PICI ALLE BRICIOLE (Hand made pasta with breadcrumbs sauce)

Entree - lactose free - hand made pasta

Pici are a typical Tuscan peasant dish.

For pici:
1 1/4 cup Italian 00 flour (150 gr.)
1 cup Italian durum semolina (150 gr.)
2/3 cup lukewarm water (150 ml.)

For sauce:
2/3 coarse breadcrumbs
4 sage leaves
1 garlic clove
1 tbsp rosemary leaves
4 tbsp Italian Extra virgin olive oil
salt


First of all, prepare the dough. In a bowl mix together the 2 flours and then add water. The quantity of water depends on the flour you're using and on the
humidity around you. Add almost all the water and see it it's enough, if not add the remining water and more, if needed. Knead until you obtain a smooth
dough, wrap it in plastic and let it rest for 30 minutes at least.

In the meantime, prepare the sauce: chop garlic, sage and rosemary together, warm the olive oil in a non-stick skillet and sautee the mix for 1 or 2 minutes,
then add the breadcrumbs. Sautee until golden, season with salt and set aside.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil.

Now you can start preparing your pici. Unwrap the dough and cut a small section from it; cover the remaining dough otherwise it will dry too much.

Flatten the section a little, cut in strips and start rolling and stretching them until you reach your desired thickness, then lay pici on a floured
surface or on a foured tablecloth.

IMPORTANT: when rolling pici your working surface must be free of flour otherwise they won't roll!

When all your pici are ready, add salt to a large amount of rapidly boiling water.

Cook until al dente (5-8 minutes, depending on the thickness) and transfer them to the skillet with the sauce.

Since the moisture of the pici will make your breadcrumbs soggy, sautee on high until they get crunchy again, you'll most likely need some more olive oil.

Serve immediately.

This recipe serves 2-3

- You can add Italian dried porcini to this sauce, if you'd like
- You can also add a pich of hot pepper flakes, to give an extra kick
- The other traditional ways to serve pici are: all'aglione (tomato sauce with A LOT of garlic) or with duck sauce. You can serve them with regular meat
sauce or sausage, too.
- If you like, you can sprinkle with a little bit of grated parmigiano on top.