Claudia’s Tortelli d’Erbetta

Method

"Parma is where every food lover should go if they are visiting Italy. It’s the center for prosciutto di Parma and Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, and balsamic vinegar is made just down the road in Modena. And its inhabitants, naturally enough, expect very high standards of its food. Pastifici (pasta shops) can be found in every neighborhood and Claudia Gazza, in her retirement, helps her daughter Carlotta run one. Tortelli d’erbetta are a speciality of Parma, and it’s one of Claudia’s favorites to make. She likes to use ricotta made from whole milk to make the filling richer. The greens can vary (in the countryside cooks may forage for nettles, for example) but Claudia prefers Swiss chard for year round reliability." — James Beard Award Winner Vicky Bennison

For the pasta:

• 400 grams (14 ounces/3 1/3 cups) 00 flour or plain (all-purpose) flour
• 4 eggs
• Semolina flour, for dusting

For the filling:

• 170 grams (6 ounces) Swiss chard leaves, stems removed
• 550 grams (1 lb 3 ounces) ricotta, drained weight
• 60 grams (2 ounces) grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (preferably aged for 24 months)
• Freshly grated nutmeg (to taste)
• Salt

To serve:

• 50 grams (2 ounces) unsalted butter
• 50 grams (2 ounces) grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (preferably aged for 24 months)
  

Make the pasta dough as described in the Egg Pasta Dough Recipe. Claudia says, "You know when you have kneaded the dough enough because you will find little holes in it."

To make the filling, bring a large saucepan of water to the boil and cook the Swiss chard leaves for 3 to 4 minutes, until wilted. Scoop them out into a sieve and rinse under cold water. Squeeze out as much excess water as possible; you should be left with around 150 grams (5 ounces) cooked greens. Chop the chard quite finely. Claudia recommends using a mezzaluna so the chard retains some texture.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the chopped chard, ricotta, and Parmigiano-Reggiano. Grate in plenty of nutmeg and season with salt, to taste.

Divide the dough into quarters and roll one piece out into a long strip about 10 cm (4 inches) wide, dusting with semolina flour to prevent sticking. Cover the pieces of dough you are not using to prevent them drying out. Dot walnut-sized spoonfuls of the filling in a line down one long edge of each strip, roughly 2 cm (¾ inches) from the edge, and leaving about 5 cm (2 inches) between them. Fold each strip over lengthways to cover the fillings and line up the edges. Working from the middle outwards, use your hands to press the pasta down carefully around each bit of filling to seal it, making sure to push out any trapped air.

Using a knife or a pasta cutter, trim the top (unfolded) edge and two sides around each bit of filling, leaving a border of dough (a scant 1 cm/½ inch) around each one. Repeat these steps until you’ve used up all of the filling. If you have any leftover scraps of pasta, keep them to use in soups.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a simmer and cook the tortelli for about 5 minutes—they will float to the surface and puff up slightly. You may need to do this in batches. While they’re cooking, melt the butter in a sauté pan. Use a slotted spoon to lift the cooked tortelli from the water and into the pan with the butter, swirling them gently so that the butter and pasta water start to emulsify.

Plate them up with spoonfuls of butter, and scatter over generous amounts of Parmigiano-Reggiano.

Note: The tortelli should drown in butter and dry with the Parmigiano. Be generous with both!

Recipe excerpted with permission from Pasta Grannies by Vicky Bennison, published by Hardie Grant Books October 2019, RRP $29.99 Hardcover.

Yield

Makes 60 tortelli, enough for 4 people as a main course