Recipe Detail Page

1 Fill a medium bowl with ice water and set aside. Bring a small pot of water to a boil. Add peas and cook for 2 minutes or until bright green and tender-crisp. Drain and transfer peas to an ice water bath to stop cooking. Once cool, drain again and reserve.

2 Heat a medium saucepan over high heat. Add peppercorns. Toast, swirling the pan occasionally until the peppercorns begin to wiggle and pop, about 1 minute. Remove from heat. Let cool. Crush the peppercorns to a coarse texture using a mortar and pestle or the back of a knife. Reserve.

3 Add grated cheeses to a large, wide bowl. Stir in ¾ cup (175 mL) room-temperature water. Using a spatula, stir the cheese and water together, lightly pressing down with the back of the spatula to form a paste. Set aside.

4 Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook according to package directions or until al dente. Halfway through the cooking time, scoop out ½ cup (125 mL) cooking water and set it aside to cool.

5 Drain pasta and add to bowl with cheese. Stir continuously. As you stir, the cheese paste will turn creamy and coat the pasta. Add ¼ cup (60 mL) of reserved cooking water and stir. Add more cooking water by the tablespoon as needed to make it creamier. Stir in butter and three-quarters of the pepper. Flake in smoked trout and add peas. Turn to mix, then divide between plates and top with more grated cheese and reserved pepper.

TIP: To create a CREAMY SAUCE, let the pasta water cool before adding it to the pasta. If it’s too hot, the cheese will seize and be lumpy.