In light of the horrid economy (I myself have fallen victim as one of the million layoffs as soon as my contract is up), I thought I'd post a couple of pics detailing my favorite meal: portabello mushroom linguine. It's so simple and costs just a little over three dollars in raw ingredients...this is assuming you already have some essentials at home such as olive oil, salt, pepper, dried parsley (add another dollar if buying fresh). One package of baby bellas cost me around 2.00 here. Purchase and bring home. Clean under running water. Some purists refuse to have their mushrooms touch water, but I watched Dirty Jobs and know just what that substrate they grow in started out as: I'm NOT eating it. After thoroughly washing, slice mushrooms however thick you like. I prefer three to four slices per shroom, but you do whatever tickles your fancy. Pour one to two tablespoons olive oil in hot skillet, add mushrooms, saute, add salt, pepper, and dried parsley. If using fresh parsley, I'd wait until everything is almost cooked so as to retain the clean taste and color of the herb. Saute. Dump in linguine. Toss. Plate. Viola!



If I had some fresh parsley, I'd have included a garnish, but I rarely use parsley in my cooking so prefer not to buy a fresh bunch as I'd end up wasting more than half.