Creamy mushroom egg yolk pasta

Method

1. Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil. Put the porcini in a small bowl and cover with 50ml just-boiled water from the kettle. Set aside to soak for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, heat a large dry frying pan over a high heat. Add the mushrooms in a single layer (you’ll probably need to do this in 2 batches), cook for a few minutes, then turn over and cook for another few minutes. They’ll turn golden and expel some water which should cook off. Tip onto a plate.
2. While the mushrooms cook, add the pasta to the boiling water and cook for 1-2 minutes less than the packet instructions.
3. Once cooked, return all the mushrooms to the pan, reduce the heat to medium and stir in the butter and garlic. Cook for a minute, stirring to coat, then tip in the porcini mushrooms and their soaking liquid. Stir in the crème fraîche.
4. Drain the pasta, reserving a cupful of pasta water, then tip the pappardelle into the mushroom pan. Stir together quickly to combine and coat the pasta, adding splashes of the cooking water as needed. Season to taste with salt and pepper, then divide between 2 plates. Top each with an egg yolk and scatter with chives. Serve straight away, stirring the yolk into the sauce to make it luxuriously silky.