Ligurian walnut sauce (Salsa di noci)

1. Put the walnuts in boiling water for 1 minute, drain and rub off as much of the thin, bitter skin as you can (this is optional, but makes the sauce silkier and sweeter).

2. Cut the crust off the slice of bread, soak the crumb in the milk, then squeeze it out lightly.

3. Put the walnuts, bread, garlic, grated parmesan, marjoram and a pinch of salt in a food processor and blend until creamy.

4. With the motor running, trickle in the extra virgin olive oil, then the cream, until you have a smooth, thick sauce; if it's too thick, loosen it with the leftover soaking milk.

5. Season with salt and leave to stand for at least 15 minutes.

6. Use it on pasta (pansoti, trofie), loosened with a spoonful of the cooking water, without heating it.

Tip: In Liguria it's the sauce for the traditional filled pasta, pansoti; you can use ricotta instead of cream, and it keeps for 2 days in the fridge - go easy on the garlic, as it can easily overpower the walnuts.