Pappardelle w/ Black Truffle Cream Sauce
w/ summer peach & apricot salad
I am nowhere near a chef or anyone important in the food world for that matter (except in my head), but I am however, one lucky girl who received 2 oz. worth of black truffle over the weekend from my fiancé to cook with.
Truffles are known in the culinary world as “diamonds of the kitchen” because of their epicurean value to chefs and the luxurious elevation of taste they bring to any dish. The balls of deliciousness grow underground near and around the roots of trees, which probably aids in their magnificent earthy flavor and distinguishing “funky” odor that is pretty hard to miss. They technically are not a mushroom, but because of their porous skin, they fall into the fungi category like most. Kind of confusing, but in the grand scheme of things, doesn’t really matter since all I know is that they taste awesome and I don’t really need to understand why.
The one thing to remember is that they add a whole lot of oomph to a dish when they are used correctly, so try and keep the fluff to a minimum and make them the primary cooking component to your dish.
To help get that oomph factor in this pasta dish, I infuse the cream beforehand with some minced black truffle to really get that rich earthy taste to pop (I read this in a Saveur recipe a while back and it definitely does help a lot). If time is not on your side, don’t worry because you will still be able to taste the truffle by adding it to the sauce when cooking (the taste just won’t pop as much).
The cream sauce alone tastes like heaven and is not too heavy of a sauce to eat on a warm summer night. It is extremely light, super creamy, amazingly delicious, and to be honest, quite addicting. Nothing makes this dish sing even more than pairing it with our Summer Peach & Apricot Salad. Sweet, tangy and absolutely refreshing. So, take a break, kick up your feet and enjoy this luxurious dinner of absolute yummy.
Homemade Pasta Ingredients: Yields 3 servings
- 3 c. All-Purpose Flour or Bread Flour
- 3 Egg Yolks + 1 Egg
- ¾ tbsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Black Truffle Cream Sauce Ingredients: Yields enough sauce for 3 servings
- 1 c. Heavy Cream, infused with 1/3 finely minced Black Truffle
- 1 c. Dry White Wine
- ½ c. Parmesan Cheese, finely Grated
- ½ c. Butter
- 1 Large Garlic Clove, minced
- 1 Large Shallot, minced
- 1 oz. Black Truffles, shaved thinly (1/3 of this will be used to infuse the cream)
- Salt/Pepper
Summer Peach & Apricot Salad :Yields 3 servings
- 2 Peaches, sliced
- 3 Apricots, sliced
- 6 Strawberries, sliced (optional)
- 3 large handfuls of Arugula Lettuce
- 3 large handfuls of Baby Kale Lettuce Blend
- 1 c. Manchego Cheese (aged 6 month), cubed
- Julienned Radish for garnish
- Lemon Vinaigrette Dressing for topping
Directions:
- Ahead of time, take the 1/3 of minced truffle and stir into the cream using to make the sauce. Cover and chill for at least 4-6 hours.
- Make Pasta ahead of time:
- Pour 3 cups of flour onto a flat surface into a large/wide mound. Make a large well in center with your fist. Make sure the outer wall is slightly higher almost 1 ½ to 2 inches high.
- Break eggs into the well and add the oil. Beat eggs and oil together with a fork, while gradually beating in the flour from inner side of well wall. Make sure to keep the wall intact while mixture is runny until it comes together so that it can be kneaded.
- Knead dough with floured hands, incorporating just enough flour on work surface until dough no longer sticks to hands. (you want it to be slightly tacky).
- Set dough aside and scrape up and discard flour from work surface
- Lightly re-flour work surface using some of remaining flour and continue to knead dough, until smooth and still slightly tacky. Cut your dough into 3 or 4 chunks. Lightly roll out dough with a rolling pin so it can be run through a pasta machine.
- Using a pasta machine of your choice (I use a hand rolling one you can purchase from Bed, Bath and Beyond) and make pasta.
- Once noodles are made, I loosely pile up the fresh noodles on top of a floured baking sheet so they didn’t stick. I re-floured and fluffed them every once in a while just to make sure they didn’t stick and cover the cut noodles with plastic wrap until they are ready to be boiled.
- Make the salad by tossing all the Summer Pear and Apricot Ingredients together in a large bowl (minus the vinaigrette dressing). Set aside and chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
- Melt butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook garlic and shallots until golden brown, about 8 minutes. Add wine and cook for another 8 minutes. Add infused truffle cream and simmer until thickened, about 10-12 minutes.
- Cook pappardelle in salted boiling water until al dente, about 3-5 minutes (depending on noodle size and thickness). Drain pasta and add to the skillet. Add parmesan, salt, and pepper, then toss to coat. Garnish with extra Parmesan cheese and shaved truffles sprinkled over the top.
- Serve right away along with salad and some crusty sliced bread!
