Macaroni pasta with ground walnuts and cardamom

We are never running out of breakfast ideas over here. I’ve made these creamy sweet macaroni pasta version, a recipe that uses milk, macaroni pasta, ground walnut and cardamom for a subtle flavour.

I have made this a few years back and my kids were not fond of. They were fairly small and cardamom with young children I suppose can be a little tricky.

I had to make it again to see how this will go with them this time. Guess what? They asked me why did I not make this before for them. I did explain that I did but they didn't like it and their reply was they're happy I did give it another try.

They had a double breakfast that morning when I made this. I came downstairs a little later and they've already had their self made breakfast?. I was starving and I really fancied this just to remind me of my breakfasts as a kid.

Those two teenagers are growing at quite a pace lately thus not only that they didn’t mind a second breakfast (more of a brunch really) but they loved it and asked to be made the next day again. Hubby love it too.

So, in the end this macaroni pasta with ground walnuts was a real hit.

Where does this recipe come from?

I have not researched the recipe to see if it has been made before but this originates from my family. I ate these macaroni pasta with ground walnuts or 'macaroane cu nucă' quite often. It was pretty much the only pasta I remember eating as a kid.

Savoury pasta dishes were not something I grew up with. In fact, if I remember well, macaroni pasta (only the long ones) was the only type of pasta I recall seeing in the shops. Not quite sure why, maybe pasta wasn't the thing people would buy, maybe the tough regime. It could also be that my family wasn't fund of pasta in general and only bought this type. It could well be a cocktail of all these, I really cannot say.

I vividly remember my dad making macaroni with cheese ' macaroane cu branza' (mainly as a savoury version) and the ground walnut as the sweet version. These were his speciality which he would make for us and we would eat the whole thing at once. Trust me, it wasn't a little amount. He still enjoys these (a lot more than he should) and so does my twin brother and his family and so do we!

It’s a nice, really nice alternative for a breakfast or a brunch! It’s healthier too since it contains walnuts, right?

why are Walnuts so good for us

I feel obliged to write a little about the amazing and the fairly understated walnuts and their proven benefits.

• walnuts are high in antioxidants and therefore reduce risks of certain cancers and slower the ageing ;
• they seem to improve gut's health by increasing the good bacteria production;
• walnuts have anti-inflammatory qualities since they are a great source of magnesium and good fats like ALA (alpha-linolenic-acid) and Omega-3 which means less chances of getting a chronic disease especially heart related.
• support weight control which I find fascinating since they are quite dense calories wise, but the way I understand it it's that they have a lower GI meaning the nutrients contained are absorbed at a slower rate keeping us full for longer.
• walnuts also lower blood pressure, improve fertility in men, manage and lower the risks of Type 2 diabetes, they support a good brain function.
• It is enough to have one serving every other day to get great benefits from this wonderful super food.

Variations

My add on this dish and the difference it’s the cardamom. I do love my flavours, so I add all sorts.

• rum essence which I greatly love as flavour, it goes very well with walnuts, it is a lovely combo- the perfect marriage. I believe it is because I love cozonac (walnut brioche or also known as bapka). Beautiful and super tasty ?. I will put my recipe up soon as my grandma's recipe and tips always makes it a superb recipe.
• replace the dairy milk with coconut milk for a completely vegan version
• add a handful of desiccated coconut instead of sugar to keep it low sugar and get the natural sweetness from the coconut;
• adding fresh thyme for a very special flavour
• add lemon and lemon rind/zest for a nice christmassy flavour
• cinnamon is also a superb addition
• add healthy mixes like flax seeds, goji berries, sesame and other seeds (sunflower or pumpkin)

The combinations are numerous, make it your own, get creative and add other healthy and not so healthy ingredients. And if you like walnuts, you may also like these apple and walnut pizza, these superb blue cheese and walnut boats all great for sharing with family and friends.

Here is a glimpse of these macaroni pasta - cooking in progress

For now, let's get this version served fairly quick as I am already pretty hungry and I am sure you are too!

Macaroni pasta with ground walnuts and cardamom

This delicious sweet macaroni pasta dish contains milk, ground walnuts, cardamon for a very nice and distinct flavour.

5 from 22 votes

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Course: Breakfast, Brunch, Dessert, Tea Time

Cuisine: Ramona's Cuisine

Keyword: breakfast, brunch, ground walnuts, macaroni pasta, pasta dishes, pasta for kids

Prep Time: 2 minutes

Cook Time: 23 minutes

Total Time: 25 minutes

Servings: 3 portions

Calories: 767kcal

Author: Ramona Sebastian

Cost: £3.50

Cook Mode

Equipment

• heavy bottomed pot
• wooden spoon

Ingredients

• 800 ml milk almond or cow’s milk
• 250 g macaroni pasta
• 2-3 tbsp cane sugar
• 120 g ground walnut
• 1 cardamom pod
• 1 pinch salt
• 1 tbsp rosemary flowers to decorate (optional)

Metric - US Imperial

Instructions

• Add the milk to a larger pot (ideally a bottom heavy one) salt, sugar, the slightly crushed cardamon pod and the dry macaroni pasta.
• Cook the pasta in the milk over medium/low heat for about 20-25 min stirring occasionally.
• While you keep an eye on the milk and pasta giving it a stir every 30-40 seconds, take out the food processor and give the walnuts kernels a few pulses until it gets to a couscous consistency.
• When the pasta is ready (don’t overcook) take off the heat and set aside for a minute or two. Just allow it to cool a little.
• Mix in the ground walnut and plate the pasta. Serve and enjoy. Although I love to have it hot, this is perfectly okay to have it cold too.

Notes

If you’re not a cardamom lover, replace this by vanilla or rum essence. Vanilla pod and seeds would work beautifully here.

Ground walnuts - I generally ground these in advance a little more and store in a jar. It stores well outside for a good 4-6 weeks. Make sure they are good quality walnuts and do not taste stale. 

Another tip that I have for you with the ground walnuts its to buy whole walnuts and break them yourself. The ready shelled walnuts in the shops are normally bruised and most likely will taste stale. It might be luck but in my experience there was not once that I bought ready shelled walnuts that did not taste bad, so for me it's hand shelled option without a fail.

Nutrition

Calories: 767kcal | Carbohydrates: 89g | Protein: 25g | Fat: 36g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Cholesterol: 27mg | Sodium: 134mg | Potassium: 714mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 25g | Vitamin A: 451IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 358mg | Iron: 2mg

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