Asparagus, Potato and Spelt Pasta.
This is a summery take on the “pizzoccheri” – a hearty, Northern Italian buckwheat pasta dish made with cabbage, potato and cheese doused in garlic butter. This uses the same distinct cooking process but warm-weather ingredients.
Asparagus, potato and spelt pasta.
The results are elegant and balanced, an unusual pasta made with familiar produce.
The cheese is prominent here, so key is a good quality cheese. As is the marjoram, which cannot be omitted. This is a herb that pairs perfectly with potatoes and gives the dish a particular, aromatic flavour. You can substitute the Gruyere for another cheese or use Parmesan only, but make sure the cheese is a melty one.
The combination of pasta and potato is very common in Southern Italy, but stretches also to the North - as seen in the Ligurian pesto pastas - and even as far as Ticino, the Italian part of Switzerland. Carb on carb is always a good idea and popular with all. Adding potato when cooking pasta makes the final dish extra creamy, and a good trick to deploy when extra richness and sumptuousness is needed: use a small and subtle amount, thoroughly cooked through so it melts through the sauce.
It is easy enough to buy spelt pasta in health stores or large supermarkets and the choice is extensive these days – there is a big difference in texture and taste between the healthfood variety and the artisanal kind, which is rounder in taste and grittier in texture, and will perfectly complement the potato here. Look for ‘trafilata al bronzo’ written on the packet: “bronze drawn”, the artisanal method which makes pasta more porous, better able to contain sauces or condiments and infinitely more interesting and delicious in flavour. The extra few pounds in price make the world of a difference to the final feast.
It is important that the potato is cooked until very soft, so it melts and clings to the rest of the ingredients. The asparagus may be left quite crunchy, and the pasta as always al dente.
As with pizzocherri, serve immediately.
Ingredients.
Serves four:
Spelt pasta 350g
Potato,
1 large or two small
Asparagus, 200g
Gruyere, 250g
Marjoram, 6-8 sprigs
Butter, 150-200g
Bay leaves, 10
Garlic cloves, 2-3
Salt, pepper
Optional:
Parmesan, 50g
Method.
1. Peel and dice the potato into irregular pieces.
2. Trim the asparagus, getting rid of the coarse stalks, and cut into small rounds, about 1cm long. Remove the tips and set apart.
3. Bring a large pan of water to boil. Salt and add the potatoes – they will need to cook for 25 minutes.
4. In the meantime, melt the butter in a pan on low-medium heat and add the garlic cloves, squished with the back of the knife and peeled.
5. Thinly slice the bay leaves and add to the butter. Cook together, making sure the garlic colours lightly but doesn’t brown. Turn off the heat after 10-12minutes and discard the garlic.
6. Grate the cheeses and prepare the marjoram by removing the leaves from the springs.
7. Add the pasta to the potatoes – you will need to calculate at which point, depending on the instructions on the packet: go for 1-2 minutes less than what’s given.
8. 6-5 minutes before the end, add the asparagus stalks, and 2-4 minutes before the end the asparagus tips: the timing will depend on the size of your asparagus.
9. Drain the pot of pasta, potatoes and asparagus, leaving in the colander for 1 minute to make sure as much of the water is removed.
10. Take a serving dish, and cover the bottom with a third of the pasta/potato/asparagus mixture. Sprinkle a third of the marjoram leaves, and a third of the grated Gruyere.
11. Repeat another two times, finishing with a sprinkle of the Parmesan.
12. Pour the melted butter over the whole dish and serve immediately.
