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Date night pasta with miso mushrooms and kale is the perfect easy pasta dinner recipe! Made with a whole pound of mushroom, gluten free pasta, lots of kale, and a homemade miso ginger sauce, this date night pasta with miso mushrooms is on your table in 25 minutes, made for meatless Monday, and is perfect for date night!

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If you are thinking about celebrating Valentine’s Day – either at home or at a restaurant – chances are you are thinking about pasta! For me, romantic dinners are associated with Italian food and a glass of wine.

And I couldn’t let this week’s holiday pass without sharing one of my favorite meatless pasta dishes with you.

DATE NIGHT PASTA WITH MISO MUSHROOMS

Name: Date Night Pasta with Miso Mushrooms
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 20 min
Ingredients: 3 cloves garlic; 2 inch knob of ginger; 1/4 cup miso; 2 Tablespoons rice vinegar; 2 Tablespoons maple syrup; 2 Tablespoons coconut aminos; 1/2 pound gluten free pasta; Olive oil; 16 oz mushrooms, chopped; Salt and pepper; 1 bunch of kale, chopped; Parmesan cheese for topping

Yes! Does that not sound amazing, or does that not sound amazing?!

It sounds amazing! And tastes amazing too, I promise you.

The thing that I absolutely love most about this dish is that it is hearty and filling (thanks to the mushrooms!) without weighing you down like a lot of traditional pasta dishes. And it is packed with extra protein thanks to the chickpea linguini.

and an at-home Valentine’s Day wouldn’t be complete without an easy date night pasta!

I absolutely love doing date-night at home. Of course it helps out my wallet, but it more than that, doing date night at home is such an intimate way to show someone how much you love them.

For me, food is the ultimate way to bring people together, to gather around the table, to connect, and to show your love.

Food is my love language.

So, when it comes to date night dinners, they need to be:

easily paired with wine – bonus points if there is wine in the dish!
a little indulgent… because HELLO, it is date night after all.
and makes you feel good! The last thing I want is to feel overly full and sluggish when we’re snuggling on the couch after dinner.

I’m a firm believer in the power of date-night at home. And this date night pasta dish is a fun spin on traditional Italian food, thanks to miso!

What is miso? And how do you make miso mushrooms?

Miso is a paste (similar to the consistency of peanut butter) made from fermented soybeans that is used in traditional Japanese cuisine. It adds a salty umami flavor to dishes.

I first learned about miso while watching Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat with Samin Nosrat on Netflix. In the salt episode, Samin learns the incredible process of fermenting miso which often takes over a year!

There are several varieties of miso; most often you can find a light or white miso that is yellow or beige in color and a red or dark miso. The color is indicative of the length of fermentation (longer fermentation = darker in color) and the strength of flavor. Red or dark miso is stronger and saltier in flavor.

Mushrooms are often found in Japanese cuisine and lend themselves incredible well to pair with miso. They easily take on and absorb the flavors of the miso-ginger sauce used in this pasta dish.

how to make miso mushroom pasta – and a few tips for a delicious, easy pasta dinner at home:

Make the sauce: Add garlic, ginger, and miso to the basin of your food processor and pulse to combine. Add rice vinegar, maple syrup and coconut aminos. Process until completely combined. Set aside. Note: miso is very thick and often gritty in texture. I find that using my food processor is easier to fully combine the sauce.

Cook the pasta: Cook pasta according to the package directions, drain and set aside. Sometimes I reserve a little pasta waster in case the sauce is too thick. Then I can add it to loosen up the sauce without diluting it.

Cook the mushrooms: Over medium, heat olive oil. Add mushrooms and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms get nice and juicy, about 3-5 minutes. Add kale and saute until wilted. Mushrooms are very absorbent – don’t be afraid of adding more olive oil if you need it!

Assemble your date night pasta: Add the cooked pasta in the skillet with the mushroom and kale mixture. Top with the miso-ginger sauce and toss to combine.

Serve the pasta immediately, topped with a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese. Enjoy!

And if you love this easy, at-home date night pasta, you will love these other date night dinners:

One Pan Coconut Curry Pork Meatballs

Mediterranean Turkey Bowls with Savory Yogurt

Prosciutto Wrapped Cod with Blistered Tomatoes

Grilled Greek Salmon Kebabs