Serves 4-6
Ingredients
- 25g (1oz) unsalted butter
- 1 onion, thinly sliced
- ½ celeriac, peeled and cut into smallish cubes
- 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- 1 small handful of sage, leaves picked
- 250ml (9fl oz) vegetable stock or water
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the pasta
- 400g (14oz) type 00 flour, plus extra for dusting
- Good pinch of fine sea salt
- 4 eggs
- 50g (1¾oz) unsalted butter, to serve
- Mature hard cheese, to serve
Method
Begin by making the filling. Place a medium, heavy-based pan over a medium–high heat. Add the butter and when it’s melted and bubbling away, add the onion, celeriac and garlic. Season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring regularly, for 10–15 minutes, until the vegetables have softened and begun to caramelise lightly, but don’t allow them to become too dark.
Finely chop half the sage, add this to the pan and stir well. Cook for a further couple of minutes, then pour in the stock or water. Place a lid on the pan and bring the liquid up to the simmer, then turn down the heat and cook gently for 15–20 minutes, or until the celeriac is very tender. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the vegetables to a blender and whiz until you have a smooth, silky purée. If you need to add more liquid, do so gradually. Season the purée with salt and pepper, then spoon it into a bowl and cover and chill. Reserve any remaining cooking liquid for the sage and butter sauce.
To make the pasta, place the flour in a large bowl and add the salt. Make a well in the centre and crack in the eggs. Use a fork to whisk the eggs, incorporating the flour a little at a time. When you have a soft dough, tip it out, along with any loose flour, onto a clean work surface. Work the dough, stretching and folding it across your surface for 8–10 minutes, until it is smooth and silky. Wrap the dough in parchment and rest it in the fridge for 30–40 minutes.
Divide the dough in half and work each into a flattish rectangle in your hands. You can roll out the pasta using a large rolling pin (it’s hard work, but you’ll get there – go as thin as you can), but it’s easier using a pasta machine. Take one rectangle and pass it through the machine on its thickest setting a couple of times. Fold the dough into three, as if folding a letter, and, still on the thickest setting, pass it through twice more (this gives the dough structure).
