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1
Prepare fresh pasta if using.
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2
Soak dried morels in 1 cup warm water 20 minutes.
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3
Agitate morels to dislodge grit, then remove from water, squeezing liquid from mushrooms back into bowl.
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4
Reserve liquid.
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5
When grit has settled, carefully pour mushroom liquid into a small bowl, leaving sediment behind (if necessary, strain liquid through a dampened coffee filter or cheesecloth).
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6
Remove any tough stems from morels.
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7
Trim and discard tough ends from asparagus.
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8
Cut off top 2 inches of tips and halve tips lengthwise.
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9
Cut remaining asparagus into long diagonal slices about 1/4 inch thick.
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10
Simmer wine, lemon juice, and shallots in a large heavy skillet until liquid is reduced to about 2 tablespoons.
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11
Add cream and simmer 1 minute.
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12
Add morels, mushroom soaking liquid, and broth, then simmer 5 minutes.
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13
Add butter all at once and cook sauce over moderately low heat, whisking constantly, just until creamy and butter is incorporated.
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14
(Do not let sauce get so hot that butter separates and sauce loses creamy consistency.)
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15
Remove skillet from heat and season sauce with salt and pepper.
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16
Keep warm, covered.
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17
If using fresh taglierini, shake off excess flour.
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18
Cook fresh taglierini with asparagus in a 6-quart pot of boiling salted water until pasta is al dente, about 1 minute.
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19
(For dried pasta, follow package instructions and add asparagus during last minute of cooking.)
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20
Reserve 1/2 cup cooking water and drain pasta and asparagus in a colander.
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21
Toss pasta and asparagus in a large bowl with cup sauce (without morels), one third of nasturtiums, and enough reserved pasta water to keep moist.
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22
Stir remaining nasturtiums into sauce.
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23
To serve, wind each portion of taglierini around a carving fork and transfer to center of a soup plate.
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24
Surround with asparagus, morels, and sauce.
