'Creamy' Mushroom Tagliatelle for Toddlers

This is a very simple and not overly strongly flavoured pasta dish which might be pretty good for the pickier eaters among us.  Similar to my creamy mushroom pasta I posted as my very first recipe post but rather than cream cheese this uses eggs to create a creamy sauce.  This means it's a great source of vitamin D as eggs and mushrooms are two of the few dietary sources.

I say 'creamy' because this contains no cream, and so depending on the severity of the intolerance may be suitable for lactose intolerant kids (as hard cheese is low in lactose but not suitable for people with milk protein allergy); be guided by your medical practitioner.  The eggs are lightly cooked so not for under 12 month olds; use vaccinated 'Lion' eggs if in the UK.

Creamy Mushroom Tagliatelle - Serves 1 hungry toddler

Ingredients

1/2 tsp Olive oil
1 clove of garlic
60g, 2oz Button or chestnut mushrooms
1 Egg yolk
20g, just over 1/2oz Extra mature or vintage (extra sharp) cheddar
30g, 2oz Dried tagliatelle
Fresh parsley to serve (optional if your child isn't on an 'anti green bits' battle)

Method

Cook the tagliatelle in boiling water following pack instructions.

While it's cooking, fry the mushrooms and whole, peeled clove of garlic for approx 3 minutes in the oil.  Remove the garlic.

While the mushrooms are frying, grate the cheese and mix the egg yolk and 2 tbsp cold water and a tbsp of fresh, chopped parsley if using.

Drain the pasta reserving a little of the pasta water and add to the hot mushrooms.  Add the egg mixture and take off the heat immediately.  Stir until the cheese is melted and the sauce thickened and coating the pasta.

For adults, I'd be tempted to fry a little bacon off with the mushrooms or chose an interesting variety.

My son was a fan, although the green bits were not 100% appreciated.

Make it Thrifty:
It's tempting to buy the enormous 'value' packs of mushrooms but I always found I was throwing half of them out.  Much better and more cost effective to just buy 100g or so in a week loose to serve as a side vegetable or in dishes like this.  Although the cost per gram is higher, the overall cost is lower when you work out what you would have thrown away.
Using cheddar rather than parmesan in a dish like this is much more cost effective.  Use a very mature one though as a little goes a long way.