Ingredients
Salt
1 pound whole wheat or whole-grain spaghetti
1 1/2 pounds mixed mushrooms, you can use shitake, crimini or any that catch your eye at the market
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
2 leeks
3-4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons finely fresh thyme leaves, chopped
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup heavy cream
Grated Parmigiano Reggiano or Romano cheese, for topping
Directions
In a large pot, boil for the pasta; salt the water, drop in the pasta and cook to al dente.
Wipe the mushrooms clean with damp towel. Remove the woody stems and thinly slice them.
Heat a large deep skillet with the EVOO (eyeball it) over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms and cook until deeply golden and tender, 10 minutes.
While the mushrooms cook, halve the leeks lengthwise, cut off a couple of inches from their tough tops, trim off the root ends and thinly slice the leeks. Vigorously wash the leeks in a large bowl of cold water, separating all the layers to remove the grit. Let the leeks sit for a few minutes, then lift them out of the water and dry them on a kitchen towel.
Add the leeks to the mushrooms along with the garlic and season with salt, pepper and fresh thyme. Cook for 3-4 minutes more, then add the wine, reduce for 30 seconds, then stir in the cream and heat through. Toss the pasta with mushrooms and adjust the seasoning, to taste. Top with grated cheese at the table.