a boil. Add the pasta and cook according to directions for al dente.  Before draining, reserve about ¼ cup of the starchy water.

In the meantime carefully toast the walnuts by placing onto a non stick skillet and cooking them over a low heat for about 5 minutes. Make sure they do not burn. In another nonstick skillet place the prosciutto slices, single layer and cook for 3 minutes per side over a low heat. Remove and set aside.

In a large nonstick skillet, melt the butter into the olive oil over a medium low heat.  Add the mushrooms and sauté for about 5-6 minutes until a nice, rich brown color. Add the shallots and garlic and season with salt. Continue to sauté for another 5 minutes. Pour in the wine and reduce, about 4 minutes. Add in the parsley, thyme , prosciutto, walnuts, grated cheese and pasta. Carefully fold the pasta into the sauce to incorporate all of the ingredients evenly. You can add in some of the pasta water for added creaminess. Serve in large pasta bowls with some additional grated Parmesan Cheese.