Walnut Sauce Pasta Recipe From Liguria Food

CREAMY WALNUT SAUCE PASTA

Steps:

• To peel the walnuts. Bring a small pot of water to a boil. When the water boils, add the walnuts and simmer for a couple of minutes. Drain, rinse under cold water and place on a kitchen towel. Remove the skins by gently pulling them with your fingers. This procedure adds about one extra hour to the recipe and can be done in advance. If doing this in advance, store the peeled walnuts in an airtight container in the fridge.
• Prepare the pasta. Set a pot of water on medium-high heat. When it boils, add salt and the pasta. Cook the pasta in boiling water according to package instructions. I recommend to stick to the suggested cooking time for a perfect Italian al dente texture.
• Prepare the sauce. Melt half of the butter in a pan on medium heat. Mince the shallot and add it to the butter. Sauté until soft, 2 minutes.
• Add the walnuts, salt, pepper and the rest of the butter. Sauté 1 minute, let the butter melt. Next pour in the cream. Simmer the sauce on medium heat 2 minutes, stirring constantly.
• Transfer the sauce to a food processor and blend until smooth. Alternatively, you can blend it with a hand blender.
• When the pasta is done cooking, drain it and put it back into the cooking pan. Pour the sauce over the cooked pasta and toss. Divide pasta between serving bowls and top with grated parmesan.

PASTA WITH WALNUT SAUCE

Steps:

• Put a large saucepan of water on to boil, and toast the walnuts in a dry frying pan until they begin to make a nutty aroma. Put the bread in a bowl and cover with the milk. Put most of the toasted walnuts (reserving about 1 ounce for garnish) into a blender along with the garlic, bread soaked in milk, and Parmesan. Blend until it turns smooth and creamy, then pour in the oil and season well with salt and pepper before blending again.
• Pour into a bowl, and set aside.
• Add pasta to boiling water with salt and cook for the required amount of time. When pasta is al dente, reserve a cup of the pasta cooking liquid and then drain the pasta, but put it in to a large bowl while it's still dripping slightly with water. Sprinkle a little olive oil over the pasta to prevent it sticking together, and then add the walnut sauce, mixing it into the pasta (splash in a little pasta cooking liquid to make the sauce less thick if needed).
• Roughly chop the remaining walnuts and toss them over the top along with some more Parmesan and the chopped parsley.

WALNUT SAUCE PASTA RECIPE FROM LIGURIA

Steps:

• Put the shelled walnuts in a pan, cover with water, bring to the boil and simmer for 3-4 minutes. Drain and rinse the walnuts, remove the skins by wiping with a cloth and pat the walnuts dry with kitchen paper or a clean tea towel (this step is optional).
• Break the bread into pieces, put it in a bowl and cover with the milk. When it is completely wet, drain and squeeze the milk out with your hands. Save the milk.
• Put the drained bread in the blender/food processor along with the walnuts and the garlic. Pulse a few times until the walnuts are quite small. Add the parmigiano cheese, pine nuts and 2 pinches of salt. Pulse for about 20 seconds until the sauce becomes a bit smooth.
• Continue to pulse while adding olive oil a little at a time and the remaining milk from the bread as needed to obtain a thick creamy sauce. Store in a sealed container in the fridge until ready to use.
• Put a pot of water on to boil for the pasta. When it boils add salt and bring to the boil again. Cook the pasta al dente according to the instructions on the packet. My store-bought fresh trofie needed 9 minutes.
• Before draining the pasta, water down the Ligurian walnut sauce with about ½ ladle of pasta cooking water in a pan large enough to hold the pasta too. Stir until the sauce becomes creamy and the right consistency. Also save a cup of the water to add later just in case your walnut sauce pasta seems dry.
• Add the drained pasta to the sauce along with some fresh marjoram leaves, freshly ground black pepper , some pieces of walnuts and a little more grated parmigiano. Mix everything together well and serve immediately.

PASTA WITH CREAMY GARLIC AND WALNUT SAUCE

Steps:

• Place cream, walnuts, cheese, garlic, salt and pepper in food processor and pulse until smooth.
• Cook pasta according to package directions, drain.
• Toss with sauce.
• Garnish with additional walnuts and seasoning if desired.
• Serve immediately with additional cheese.

WALNUT SAUCE FOR PASTA

Steps:

• Place the walnuts, pine nuts, salt and garlic in a food processor and pulse to a paste. Add the cheese; pulse once or twice. Gradually add the olive oil until a smooth sauce is obtained. Transfer to a saucepan and stir in the marjoram or parsley. Keep the sauce warm while the pasta is cooking.
• Serve hot and pass grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese to sprinkle on top.