Eating Italy: A Chef's Culinary Adventure (39 page)

GUINEA HEN TORTELLINI
with
FARRO CREMA

Valeria Piccini is one of Tuscany’s most famous chefs. Her family has a beautiful Michelin 2-star restaurant in Manciano called Da Caino. Reading her cookbooks inspired me. She does amazing things with traditional Tuscan ingredients, such as farro. I usually make farro into a salad or side dish, such as risotto. But she pureed it into a sauce. Genius! I was working on a fall menu and guinea hen sprang to mind as a complement to the farro. The hen is richer than chicken and stands up better to the hearty grain.

MAKES 8 TO 10 SERVINGS

Pasta and Filling:

1 guinea hen (about 3 pounds/1.3 kg)

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons (30 ml) olive oil

1 small yellow onion, chopped (½ cup/80 g)

1 small carrot, chopped (¼ cup/31 g)

1 small rib celery, chopped (¼ cup/25 g)

1 sachet of 1 sprig rosemary, 2 sprigs thyme, 1 bay leaf, 1 small garlic clove, and ½ teaspoon peppercorns (see
page 277
)

3½ ounces (100 g) chopped prosciutto (scraps are fine)

1 ounce (28 g) Parmesan cheese, grated (⅓ cup), plus some for garnish

1 large egg

1 pound (450 g) Egg Pasta Dough (
page 282
), rolled into 4 sheets, each about
inch (1.5 mm) thick

Farro Crema:

⅔ cup (150 ml) olive oil, divided, plus some for garnish

1 small yellow onion, chopped (¾ cup/120 g)

2 medium-size ribs celery, chopped (1 cup/100 g)

1 garlic clove, smashed

⅓ cup (90 ml) white wine

1 cup (180 g) farro

4 sprigs fresh thyme

1 bay leaf

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

To Serve:

1 tablespoon (15 ml) white truffle paste

½ cup (68 g) hazelnuts, toasted and chopped, for garnish

For the pasta and filling:
Preheat the oven to 325°F (160°C). Remove the guinea hen innards, rinse inside and out, and pat dry. Discard excess fat deposits and flaps of skin. Cut the legs and wings from the hen and season all over with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a Dutch oven or braising pan over medium-high heat. When hot, add all the hen pieces and body in batches if necessary to prevent overcrowding; sear until browned on all sides, 10 to 15 minutes total. Transfer to a plate. Add the onion, carrot, and celery, and cook over medium heat until tender, 4 to 6 minutes. Return the meat to the pan and add the sachet and enough water to come about two-thirds of the way up the meat. Bring to a simmer, and then cover the pan and braise in the oven until the meat is fall-apart tender, 40 to 50 minutes. Let cool slightly in the liquid, and then discard the sachet. Transfer the meat to a cutting board, and when cool enough to handle, pick all the meat from the bones, discarding the skin and bones. You should get about 1 pound (450 g) of meat from the hen.

Strain the vegetables and reserve the braising liquid. Discard the vegetables. Grind the meat and prosciutto in a meat grinder fitted with the small die, or grind in a food processor to a coarse puree. If using a food processor, grind the prosciutto first. Add a little of the reserved braising liquid, if necessary, to create a moist, coarse puree somewhat like pâté. Transfer to a bowl and stir in the Parmesan and egg. Season with salt and pepper and use immediately or spoon into a resealable plastic bag and refrigerate for up to 1 day.

Lay a pasta sheet on a lightly floured work surface and cut it in half lengthwise and then crosswise every 2½ inches (6.3 cm) to make 2½-inch (6.3-cm) squares. You should get twenty to twenty-four squares from each sheet. Snip a corner from the bag, and pipe a ¾-inch (2-cm)-diameter ball of filling in the center of each square. Spritz the pasta with water and fold the pasta corner to corner over the filling to make a triangle. Dampen your fingertips and bring the two outer corners together up over the filling and then pinch and hold to seal. Repeat with the remaining pasta dough and filling. You should have eighty to ninety tortellini. Transfer to parchment-lined baking sheets and refrigerate for up to 2 hours or freeze until solid; transfer to resealable plastic bags and freeze for up to 1 week.

For the farro crema:
Heat 2 teaspoons (10 ml) of the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion, celery, and garlic and sweat until the vegetables are soft but not browned, 4 to 6 minutes. Pour in the wine and simmer until most of the liquid evaporates, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove and discard the garlic. Stir in the farro, thyme, bay leaf, and 2 cups (475 ml) of water. Season the water with salt as you would pasta water (about ½ teaspoon/3 g). Bring to a boil and then lower the heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the farro is very soft, 25 to 30 minutes. Drain off any excess water and remove and discard the herbs. Transfer the mixture to a blender, along with the remaining ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons (140 ml) of oil. Puree until smooth, 3 to 4 minutes, and then taste and season with salt and pepper as needed. You’ll have about 2 cups (475 ml) of farro crema.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Drop in the tortellini in batches if necessary to prevent crowding, and quickly return the water to a boil. Cook until the tortellini are tender yet firm, 2 to 3 minutes.

