pasta w. a crunch. [egg fettuccine w. brown butter, fried sage & toasted hazelnuts]

May 27th, 2011 by | comments

I came across this recipe on Epicurious and was instantly sold. How can you say no to fried sage? I tweaked the recipe a bit, adding toasted hazelnuts cooked in brown butter. I remembered how well the hazelnuts and sage worked together in the homemade butternut squash ravioli I made (here), and thought they’d offer a nice contrast in textures.

The pasta turned out flavorful and delicious, with just the right amount of bite from the sage leaves. Adding toasted hazelnuts topped off the dish, as they provided an extra dimension of flavor. I gobbled up the leftovers pretty fast.

Hope everyone has a wonderful Memorial Day weekend! I’ll be spending the long weekend at home with family, then in Palm Springs with some good friends. My boss decided to give us a half day at work today, so I’ll get an early start on the weekend–kicking it off tonight at Glee Live with my mom for her birthday. I’m sure I’ll gush all about the show at a later date. :)

Recipe:

1 (12 oz.) bag Al Dente egg fettuccine

6 1/2 tbsp. butter

1 (0.66 oz.) box organic fresh sage

1/2 cup beef broth, plus more if pasta is dry

3/4 cup (approximately) homemade chicken broth, plus more if pasta is dry

1 (2.25 oz.) bag Diamond chopped hazelnuts

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese, plus additional for serving

Directions:

Cook pasta in large pot of salted, boiling water until tender, stirring occasionally, about 4 minutes. Drain pasta, and return to pot.

Meanwhile, melt 4 1/2 tbsp. butter in heavy large skillet over medium-low heat. Add sage leaves and cook until edges curl and butter is dark amber (do not burn), stirring and turning leaves occasionally, about 6 minutes. Transfer sage to paper towels.

Add the rest of the butter (2 tbsp.) to skillet. Once melted, add bag of hazelnuts and cook until browned, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes.

Remove hazelnuts from skillet and place in small bowl. Add beef and chicken broth to brown butter. Add liquid mixture to pasta in large pot. Stir in toasted hazelnuts and parmesan cheese and toss to coat, adding more beef and chicken broth if dry. Season pasta with salt and pepper.

Divide pasta among bowls, and garnish with fried sage leaves and parmesan cheese.

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