CAPPELLETTI is a traditional dish typical of Romagna.
This particular kind of egg pasta gets cut into squares and filled with cheese. Once, the preferable cheese was Formaggio di Fossa, while today the most used ones are Parmigiano Reggiano or Grana Padano and, if desired, some Squacquerone.
They are folded as little hats and are similar to Tortellini, but bigger.
In Romagna, Cappelletti are cooked as a typical Christmas dish, but they are eaten all year round with capon broth, meat or fish sauces.
Even though Pellegrino Artusi‘s recipe published in his “La scienza in cucina e l’arte di mangiar bene” (Science in the kitchen and the art of eating well), states that traditional Cappelletti in Romagna are filled with ricotta, capon chest or pork loin and cooked in capon broth, the most ancient tradition in the area of Forlì is to fill them with a meat-free filling.
CAPPELLETTI RECIPE
Recipe by chef Simona di Marco
INGREDIENTS FOR 4 PEOPLE
PASTA:
- 4 eggs;
- 300 grams of flour;
- 100 grams of semolina flour.
FILLING:
- 300 grams of Parmesan and Squacquerone (or another soft cheese);
- nutmeg;
- salt;
- pepper;
- 2 eggs.
DIRECTIONS
Pour the flour in a large bowl and add the slightly-beaten eggs. Mix flour and eggs well by pushing with your fingertips.
Once you get a smooth and uniform dough ball, leave it to rest at room temperature for 30 minutes. In the meantime you can prepare the filling. Mix cheese, a bit of nutmeg, pepper and one egg.
After half an hour take your dough and feed it through the pasta machine or roll it with a rolling pin on a slightly floured surface. Cut out squares on which to place the filling.
In order to get the real shape of Cappelletti, fold the square into a triangle and seal it on the sides to hold the filling. Draw the bottom two corners together to form a ring and pull the sides (as a hat brim).
The size and thickness of the Cappelletti depends on your taste, but do not exaggerate with the filling, because otherwise they will break.
If you want to eat your Cappelletti with a sauce, cook them in salted water and drain them as soon as they get to the surface. Then season them with your sauce.
If you want to eat them in broth, you must cook them directly in it and serve them hot as soon as they get to the surface.
A proper Cappelletti portion is made up of 18/20 pieces. Maybe some more, but never some less!
