Acorn Flour Tagliatelle

Ingredients:

200g acorn chestnut flour
100g durum wheat flour
3 eggs
generous pinch of salt
generous pinch of black pepper

Method:

To make acorn flour: During the autumn collect ripe acorns. Place on a baking tray and dry roast them in an oven on it's lowest setting for at least 5 hours. When the acorns are done crack and shell them. Place them in water in a large bucket and allow to soak for at least a week. Change the water at least twice a day. This process leaches away the tannin which is what makes acorns bitter (tannin in large quantities is toxic so you need to complete this process carefully).

When you think you have soaked the acorns long enough bite into an acorn. If it still tastes bitter then soak for longer. If you can only detect a trace of bitterness, or no bitterness then the acorns are ready. Grind the acorns whilst still wet either in a coffee grinder or a blender. Place the resultant meal in pans or on baking trays and place to dry either in the sun or in an oven on its lowest setting. When dry you can store the flour in sealed jars.

Sift the flours onto a pastry board and add the salt and black pepper. Form a well in the centre and break the eggs into this. Knead the dough quickly with your hands to form a smooth ball. Cover with a cloth and set aside to rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.

At the end of this time divide the ball into three equal pieces and pass through the rollers of a lightly-floured pasts machine (number 3 setting) until you have obtained a smooth and elastic sheet. Now pass this sheet through the cutting blades to obtain tagliatelle that are not too wide. Spread these out onto a cloth and allow to dry at room temperature for 15 minutes.

To cook add the tagliatelle to a bowl of well-salted, boiling water and cook for about 2 minutes, or until just al dente.