penne agli asparagi, a Northern Italian pasta using asparagus in the sauce and as topping, by Oreste.
(4 servings)
- 2 lbs asparagus
- 4 cloves of garlic
- white pepper
- marjoram
- olive oil
- 1 lb pasta (should be PENNE)
- wine: should be a central or northern Italian White, preferably Riesling,Pinot Bianco, Orvieto or, as a last resort, Pinot Grigio.
- Cut the asparagus into 3 parts: tips, central part, had end stems
- Boil the hard parts in little water, salt, and a generous amount of white pepper (one spoon),until the asparagus stems get soft (it may take up to 30 minutes.. add little water if needed). You should get a very peppery broth, which you must keep. Drain the asparagoes, put them into a blender with olive oil, a little marjorane, and some of the cooking broth if the blend is too sticky. Blend until you get a creamy,frothy, sauce. Save it, and save also the part of the broth you did not use.
- Chop the central part in thin round pieces, and saute them at medium-low heat into a large pan with little olive oil, garlic chopped finely, adding salt, white pepper, and marjorane, and mixing. Just few minutes..those will cook very quickly, check when they are soft and turn the heat off.
- Now work on the tips. When they are still wet, you have to roll them in a little salt. This help preserve the crunchiness. The saute them at medium-high heat mixing constantly..Taste them, when cooked (and still crunchy) stop the heat immediately.
- At the same time, put the water to boil. When the water for the pasta is boiling, you can add the remaining part of the broth and the needed salt (typically one teaspoon of corse salt per person), put the pasta in.
- cook pasta to al dente, drain the pasta, place it in the large pan and heat up, low-medium heat, adding the creamy sauce gradually and mixing well constantly. When the pasta is all mixed, serve immediately and top with the asparagoes tips