STUFFED FRESH PASTA

Pasta in its innumerable forms and uses is inextricably woven into the fabric of Italian life. This food product has played a vital role in the country’s diet at least since around 1299 when Marco Polo was apparently released from wartime captivity in Genoa and the story of his travels, written with the collaboration of Rustichello of Pisa, began to circulate.

In the extant texts, Polo says he saw the Chinese eating vermicelli. He does not explain what vermicelli is, apparently assuming his readers would know what he meant. He does not say he brought any pasta back with him from the East and he gives no recipes for the making of pasta or information on how it should be cooked and served.

Some experts argue that the Arabs introduced pasta in southern Sicily around the beginning of the second millennium. Others say the Etruscans were making and consuming some types of pasta more than a thousand years earlier. No doubt pasta was “invented” numerous times in many places but the Italians have done more than most peoples to develop and exploit it. If you have any doubt, try any of this recipes:

CANNELLONI RIPIENI DI VITELLO
Ingredients:
12 cannelloni
1 lb. veal chuck
2 lbs. spinach
1/4 lb. ham
2 eggs
2 tbs. butter
2 tbs. flour
1/2 cup milk
salt and white pepper to taste
1 pinch nutmeg
4 tbs. grated Parmigiano
1 cup meat ragù

Preparation:
Grease lightly the cannelloni with olive oil so that they do not stick together and they will be easier to work with.

To prepare the stuffing, roast the veal and cook the spinach, squeezing out excess water.

Chop and mix the veal and ham with spinach, eggs, salt, pepper, pinch of nutmeg and 2 tbs. Parmigiano. Use a food processor to obtain a smooth stuffing.

Prepare a béchamel by combining butter with flour, then adding the milk slowly, a pinch of salt, pepper and nutmeg.
Roll the stuffing in the cannelloni and arrange into a buttered baking dish. First pour the béchamel over cannelloni, and then the beef ragù. Finally, sprinkle with grated Parmigiano, dot with butter and bake at 375°F for 20 mins.

CRESPELLE CON RIPIENO DI POLLO
Ingredients:
12 crespelle
6 tbs. butter
6 oz. boneless chicken meat
salt and pepper to taste
2 oz. Mozzarella
1 cup tomato sauce
1 tbs. parsley, chopped
2 tbs. grated Parmigiano

Preparation:
To prepare crespelle use an 8-in. round iron pan. Heat the pan to the degree that would make a drop of water sizzle, then pour in 3 tbs. of the mixture, rotate the pan so that the mix spreads to evenly to cover the whole bottom. The crépe will form very quickly.

Prepare the stuffing by chopping the white meat (use a food mill) with chopped mozzarella, parsley, 2 tbs. butter, and salt and pepper. Work to a smooth stuffing. Spread the stuffing evenly on the crespelle and roll them like cannelloni.
Arrange them in a buttered baking dish; spread the tomato sauce over the top, sprinkle with Parmigiano and dot with butter. Bake for 12 mins, remove from oven and serve.

RIPIENO D'ANATRA
Ingredients:
1 lb. duck breast, unskinned
1 oz. spinach, chopped
4 slices stale bread
1 cup milk
1 oz. mushrooms, chopped
1 tbs. oil
2 scallions, chopped
2 oz. bone marrow
1 small bunch parsley, chopped
1 oz. heavy cream
salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:
Chop the duck breast into small pieces. Cook the spinach in a pot without water, over a low heat, until the liquid has evaporated. Remove from pot, cool and chop very finely.

Trim crusts and dip the white of the bread in the milk, squeeze out the excess liquid and mix with the spinach.

Sauté the mushrooms, scallions and duck breast mixture for a few minutes, stirring well. Next, chop the whole very finely and add to the spinach, and bread mixture. Add bone marrow, parsley and cream. Add salt and pepper to taste and mix well.

This stuffing is suitable for ravioli and tortelloni. Sauces may vary from melted butter, sage and Parmigiano to a reduction of duck sauce.

