I was excited about making this Tortellini with Walnut and Mascarpone Sauce. It seemed like it would be an easy dish to prepare, but yield a "fancier" flavor than your average run-of-the-mill pasta dish.
It ended up being a disaster on top of a mistake on top of a comedy of errors.
Things started poorly, because our trusty Walmart, where I do most of my grocery shopping, does not carry mascarpone. I knew it was a long-shot from the beginning, but I also knew substitution was possible so that's what I tried. I think it matters, and so the recipe was a bit doomed from the beginning.
Second, there is an error in the recipe on the blog. In two places it states the quantity of walnuts to be used as three ounces. I, however, only noticed the spot where it says seven ounces. That's more than twice the actually amount it needs, and my pasta turned out to be one nutty recipe. Not in a good way.
I ended up thinning the sauce with some cream and the pasta water, but it was just too thick. The flavor was okay, but seriously, a basic Alfredo is simpler and tastes just as good. I would also recommend using a spinach tortellini instead of plain cheese. As my hubby mentioned, the cheese tortellini gets lost in the richness of the sauce.
The final problem was all the pots, pans, tools, and dishes I used to make this recipe. Too many dishes! Especially for a week night that's already busy.
This won't be a keeper for our house. When the consensus is "it's okay to lose the recipe", it's okay to lose it.
It ended up being a disaster on top of a mistake on top of a comedy of errors.
Things started poorly, because our trusty Walmart, where I do most of my grocery shopping, does not carry mascarpone. I knew it was a long-shot from the beginning, but I also knew substitution was possible so that's what I tried. I think it matters, and so the recipe was a bit doomed from the beginning.
Second, there is an error in the recipe on the blog. In two places it states the quantity of walnuts to be used as three ounces. I, however, only noticed the spot where it says seven ounces. That's more than twice the actually amount it needs, and my pasta turned out to be one nutty recipe. Not in a good way.
I ended up thinning the sauce with some cream and the pasta water, but it was just too thick. The flavor was okay, but seriously, a basic Alfredo is simpler and tastes just as good. I would also recommend using a spinach tortellini instead of plain cheese. As my hubby mentioned, the cheese tortellini gets lost in the richness of the sauce.
The final problem was all the pots, pans, tools, and dishes I used to make this recipe. Too many dishes! Especially for a week night that's already busy.
This won't be a keeper for our house. When the consensus is "it's okay to lose the recipe", it's okay to lose it.
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