Chestnut Tagliatelle with Wild Mushrooms, Leeks and Prosciutto

I came across some Chestnut flour recently and made both chestnut crepes and fresh chestnut pasta dough. I made the crepes two ways one was a sweet desert version and the other was a savory crepe filled with the same mixture I used as the "sauce" for the Tagliatelle. The crepes are made with 100% chestnut flour and the chestnut pasta is made with a small addition of the chestnut flour to 00 Italian flour. More on the crepes later.
This fresh pasta dish is a really delicious recipe, the chestnut flavor compliments the wild mushrooms and the leeks and prosciutto tie in the flavors superbly. I love this dish. Try it.


Ingredients:

For the dough
14 oz 00 Flour (use all purpose if you can't find the 00)
3.5 oz of chestnut flour
4 eggs plus 4 yokes
3 tablespoons of olive oil
pinch of salt


















For the sauce
3 different types of wild mushroom - Trumpet, shitake and oyster. Crimini or other types also work well
2 leeks -washed trimmed and sliced
3 thick slices of prosciutto - cut into small pieces
2 Tablespoons of shallot and garlic - finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic - finely chopped
1 cup of white wine
Olive oil
Fresh Italian parsley - chopped fine
Parmigiano Cheese
Butter

Method:

For the dough:
Sift and mix the flours together. Place on a clean surface or use an extra large mixing bowl, form a well in the middle of the flour. Break the eggs into the well, mix up the eggs with a fork, add the olive oil and salt, gradually incorporate the flour with the eggs and oil. Gently kneed the dough for about 8 minutes or until smooth. Wrap the dough in plastic and let rest for at least 20 minutes, an hour is even better.
After resting the dough use a pasta machine to make the tagliatelle or if you do not have a pasta machine roll out the dough into a very thin sheet and then cut into strips. You will be making Pappardelle with this method and that is fine. May even be better. Let the cut pasta dry out a little by placing on a dry clean dish towel.

Now for the sauce.
Use two pans. One is for the mushrooms and the other for everything else. Cook the mushrooms in a little olive oil over a moderate heat till they turn slightly brown and set aside. In another pan melt a couple Tablespoons of butter in a Tablespoon or so of olive oil. Saute the prosciutto for a few minutes and then add the garlic, shallot and leeks cook for several minutes without browning. Add the mushroom mixture to the leek mixture, then add the wine and continue cooking for about 5 more
minutes. Sprinkle with some parsley.


Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Drop the pasta into the boiling water and cook for 3 to 5 minutes. Taste for doneness. Add a few tablespoons of the pasta water to the mushroom mixture and then drain the pasta. Toss it all together with some grated Parmigiano cheese. Serve immediately.