Hazelnut pasta with spinach and ricotta cream
I made this deliciously creamy and nutty hazelnut pasta recipe with pasta made from hazelnut flour, but you can enjoy it with normal pasta too..just don't forget the hazelnuts!
- Prep time
- 10 min
- Cook time
- 25 min
- Yield
- 4 servings
- Difficulty
- MEDIUM
Ingredients
Quantities are shown as originally provided.
- 400 g tagliatelle pasta (( I used pasta made with hazelnuts))
- 200 g fresh ricotta
- 400 g baby spinach leaves (washed)
- 2 shallots (peeled and sliced)
- 30 g Parmesan cheese (grated)
- 4-5 tbsp crushed hazelnuts (not too fine)
- 1 sprig fresh thyme
- 1 pinch nutmeg
- salt (for pasta and to taste)
- black pepper (to taste)
- 100 ml fresh cream (optional)
- 3-4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Instructions
- 1
Put a pot of water on to boil for the pasta. Add salt once it starts to boil and bring to the boil again.
- 2
Peel the shallots, cut them into thin rings and fry them in a large pan with heated olive oil until they start to soften. Add the well washed and dried spinach and continue cooking for another 3-4 minutes.
- 3
Cook the pasta al dente according to the instructions on the packet. When ready save some of the cooking water and drain.
- 4
Cream the ricotta with some of the saved pasta water. Work it until you have a nice smooth thick creamy sauce. You can use a fork or handheld blender for this. If you prefer you can also cream it with fresh cream. In that case, you can prepare it before cooking the pasta. Season the ricotta cream with nutmeg, salt and pepper as required.
- 5
Add the pasta to the pan with the spinach, add the creamed ricotta, some of the grated Parmesan and crushed hazelnuts and a little fresh thyme. Mix everything together well and sauté for a few moments. Serve hot with another sprinkling of crushed hazelnuts.