Directions
One of the most delicious spring recipes is passatelli with bacon, asparagus and shallots.
They are divine, a crazy symphony of flavors, where bacon marries the sweetness of asparagus with the full taste of passatelli in the background, a true work of art of Romagna cuisine.
What is passatelli? Well, if you haven’t tasted them yet, today you can make up for it big time! Passatelli are an atypical type of pasta, a kind of gnocchi-spaghetti, made with a mixture of grated bread, Parmigiano Reggiano, flour, nutmeg and eggs, which is then pressed into the potato masher.
They are always cooked in broth like tortellini, but then passatelli can be tasted dry, seasoned with fish sauces, fondue and truffles or a delicious spring dressing like the one we offer today based on asparagus.
And now we will reveal a trick to surprise your guests with a delicious dish, but don’t spend the whole evening in the kitchen: you can prepare the passatelli dough in advance and then store it in the refrigerator for two days.
When it is time to cook the passatelli, take out the dough, put a ball in the potato masher, squeeze it to give life to the passatelli, and then throw them into the bubbling broth.
Ingredients for making dry passatelli with pancetta, asparagus and shallot
8 servings
- 330 grams of grated bread
- 80 grams of flour 0
- 300 grams of grated Parmigiano Reggiano
- 6-7 eggs
- 10 grams of nutmeg or the peel of 1 untreated organic lemon
- 10 grams of salt
- 10 grams of pepper
- 2 liters of broth
- 120 grams of bacon
- 300 grams of asparagus
- 120 grams of shallots
- 50 grams of extra virgin olive oil
How to make dry passatelli with pancetta, asparagus and shallot
Before starting a small clarification, there are two recipes and schools of thought: those in the dough are nutmeg, usually from Emilia, and those who prefer lemon peel, usually from Romagna.
For today’s recipe, we highly recommend lemon peel to add a fresh and sharp touch to cut the flavor of the dressing. If you prefer a spicier taste, add the nutmeg.
Take a pastry board or a big bowl, pour all the dry ingredients, then stir and season with the finely grated lemon peel.
Add the eggs and mix with your hands until the mixture is firm, moist, but not mushy: it must be compact and well blended.
However, consider that it must be pressed in a potato masher, with the widest holes, at least 0.5 cm, so it must not be too hard either. Let’s say that the consistency must be halfway between play and gnocchi doughs.
And after this pearl of wisdom, let’s move on to the sauce. If you want to keep the passatelli dough in the refrigerator, seal it in an airtight container or wrap the dough in a tight film.
Put the bacon cut into strips in a pan with a drizzle of oil and then sauté for 10 minutes over a low flame.
Remove the bacon and cook the finely chopped shallot for 5 minutes. If you want to add a pungent touch, 3 cm of powdered or chopped ginger is ideal.
With a potato peeler, remove the hard part of the asparagus and then cut them into slices.
Throw in the asparagus, season with salt and pepper, cook for 6-7 minutes, and then put the bacon back in.
Bring the broth to a boil, throw in the passatelli and cook for a few minutes. Otherwise, they will mash and we want them firm, al dente instead.
Throw the passatelli in the pan, season with a drizzle of additional oil, sauté and cook for another 1 minute, then serve the spring dish!
Which wine to pair with dry passatelli with pancetta, asparagus and shallots?
For such a complex dish with elaborate flavors, where sweetness and flavor chase each other, we need a lysergic and resinous wine such as the Albana Fiorile from Fondo San Giuseppe, a natural wine of overwhelming beauty and courage.
Obviously, when we have so much texture on the palate, Champagne and Franciacorta are great for cutting through the intense taste of Parmesan and pancetta.
