Creamy Truffle Pasta..

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Pasta al Tartuffo 2018 (10)

Someone – I’ve narrowed it down to one of two pals – (Liz? Therese?) gave me some lovely Salame al Tartufo Estivo – Italian sausage with Truffle, to the rest of us – for Christmas this year, and so this latest recipe was born. It’s mostly all made in one pot, which is always good news in my book..

This is a really rich dish with a very grown-up flavour. It might be too much for the kids. To make it a little more universal, you could change the type of sausage you use.  However, if you have a bunch of foodies coming round, this might well be the very job..

EQUIPMENT:

  • A large stove-top casserole – mine’s a cast-iron one
  • small frying pan

INGREDIENTS: I’d say this would feed 4-6 lucky people..Pasta al Tartuffo 2018 (3)

  • 100g Italian sausage with Truffle – or your choice of sausage – cut into smallish pieces.
  • 10 thin rashers of rindless unsmoked streaky bacon, chopped.
  • 2 chicken breasts, cut into very fine slivers
  • 2 medium onions, chopped
  • 1 green chilli, finely chopped
  • 2 cloves of garlic, crushed
  • 125g mini Portobello mushrooms, finely sliced
  • splash of red wine (isn’t there always :)  )
  • 1 litre of chicken stock
  • Juice of half a lemon
  • 250g pasta shapes – I used Fusilli
  • 2 heaped dessertspoons of Mascarpone
  • handful of breadcrumbs
  • zest of a lemon
  • Some finely chopped parsley (or a teaspoonful of dried, if you’re stuck)
  • Freshly grated Parmesan, to serve

METHOD:

  • Put the casserole over a medium heat
  • Add the sausage and bacon. Allow to soften and release some oil. Stir, in case anything sticks.
  • Add the chopped onions, the mushrooms and the wine, and stir. Cook gently for 5 minutes.

Pasta al Tartuffo 2018 (1)

  • Add the chilli and garlic
  • Add the chicken pieces
  • Stir well until everything is amalgamated, and the chicken has started to cook
  • Add the litre of stock, and the pasta and stir in.

Pasta al Tartuffo 2018 (9)

  • Season with pepper only
  • Squeeze in the lemon juice.
  • Reduce the heat a little, half-cover the pot and leave to bubble gently for 5-10 minutes, or until the pasta is cooked al dente, or to your liking.

Pasta al Tartuffo 2018 (5)

 

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  • Just before serving, stir in the Mascarpone.
  • In a dry frying pan, quickly toast the breadcrumbs until crispy, then add the lemon zest.
  • Using a ladle, put the pasta into serving dishes, then sprinkle the breadcrumb mix over.
  • Hand the Parmesan separately. We had some garlic flatbread with this today, it’s good for mopping up the juices.

parmesan 2

NOTES:

  • The sauce is rather thin in this dish, even with the Mascarpone, but it thickens as you add the breadcrumbs and Parmesan, so don’t be tempted to add flour to thicken it.
  • It is a rich dish, so slightly smaller portions are required.

 

About

I started writing down recipes in an old copybook when I was about 16. With 6 children at home, my Mother was always glad of a hand in the kitchen, and really allowed us to experiment - as long as we washed up afterwards, and left the kitchen immaculate! Having a tidy kitchen has followed me through my life, as has the habit of writing down my favourite recipes; except that these days I write them for my website, and add photographs when I can. The website really started when it occurred to me that my daughter might like to have these recipes when I've forgotten them. In my early days of cooking for family and friends, I used to phone my Mum all the time to ask her for the recipe for some of our favourite family dinners. She rarely had a recipe to hand - I think, like me, she made a lot of it up as she went along.. So welcome to Eating for Ireland - these are the recipes that my friends and family having been eating these past 40 years.. yes, I truly am ancient! They are tried and tested, and have worked for me for all that time - I have updated them as new ingredients became available - I really hope you'll find something that you can make into a family favourite of your own. You don't have to tell anyone where you found these great new dishes that you're serving up - it can be our little secret, but I'd really love it if you could give me a sneaky 'follow' on Facebook and Instagram.. So off you go - have a good rummage around, you're bound to find something new! My sincere thanks to all of you who have found a recipe that you liked and dropped me a line to tell me - I really do love to hear from you! Happy Cooking! Becks xx

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