Introduction
Winter is here, it’s time to start getting a little nutty. Walnuts always take me back to Christmas as a child, the dish of mixed nuts sitting on the coffee table next to a bowl of Quality Street chocolate.
Of course, feel free to substitute the sausage meat for anything else and add your own vegetables – in terms of visuals I think something deep and green like these beans provides an excellent contrast to the light creaminess of the sauce and pasta.
Ingredients
- Pasta (something with kinks will hold more sauce)
- Mushrooms
- Uncooked Walnuts
- Cream (single or double)
- Parmesan (or a similarly strong, hard cheese)
- Vegetables
- Salt
Method
- Put the pasta in well salted water and set to the boil. If using any vegetables that need boiling, put them in this water also.
- Fry the sausages slightly just to seal them up and get them firm – this will make them hold their shape more when sliced.
- Chop the mushrooms as small as you’d like – I typically go for very small cubes but it doesn’t really matter. Fry them in the pan with the sausages until the water in them has fully evaporated.
- Add the chopped/crushed walnuts and fry for a minute or two more. While this happens remove the sausages and slice evenly before returning to the pan.
- Add the cream and simmer over a low heat, until it has absorbed enough flavour.
- Add the grated parmesan and stir through. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Parmesan is very salty so don’t season before this!
- Drain the pasta and vegetables and pour in the sauce, combining well.
Serving and Storage
Be sure to serve pre-mixed with the sauce – there is nothing worse than plain pasta with a glob of sauce on top. Sprinkle over a little grated parmesan and some walnuts.
This will keep well in the fridge for 3 days or so in a sealed container.
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