Pasta with Tomato Sauce and Ricotta

Name: Pasta with Tomato Sauce and Ricotta
Yield: Makes 4 Main-Course Servings
Ingredients: Freshly grated Parmesan cheese, for serving; ¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg, or more to taste; freshly ground black pepper, to taste; Salt, to taste; 1 pound wide pasta, such as green tagliatelle or fettuccine, preferably fresh; 2½ cups Basic Chunky Tomato Sauce; 1 tablespoon olive oil (optional); 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil or parsley; 1 pound ricotta cheese, preferably freshly made; 1 tablespoon unsalted butter (optional); 1½ to 2 cups (2 to 4 ounces) thickly sliced mushrooms (optional, Mushroom Basics)

Preparation info

Makes
4
Main-Course Servings

Difficulty
Easy

Appears in

Get in There and Cook

By Richard Sax

Published 1997

About

This is one of the simplest pasta dishes, based on a dish I ate at Trattoria da Alfredo in Greenwich Village in the 1970s. The sautéed sliced mushrooms are optional, but they add nice texture and flavor notes.

Ingredients

2½ cups Basic Chunky Tomato Sauce
Salt, to taste
1 pound ricotta cheese<

Vegetarian

Method

Prepare the tomato sauce. Keep warm in a nonreactive medium saucepan. Bring a large pot of water to a boil for the pasta. Add a little salt.
Meanwhile, in a large serving bowl, use a wooden spoon to beat the ricotta with salt and pepper to taste and nutmeg until fluffy. Set aside at room temperature.
If you’d like to include sautéed mushrooms in this