Video: spelt and chestnut corzetti with walnut/pine nut sauce

Corzetti or croxetti are a beautiful type of pasta from the Italian region Liguria that many Liguri do not even know since it's  being consumed mainly in the Eastern side of the region. My Mum, for example, - a real Genovese - had never seen them or even heard their name.
They are made with wonderful carved wooden stamps with lovely symbols embossed on both sides (I have 5 types of stamps engraved with stars, suns, laurel branches, trees and flowers). Yesterday I enjoyed myself a lot preparing the corzetti with my friend Claudio Varone.
You can find some more information about corzetti on this Wikipedia page.

We made them mixing spelt flour and chestnut flour and then served them with a traditional Ligurian walnut sauce, the one my Mum always makes at home. We slightly modified it by adding pine nuts because we did not have enough walnuts. A truly scrumptious sauce. I advise you to add, as we did, a lot more marjoram than the amount you see next to the food processor (I love this herb, for me it represents the true smell of Liguria, much more than basil) and serve WITHOUT Parmesan or pepper.
On our first plate we put both cheese and black pepper but on the second one (the dish was too good, we both had ​​THREE servings each!!!) we avoided them and the corzetti tasted a lot better. Parmesan or grated grana and pepper, in fact, distract you a bit from the delicate intensity of the sauce that is already very rich in flavour (and cheese). If you want a bit more flavour add a little salt to the sauce.
The procedure, the ingredients and the quantities can be found in the almost-video. Enjoy!

 

 

Comments

[Frank]

One of the most beautiful forms of pasta, in my opinion. And Ligurian walnut sauce is truly to die for…

[Nicoletta]

Abdsolutely, Frank, so beautiful and special. And this version of the walnut sauce by my Mum is really great.