RIPIENO DI CARNE
Ingredients:
2 tbs. butter
1/4 lb. lean ground veal
1/4 lb. pork ground loin or fillet
1/4 lb. lean ground beef
1 cup red wine, strong and dry
1 clove garlic
1 bay leaf
1/8 lb. prosciutto
1/8 lb. mortadella
2 cups fresh breadcrumbs
6 tbs. Parmigiano
1 egg
salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:
Brown the butter in a large casserole with a heavy bottom with the finely chopped fat part of prosciutto. Add the meat, let brown, and then add wine, the clove of garlic, the bay leaf, and a little salt. Cover and cook on a very low heat for about 3 hours (it should not boil). Stir occasionally while cooking. If necessary, add spoonfuls of boiling broth or water. The sauce should be quite concentrated and the meat well cooked.

Drain the mixture and grind it in a food mill along with mortadella and the lean part of prosciutto. Strain the leftover liquid and use to moisten the breadcrumbs. Without squeezing them, add to the meat mixture. Add egg, Parmigiano, a pinch of freshly ground pepper and salt according to taste and mix well (the best way is by hand). The stuffing is now ready.

The stuffing will be more flavorful and easier to handle if allowed to stand in a cool place, covered, for a few hours. This stuffing suits all fresh stuffed pasta, particularly for the small-size types. Pasta with this filling may be served in broth, with tomato or beef ragù, or with just butter and Parmigiano.

RIPIENO DI FEGATINI DI POLLO
Ingredients:
4 oz. spinach
2 oz. butter
4 oz. chicken livers
1/2 oz. black truffles, chopped
1 scallion, chopped
1 egg
nutmeg
salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:
Wash spinach thoroughly, put it in a pot without water and cook until the liquid has evaporated.

Cut chicken livers into very small pieces and sauté in 1 tbs. of butter with truffles and scallions for about a minute. After it has cooled, pass through a food mill with the spinach, and then add the egg, the rest of the butter, nutmeg, salt and pepper to taste. Mix well.

The stuffing is now ready, and suitable for ravioli, tortelli, and tortelloni.
The accompanying sauce can vary from butter and sage to a very light tomato sauce. Remember: the sauce must always enhance the taste of the stuffing, not overpower it.

Note: Spinach may also be cooked in water, as long as it is well strained. This method allows greens to maintain their natural bright color. Spinach cooked without water will color the stuffing grayish-green.

ROTOLO DI PASTA RIPIENO
Ingredients:
2 6x12-in. sheets dough
1/2 lb. lean veal, diced
1/2 lb. chicken livers, diced
4 tbs. butter
1/4 lb. fresh sausage, crumbled
2oz. fresh mushrooms
2 lbs. spinach
4 eggs
4 tbs. grated Parmigiano
2 cups tomato sauce
salt to taste

Preparation:
Sauté in a saucepan 4 tbs. butter with the veal, chicken livers, mushrooms and sausages. Add a few tbs. of broth if the mixture is too dry. Cook for about 30 mins. Remove from heat and set aside.

Wash and clean the spinach, squeeze out excess water, chop and sauté with 2 tbs. butter for 5 mins. and set aside.

Combine meat and spinach mixtures together with 4 eggs, and salt and pepper. Grind finely using a food mill to make the stuffing smooth.

Take one sheet of dough and spread the stuffing, leaving an unfilled 1/2-in. border. Take the other sheet, place it on top and roll. Wrap with cheesecloth and cook floating in boiling, salted water.

For this, use an oval pot or a pot that resembles a fish poacher, so that the ends of the cheesecloth can be tied to the handles of the pot. This way, the pasta roll will be floating and not sitting in the boiling water. Cooking time can be as long as 2 hours.

When cooked, take the roll out of the water, discard the cheesecloth, cut into 1/2-in. thick slices. Arrange them in a buttered baking dish, pour tomato sauce over, sprinkle with 2 tbs. Parmigiano, dot with butter and bake for 12 mins. at 375°F.

RIPIENO PER TORTELLINI
Ingredients:
4 oz. loin of pork
5 oz. grated Parmigiano
2 oz. turkey breast
2 eggs
2 tbs. butter
nutmeg
1/4 lb. mortadella
1/4b. prosciutto
salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:
Thinly slice the pork loin and the turkey breast in thin slices. Melt the butter in a large saucepan, add all the meat and let brown over a very low heat for about 10 mins, stirring thoroughly. Grind the meat finely with the prosciutto and the mortadella. Put the mixture in a bowl, add the Parmigiano, eggs, a pinch of nutmeg, salt and pepper to taste. Let cool and keep well covered in a cool place for a few hours before using.

The most suitable sauce for tortellini is beef ragù bolognese.

Buon appetito!

 

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