Umbrian Christmas macaroni with walnuts

(Maccheroni dolci con le noci)

Serves 6

This dish, traditionally served on Christmas Eve, is quite bizarre for anyone outside of Umbria. As a variation on the recipe, I like to serve the dish a little warmer, with the addition of vanilla bean gelato. Either way, it’s a fantastic dish, particularly for nut lovers.

100 g (3½ oz) day-old bread, pulsed in a food processor to thick breadcrumbs

100 g (3½ oz) unsalted butter

375 g (13 oz/3¼ cups) roasted walnuts, semi-crushed

75 g (2½ oz/¹/₃ cup) brown sugar

25 g (1 oz) icing (confectioners’) sugar, sifted

25 g (1 oz) premium quality cocoa powder, sifted

150 g (5½ oz) good-quality dried short maccheroni pasta

1 tablespoon walnut oil

1 tablespoon honey

Fry the breadcrumbs in the butter in a frying pan until golden. Strain the butter from the breadcrumbs after frying. Combine the breadcrumbs with the walnuts, brown sugar, icing sugar and cocoa powder. Set aside.

Cook the pasta in abundant salted boiling water until al dente. Before straining, pour some cold water on the pasta to cool it down a little. Add the walnut oil and honey and mix through the pasta. Stir through the prepared breadcrumb mixture. Serve at room temperature.