Paccheri are short, wide tubes from southern Italy, typically Campania. In order to form each paccheri, I rolled out a piece of dough and cut it into 3- by 2-inch rectangles. Then each piece was rolled over a grooved gnocchi/garganelli board with a 3/4-inch dowel and sealed to form each tube. A bit tedious, but the end […]
It’s pumpkin/winter squash season, so I went with a simple filling of roasted butternut squash, shallot, ricotta, Parmesan, and nutmeg. I made the ravioli extra plump, but you can of course make them as big or small as you like. I piped the filling with a piping bag, which makes the process much easier. If
Butternut Squash Ravioli Read More »
I’ve seen this shape referred to as tortelletti, so will go with that until I learn otherwise. Theses stuffed pastas are traditionally from the Lombardy, Emilia-Romagna and Tuscany regions of Italy. To form them, you cut the dough into 2 1/2 – 2 3/4-inch squares, pipe a teaspoon-sized filling in the middle of each square, fold
Burrata-Ricotta Filled Tortelletti Read More »
Braised polipetti (baby octopus) is one of my hands down, all-time favorite dishes. As the octopi stew, they release much of their water content, which melds with the tomatoes and red wine to yield a slightly briny, rich and thick sauce that is nothing short of lick-the-bowl-clean delicious. Octopus can be tricky to prepare. Cook it too
Braised Polipetti (baby octopus) with Squid Ink Spaghetti alla Chitarra Read More »
Someone asked me the other day what my favorite pasta is? I didn’t have an answer?? Many pasta shapes floated through my mind. But, to choose, just one, impossible (or better yet, impastable). I’m someone who enjoys variety and that’s the great thing about pasta, there are endless shapes, sizes, fillings, sauces, etc. One for
Pappardelle with Mixed Mushroom Ragú Read More »
This particular shape is called scarpinocc. It originated from the Lombardy region of northern Italy. Its name stems from the word scarpa, which means shoe, as this rather odd looking-shaped pasta resembles an old-fashioned wooden shoe. These scarpinocc are filled with Taleggio, a washed rind cow’s milk cheese that’s big on personality (read: creamy, smooth, salty, strong, complex,
Agnolotti (agnolotto singular) del plin are an iconic pasta from Piemonte in Northern Italy. Plin translates to pinch in the regional Piemonte dialect (pizzico in standard Italian) and refers to the way these pasta parcels are ‘pinched’ in order to give them their characteristic shape. Meat filled agnolotti are typical – anything from beef, veal, lamb, rabbit, pork, and/or chicken, often a
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When I first started making pasta, the primary question on my mind was…what is the perfect ratio of flour to eggs to yolks? Each recipe I came across had a slightly different ratio of whole eggs/yolks. Hmm… What I’ve come to learn is that there is no singular “perfect” pasta dough recipe. Probably not the answer you were looking for —
This particular pasta shape is called cappelletti, which fittingly means “little hats” in Italian. They’re from Emilia-Romagna, in particular Reggio Emilia, but also found in Lazio, the Marche and Umbria Cappelletti are often filled with meat and bathed in chicken or capon (aka rooster) broth or alternatively, filled with soft cheese, typically ricotta, cacio raviggiolo,
I’m working my way through the Encyclopedia of Pasta by Oretta Zanini de Vita. Only 350+ pasta shapes to go (lol). Today is all about garganelli; a tubular pasta from Emilia-Romagna. Its name derives from the dialect word garganel, meaning ‘chicken’s gullet,’ which the ridged garganelli apparently resemble. It’s a fairly easy shape to make. Mix the