Creamy Tagliatelle with White Asparagus

Finely chop the fresh herbs and grate the Parmigiano Reggiano in the meantime. Take the asparagus out of the pot or saucepan when finished and set aside. Reserve 100ml per person of the cooking liquid and set aside, then add a pinch of salt to the cooking liquid remaining in the pot and bring it back up to a boil for the tagliatelle.

Melt the butter in a deep frying pan over medium-high heat (see Tip). Whisk in the flour, then add a third of the reserved cooking liquid and whisk to combine. 

Tip: this technique is known as making a roux. For this, it's important that the quantities are precise; 1 tbsp butter is 15g and 1 tbsp flour is 20g.

Repeat twice more with the rest of the cooking liquid so as to make a smooth sauce. Bring to the boil and allow to reduce for 1 - 2 minutes. Turn off the heat, then stir in the cream cheese, the asparagus and half of the Parmigiano Reggiano. Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed.

In the meantime, boil the tagliatelle for 4 - 6 minutes. Reserve some of the pasta water, then drain and transfer the pasta to the sauce. Mix well to combine, adding some of the pasta water as necessary if the sauce is too thick. Meanwhile, heat a clean frying pan over medium-high heat and fry the bacon lardons for 3 - 4 minutes, or until done.