Chestnut tagliatelle with sausage and fennel. A trip to the mountains brings chestnuts to use, prompting the search through scattered recipes to recreate; both sweet and savory. Now, I present a very simple recipe to prepare; I believe that knowing quick yet good recipes can rekindle the desire to cook in some people, who, not having much time due to hours spent outside the home, give up cooking and rely on precooked foods. I dedicate this way of cooking to them as well. First because I also spend many hours away from home, I know what it means not to have time and often not even the desire to cook when in the evening the house calls for our presence everywhere. Especially if there are children.
The path to follow is to find first courses that allow us to cook fresh food, for the well-being of all of us, and if we want, also of the environment.
The tagliatelle are easy to make, the sauce even more so.
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Economical
- Preparation time: 2 Hours
- Portions: 4
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Autumn, Winter
Ingredients
Chestnut flour, dried or fresh chestnuts, flour, and sausage…
- 10.5 oz flour
- 6 oz chestnut flour
- 5 eggs
- 10.5 oz sausage
- 1 tea cup chestnuts, boiled (You can soak dried chestnuts and then boil them in water. Roasted chestnuts can also be used.)
- 1 coffee cup red wine
- to taste salt
- to taste olive oil
- 1 bunch wild fennel
Useful Tools
Rolling pin, mixing bowl, pot for cooking tagliatelle, pan for the sauce.
- Bowls
- Pans
- Pots
- Colanders
Steps
First of all, knead and make the tagliatelle, then prepare the sauce while the water for the pasta reaches a boil…
Sift together the two flours and add the eggs, knead well and roll out a sheet. You can proceed either with the machine or manually; make the tagliatelle and use rice flour to prevent the pasta from sticking.
Place the pot for the pasta on the stove and in the meantime prepare the sauce: cut the sausage into small pieces, crumble the boiled chestnuts, and add the chopped fennel, sauté in a little oil, season with salt, and finally deglaze with wine.
Once the tagliatelle are cooked, which will take about 3 minutes, toss them with the sauce and serve hot. Optionally sprinkle with grated Parmesan.
Tagliatelle ready, just to enjoy.
A good glass of red wine, perhaps the same used for deglazing, will complete the dish.
Some Extra Tips
Chestnut flour is excellent for both tagliatelle and other sweets when fresh chestnuts are not available. Seal the package well to protect from moisture. You can also use it to make cakes, cookies, and chestnut-filled pastries.

