Red Wine Reduction with Sliced Mushrooms

Lee and I had some pasta that was made with Red Wine and I was trying to figure out what kind of sauce to put on it. I did some internet searching and found a very basic red wine reduction, to which I added a couple of changes.

This recipe is neither low-fat nor low-calorie. However, it is FULL flavor!! It calls for 1 1/2 bottles (4 1/2 C) of dry red wine and 1 bottle (3 C) of ruby port. However, I only had one bottle of red wine and I decided to see how it would turn out with just that amount of liquid. In the end, I had to use a bit of pasta water to have enough liquid....so I suggest using the suggested amount of wine.

I also added 1 shallot and several sprigs of fresh thyme to the simmering wine concoction.  After I strained it, I put ONE STICK OF BUTTER in the pan (cheers for Paula Deen and her famous use of 1 stick of butter in almost everything) and added sliced mushrooms.....then put the wine mixture back into the pan (these are my changes).
It......was........SO.......incredibly......RICH and FABULOUS! I didn't take any pictures however, because I wasn't planning on blogging about this. But it turned out so great that I wanted to share it.

So, here's the red wine reduction recipe with mushrooms - enjoy!

Ingredients~

1 small onion, chopped
1 large shallot, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
2 small celery ribs, chopped
3 garlic cloves, chopped
3-4 sprigs fresh thyme
1 1/2 TBL olive oil
1 package button mushrooms, sliced thin
1 package cremini mushrooms, sliced thin
salt and pepper
1 1/2 (4 1/2 C) dry red wine
1 bottle (3 C) Ruby Port wine

Directions~

In a large pot over medium heat, saute onion, shallot, carrots, celery, thyme and garlic in oil until golden, about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Do not burn the garlic!

Add wines and simmer stirring accasinally, until mixture is reduced to 1 quart, about 1 hour.

Pour through a sieve and reserve in a large measuring cup or bowl. Discard solids.

Remove any bits of vegetables from pan. Add 1 stick of butter and melt over medium high heat. Add mushrooms and saute until cooked. Add reserved wine back into pan. Simmer until reduced and thickened, about 10 minutes.

Serve over pasta with freshly grated parmesan.