You are here:

Pappardelle with cavolo nero and new season's olive oil

Theo Randall from Market Kitchen
Theo Randall captures the essence of Italian cooking - using simple ingredients to great effect - in this vegetarian pasta dish

Pappardelle with cavolo nero and new season's olive oil

Method

1. For the pasta dough: put the flours, whole eggs and egg yolks in a food processor and pulse until it forms a small white ball of dough. If this doesn't happen then the mixture is too dry, add 1-2 tablespoons of water and pulse again. Divide the dough into 3 equal balls and wrap in cling film.

2. Roll the pasta into an oblong. Using a pasta machine, feed the dough through the widest setting and fold in half. Keep doing this 5 or 6 times, gradually working down the settings - this will break down the glutens in the pasta and make the dough more elastic, giving the pasta a better bite. Once you have a long piece of very thin pasta cut it with a serrated pasta cutter into 3 cm (wide) strips. Lightly sprinkle a baking tray with semolina flour and arrange the pasta on it. Sprinkle with extra semolina flour as necessary to avoid sticking. Put in the fridge, covered with greaseproof paper - this will help to dry out the pasta so when it's cooking it will hold together much better.

3. For the sauce: remove the tough stalks from the cavolo nero. Blanch with the and garlic in plenty of salt water until the garlic cloves are tender. Remove the cavalo nero from the water but keep the water.

4. In a blender, combine the cooked cavolo nero, garlic and some of the cooking water to make a very smooth dark green paste. You may need to add more cooking water - but be careful not to add too much. Season and add half of the oil to the sauce. Warm the sauce through.

5. Cook the pappardelle in boiling salted water, drain and mix with through the warmed cavalo nero sauce. Fold in the remaining new season's olive oil. Sprinkle with parmesan, if using.