It’s getting cold and wintery. But we Italians have a way to brighten up any bad day with a ray of sunshine: we cook. Food is one of the best pleasures of life. We believe in this, in Italy. And food, whether you eat it or make it, can turn a bleak day in a special occasion. So I thought of giving you a nice, heart-warming, comforting Dolomites’ recipe to try out this weekend to beat the blues and get that smile back on your faces!
I chose an easy enough dish, the ingredients of which shouldn’t be to hard to source outside Italy: tagliatelle alla Castellana.
Now, you must like 3 things to enjoy this dish, porcini mushroom, home made pasta and pork roast: actually, what’s not to love?
First of all, you have to decide how to get your tagliatelle, that is, if you’re going to buy them fresh, make them or go for the dry variety or make them; fresh would be best, so if you feel like to try to make them yourself, here is a great recipe to follow: http://www.italyum.com/italian-recipes/pasta-recipes/homemade-tagliatelle.html. Although making tagliatelle is not too hard, it takes time and it’s understandable if you decide to go for store bought, but please, try to get good pasta. Avoid the cheap stuff at your local store and maybe try some that comes from Italy: some of our most popular brands are widely available at Tesco or Sainsbury (if you’re in England), and in all major supermarket in the US, so get your mitts on a box of those! For a sauce as delicious and rich as the Castellana, good pasta is essential! Even better, would be to buy fresh tagliatelle, which you’ll find in any good italian deli or at some supermarkets.
Here is what you need for the sauce (prepared for four people/400-500 gr of pasta): 100 gr of pork fillet ( ask for a cut which is good for roasting), 70 gr of smoked pancetta (get streaky bacon), 60 gr of butter, 1/2 a glass of brandy, 120 gr of porcini mushrooms (if you can’t get them fresh, you can buy the dried ones), 1/2 an onion, a clove of garlic, 1 glass of cream.
Cut the pork fillet in slices of about 1/5 of an inch thick, dice the pancetta and set apart. In a frying pan, melt the butter and sauté the thinly chopped onion and garlic in it. When the onion is golden and hot, add the fillet, let it cook lightly for a few minutes and then add the sliced mushrooms and the pancetta. If you’re using dried porcini, place them in pint glass, cover them with boiling water and let them soak for about 30/40 minutes before using them. You can keep the water and use it as mushroom stock later.
Add in the brandy and let cook for another 5 minutes, then add the cream. Let the sauce simmer and thicken for while, until the sauce is nice and creamy. Add salt and pepper to taste and some nutmeg, if you like it. Cook the tagliatelle al dente in salted, boiling water, drain them, toss them in the sauce, add parmesan and…Buon Appetito a tutti!