Tagliatelle with Asparagus and Parma Ham

INSTRUCTIONS

• 1
  Cook the pasta in salted boiling water until soft. Before draining, reserve a cup of the water to use for finishing the dish.
• 2
  Peel the white asparagus and cut off the woody end. Do not peel the green asparagus, just cut off the leaves from the stalks. Tie the white and green asparagus separately in portions with kitchen string. Bring water to a boil in a narrower, taller pot. Stand the asparagus in the pot: cook the green for 5 minutes, the white for 8 minutes. Then drain and rinse with ice-cold water.
• 3
  Heat butter with olive oil in a pan. Cut the cooked asparagus into thirds and add to the pan, lightly sauté. Then add the tagliatelle and a little of the reserved water to the pan and stir for a while.
• 4
  Finally, stir in the grated Parmesan. Divide onto plates, add slices of Parma ham, and season with pepper.