If you can’t find pizzocheri, a buckwheat pasta cut like fettuccine, you have two choices: make it yourself (page 542) or substitute any fettuccinelike pasta. If you can’t find Taleggio (already a compromise, because when I had this dish it was made with a local Alpine cheese whose name exists only in dialect), use fontina (real fontina, if you can find it, from the Valle d’Aosta), or another fairly strong but not too hard or harsh cheese.
Recipe information
Yield
makes 4 servings
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add salt. Add the cabbage and the potatoes.When they are tender, after about 10 minutes, remove them with a slotted spoon and place them in a large bowl; season with pepper and a little salt and keep warm.
Step 2
Put the butter and sage in a small saucepan and simmer while you cook the pasta. Cook the pasta until tender but still firm. Just before the pasta is done, remove 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid and pour over the cabbage and potatoes. Drain the pasta and add it to the vegetables, along with the Taleggio and half the Parmesan.
Step 3
Pour the butter-sage mixture over all, grind pepper over the pasta, and serve, tossing it at the table and passing the remaining Parmesan.
