Tortelli d'Erbetta

Servings: 4
A classic ravioli from the Parma region of Italy

Ingredients:

1 cup, fresh ricotta

• 1 cup, parmigiano reggiano – grated
• 1/2 cup, spinach – boiled, cooled, squeezed very dry, and very finely chopped
• 1 egg yolk
• salt – to taste
• fresh pasta
• butter – melted
• parmigiano reggiano – grated for topping

Directions:

Filling: 

Combine ricotta, parmigiano reggiano, spinach, egg, and a good pinch of salt in a bowl. Mix very thoroughly with your hands. Adjust quantities to get a very balanced flavor profile – no one ingredient should be dominant.

Tortellini: 

Roll out pasta into thin sheets, but not so thin as to be able to see through.

Place generous tablespoon of filling about two fingers apart along the midline of the sheets.

Fold over the pasta to enclose the filling, and pinch the two sheets together.

Using a wheel cutter or knife, cut out each tortellini to the dimension of three fingers wide by two fingers tall.

Cook the tortellini in boiling salted water for about three to minutes, or until al dente.

Remove the tortellini from the water, drain briefly, and turn into the serving platter in a single layer.

Cover with a healthy topping of parmigiano reggiano, and drizzle with just enough melted butter to wet the parmigiano.

Courtesy of Chef John Fernandez