To serve:
Heat the farro crema in a large, deep sauté pan over medium heat. Add the truffle paste to the pan, along with 4 cups (1 L) of pasta water, and simmer until creamy, 4 to 5 minutes, stirring now and then. Add the tortellini, in batches, if necessary, and toss gently to coat with sauce. Divide among plates and garnish with Parmesan, the chopped hazelnuts, and a drizzle of olive oil.

CANDELE PASTA
with
WILD BOAR BOLOGNESE

By the time Claudia and I spent our last long weekend together, I had tried all sorts of Italian ragù. Every region makes it differently. In the north, they make it with pork; in Bologna, they make it with beef (Bolognese); and in Florence, they make it with wild boar. To cut the gaminess of boar, they add cocoa powder, which has just enough bitterness to even out the flavors. If you have an old rind of Parmesan lying around, bury the rind in the sauce as it simmers. It adds great flavor.

MAKES 4 TO 6 SERVINGS

Wild Boar Bolognese:

2½ pounds (1.1 kg) wild boar shoulder, cut into 1-inch (2.5-cm) cubes

8 ounces (227 g) pork fatback, cut into 1-inch (2.5-cm) cubes

1 tablespoon (15 ml) olive oil

1 small yellow onion, finely chopped (½ cup/80 g)

1 medium-size carrot, finely chopped (½ cup/61 g)

1 cup (235 ml) red wine

1 sachet of 1 bay leaf, 3 sprigs thyme, 5 parsley stems, 5 peppercorns, and 1 Parmesan cheese rind (see
page 277
)

1 tablespoon (14 g) unsalted butter

2 to 3 teaspoons (10 to 15 ml) sherry vinegar

2 to 3 tablespoons (11 to 16 g) unsweetened dark cocoa powder

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Pasta:

1 pound (450 g) fresh extruded Candele (
page 283
), or 14 ounces (400 g) dried long ziti

4 tablespoons (57 g) unsalted butter

3 ounces (85 g) Parmesan cheese, grated (¾ cup), divided

For the Bolognese:
Spread the meat and fatback in a single layer on a sheet pan or other shallow pan that will fit in your freezer. Freeze until firm but not solid, about an hour. Freeze all the parts of a meat grinder, too. Grind the cold meat and fat with the meat grinder, using the fine die of the grinder. If you don’t have a meat grinder, you can chop the meat in small batches in a food processor, using brief pulses. Try not to chop it too finely; you don’t want meat puree.

Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).

Heat the oil in a large deep sauté pan or Dutch oven over medium-low heat. Add the ground meat mixture, and cook until the fat melts and the meat browns, stirring often, 6 to 8 minutes. Add the onion and carrot, and cook until very soft, about 20 minutes. Add the wine and bring to a boil over medium-high heat, scraping up any brown bits from the pan bottom. Boil for 2 minutes.

Bury the sachet in the sauce. If necessary, add enough water so that most of the meat is resting in liquid. Cover the pan, transfer to the oven, and cook until the flavors blend, 2 to 2½ hours. Remove and discard the sachet.

Stir in the butter, 2 teaspoons (10 ml) of the vinegar, 2 tablespoons (11 g) of the cocoa powder, and salt and pepper to taste. Season with additional vinegar, cocoa, salt, and pepper as needed. Use immediately, refrigerate for up to 2 days, or freeze for up to 3 months.

For the pasta:
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Drop in the pasta, quickly return the water to a boil, and cook until tender yet firm, about 4 minutes (9 minutes for boxed pasta).

Heat the Bolognese in a large deep sauté pan until boiling.

Drain the pasta, reserving a little pasta water, and add the pasta to the sauce. Stir in a ladle of pasta water, the butter, and ½ cup (55 g) of the Parmesan, and toss until the sauce is creamy. If the sauce gets too thick, add more pasta water.

Divide among warm pasta bowls and garnish with the remaining ¼ cup (30 g) of Parmesan.

WILD HARE PAPPARDELLE

Rabbits and hares are related, but hares are bigger, longer, and quicker, which makes them taste leaner, richer, and gamier. The meat is deep red and usually covered in blood when you get it. Don’t be grossed out. Just rinse the hare well and marinate it for a day or two in red wine and strong spices, such as cinnamon, clove, and black pepper. The wine draws out the gamey funk, and the spices add great aroma. Discard the marinade and you’re good to go. Ragù is the easiest thing to make, and it’s perfect with strips of tender pappardelle pasta. Look for wild hare at D’Artagnan (see Sources on
page 289
).

MAKES 6 TO 8 SERVINGS

1 wild hare (about 4 pounds/1.75 kg)

1 large yellow onion, chopped (2 cups/320 g), divided

4 medium-size carrots, chopped (2 cups/244 g), divided

4 medium-size ribs celery, chopped (2 cups/202 g), divided

2 sachets, each with ½ teaspoon peppercorns, 1 small cinnamon stick, 3 whole cloves, 3 whole juniper berries, 2 sprigs thyme, 2 sprigs rosemary, and 1 small bay leaf (see
page 277
)

8 to 9 cups (2 to 2.25 L) red wine