Ottolenghi Style: Tagliatelle With Walnuts Recipe

<p><em>You've been waiting for the sequel, we've been waiting for the sequel — everyone's been waiting for London-based chef Yotam Ottolenghi's follow-up to his smash hit cookbook </em>Plenty<em>. The wait is over: </em>Plenty More <em>is on the shelves. Get to know the vegetarian dishes you love on a more intimate level and add a few to your repertoire. Meat-free food simply doesn't get better than this. </em></p> <p>When this recipe was first published in the <em>Guardian</em>, it sparked a short discussion between two readers about the ideal quantity of pasta in a single portion. This debate demonstrates a point we always discuss at length in my test kitchen: how many people does this recipe serve? This question is almost as redundant as "how long is a piece of string?" yet all food writers engage in it seriously every time we write a recipe, because that's the convention: a good recipe must indicate the number of servings.</p> <p>When I mentioned in my article that a main course should have 3 1/2 to 5 ounces of dried pasta per person, one reader accused me of greediness — though not in so many words — and claimed 2 1/2 ounces is absolutely enough, while another justified my estimate. If I am totally honest, I can eat anywhere between 3 1/2 and 10 1/2 ounces of pasta, depending on how hungry I am and, more important, how delicious it is. I am sure this applies to most people.</p> <p>This is why I would like to suggest a new system of portion indication, which will take these two factors into consideration. So a recipe may "serve two people with a medium level of hunger but who are absolutely in love with white truffles," or "serve a single diner with a massive appetite but only when expertly prepared," or "will satisfy ten little stomachs when the cook is pressed for time." I think my system will illuminate the subject and both prevent food going to waste and people going hungry.</p> <p>On a more serious note, this recipe is pretty simple and quick to prepare yet delivers an unexpected richness of flavors. Make sure you use fresh walnuts, without any bitterness in them.</p> <p><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Plenty-More-Vibrant-Vegetable-Ottolenghi/dp/1607746212?tag=foodrepu-20" target="_blank">Reprinted with permission from <em>Plenty More</em></a></p>

Good

% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet