Now that I had my delicious homemade spinach pasta, I needed something really tasty to do with it. Having stocked up on some ground veal on sale, I decided to use a package to make meatballs. I was a little hung up on the sauce, though, and thought about something creamy and a little spicy, with mushrooms. A friend suggested some thyme, and I realized putting thyme into both the sauce and the meatballs would unify the dish.

Mushroom Shallot Cream Sauce with Veal Meatballs

Meatballs:

1 lb ground veal

1 c seasoned breadcrumbs

1/2 c Parmesan cheese

1 tbsp Worchestershire sauce

2 eggs

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp dried thyme

Preheat oven to 350°F. Combine all ingredients and roll into half-inch balls. Place on a rack on a cookie sheet and bake 20 minutes or until golden brown on the outside.

Sauce:

1 lb sliced white mushrooms

3 tbsp butter

1 tbsp olive oil

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 shallot, thinly sliced

1/2 c cream

1/2 c Parmesan cheese

1 tsp red pepper flakes

1 tsp dried thyme

8 oz pasta, cooked

Melt butter in a saucepan with olive oil. Add garlic and mushrooms at the same time, and stir until mushrooms begin to soften. Add shallots, red pepper flakes and thyme, cream and cheese. Turn heat down and allow to simmer until well combined. Add cooked pasta directly to sauce, and toss. Top with meatballs and serve.