Recipe: Mafalda with bacon and asparagus

Light, bright, and delicious – this is spring in a bowl! Photo / Fresh Media

Mafalda is a ribbon-shaped pasta with ruffled edges that hold creamy and chunky sauces exceptionally well, although you can of course substitute any other form of pasta.

There’s an interesting (and sad) back story to the name of this pasta. Although the pasta had been around for a long time, it was renamed in 1902 for the birth of Princess Mafalda of Savoy. During the war, she was imprisoned in the Buchenwald death camp for subversive activities and died there days before the end of the war.

Mafalda with bacon and asparagus

Serves 2

Ingredients

100g streaky bacon, chopped

4-5 asparagus, ends trimmed and sliced diagonally

1 garlic clove, crushed

Pinch of chilli flakes

200g Mafalda pasta (or pasta of your choice)

½ cup cream

2 size 7 eggs, yolks only

50g parmesan, grated

1 lemon, zest and juice

Salt and black pepper

¼ cup freshly podded or frozen peas

To serve

Extra parmesan

Extra chilli flakes

Lemon wedges

Fresh mint, to garnish (optional)

Method

1. Heat a large frying pan over a medium heat, and cook the bacon until crisp. Add a drizzle of oil if the pan looks dry. Add garlic and chilli to the pan and cook for 2-3 mins to soften.
2. Meanwhile, bring a large pan of water to the boil. Add 1 teaspoon of salt and the mafalda pasta. Cook according to the packet instructions for 7-8 minutes. Add the asparagus to the pasta 1 min before the end of the cooking time.
3. Whisk the cream, egg yolks, parmesan and lemon zest in a jug.
4. Drain the pasta and asparagus, reserving a cup of the pasta cooking water. Tip the pasta and asparagus into the pan with the bacon mix, then turn the heat to low and pour in the cream mixture.
5. Add the peas, a splash of the reserved pasta water and a squeeze of lemon juice.
6. Continue to cook for a few minutes until the sauce thickens enough to cling to the pasta and the peas are cooked.
7. Serve with some extra parmesan, chilli flakes and lemon wedges. Garnish with fresh mint leaves (optional).

– fresh.co.nz