To make this pasta for four, you will need:
- 300g tagliatelle pasta
- 450g fresh asparagus
- 1 medium onion (120g)
- 2 spring onions (greens only)
- 2 heaped tablespoons of freshly chopped parsley
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 50ml extra-virgin olive oil or slightly more, depending on the depth of the skillet
- 150g Gorgonzola or any similar cheese, such as Stilton
- 250ml heavy cream
- 50g butter
- Generous pinch of freshly ground black pepper
- Pinch of freshly ground nutmeg
- 80g pecans or walnuts
1 Coarsely chop the nuts of your choice, and finely chop the parsley. Peel and thinly
slice the onion. Crush, peel and finely chop the garlic. Chop the spring onion greens into
5mm sections. Cut the tough bit off each asparagus spear and slice the remainder into 30mm sections on the diagonal for a better appearance.
2 Crumble the cheese with your hands and set aside.
3 Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a rolling boil and cook the pasta for the time suggested on the packet. For the last few minutes of pasta boiling time, add the sections
of fresh asparagus. When cooked, drain and set aside.
4 Select a large, cast-iron skillet or stainless steel frying pan, and bring the olive oil up to medium heat. Sweat the garlic and onions until the onions are soft and translucent, stirring from time to time to avoid adhesion and consequent burning.
Lower the heat and add the cream and butter, taking care to avoid curdling the cream. Add the pinch of ground nutmeg and black pepper, and then the crumbled Gorgonzola. When this is bubbling, add the pasta and asparagus, stirring well. Cut the heat to a simmer.
5 Sprinkle the contents of the frying pan with the chopped spring onions and parsley, and scatter the nuts. Don’t worry about adding salt; Gorgonzola is salty to begin with.
David Basckin is a freelance journalist and videographer.
