Pasta with Walnut Sauce ~ Food For Thought

A Thousand Days in Venice

Welcome! This week I'm joining "food for thought ~ edible books"

Food for Thought

"In which we offer up a recipe in which somehow relates to a book we've read."

Please click logo above to learn more.

I chose A Thousand Days in Venice by Marlena di Blasi

The author relates in voluptuous detail about her time in Venice ~ the sights, sounds, tastes and history of the city known as The Queen of the Adriatic in almost travelogue form.

Image by: 1001 Masquerade Masks (1001masquerademasks.com)

A food consultant, journalist and restaurant critic Ms. de Blasi conveys the story of her romance with a certain Italian banker who fell in love with her at first sight.

She eventually moves from St Louis, Missouri to marry him and settle in Italy.

While the story of their romance, marriage and periods of adjustment may be interesting... I was most captivated by her deep knowledge of the history, and her vivid descriptions of life in Venice.

I hardly had to look far for a recipe to tie-in with the book as the author shares a few at the end of the book.

This one is utterly delicious, rich & creamy elegant sauce with a very slight hint of sweet citrus in the background.

I've made it twice, once with homemade pasta (spaghetti a la guitarra/Chitarra) ~ "from the guitar", and the other time with store bought, dried Italian fettuccine. I think the fettuccine stood up to the stout sauce a little better than the finer homemade pasta.

Besides the pasta (homemade, or not) here are the ingredients needed for this lovely sauce:

Lightly toasted walnuts, olive oil, cream, water, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, pepper and

a bit of slightly sweet wine. Fresh parsley, and finely grated orange zest. (My addition.)

I chose a local, Late Harvest Voignier. You can click the logo to learn more.

Marlena notes: " As divine as this sauce is, tossed with just-cooked pasta, it presents other delicious opportunities: Keep some in the refrigerator and place a spoonful over just-roasted chicken or pork; spread it on grilled bread and pass it along with cold white wine for an appetizer; enrich simple vegetable soups with a dollop, or try it as a condiment for steamed asparagus."

If you would like a printable copy of the recipe, you'll find it on my recipe blog... click HERE.

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I receive many emails about some of the objects that I feature in my photos; whenever possible I will provide links to information about the items, please click the link(s) to learn more:

Copper Pepper Mill

Glass Cruet (similar, but not identical)

Fleur De Sel De Camargue French Sea Salt

Pillivuyt Round Eared dish (holding walnuts)

Round White Marble Cheese and Pastry Board

And the pasta maker ~

Of course you don't HAVE to make your own pasta for this recipe, and you don't need a pasta roller to make homemade pasta, but it is satisfying and rewarding to make your own ~ there is nothing the flavor and texture of homemade.


I use a pasta rolling machine similar to this one (this is a lighter weight version than my Italian one):

Pinzon Pasta Maker




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This is more similar to the one I use, it is a few dollars more than the lightweight version, but it receives much better reviews:





CucinaPro 150 Imperia Pasta Machine






Thank you for stopping by today!