Cappelletti

Cappelletti are a sort of packed fresh pasta that originated in the Emilia-Romagna area of northern Italy, namely in the towns of Modena and Bologna. They may be traced back to the Middle Ages, when they were a delicacy on the tables of nobility. Their circular shape gives them the name cappelletti, which means "little hats." Cappelletti can be created from circles or squares of dough, which somewhat alters their shape, but the folding procedure remains the same. They're usually served in a meat broth, but they can also be tossed in melted butter with fresh sage, in a meat sauce, in slowly cooked heavy cream, with a simple walnut sauce, or in a meat sauce.

Ingredients

• For the Filling: 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, 1/2 chicken breast, or 4 ounces lean pork, 1 cup fresh ricotta cheese, 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, 1 large egg, 1 large egg yolk, 1 pinch freshly grated nutmeg, 1 pinch lemon zest, optional, 1 pinch fine sea salt, 1 pinch freshly ground black pepper
• For the Pasta: 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, 3 large eggs, 1 pinch sea salt

Instructions

• Gather the ingredients.
• In a small saucepan, melt the butter and sauté the chicken.
• Let cool and then cut into small chunks.
• Using a food processor or blender, combine the sautéed chicken, ricotta cheese, Parmigiano-Reggiano, whole egg, egg yolk, nutmeg, lemon zest (if using), and salt and pepper to form a fine paste. (If the ricotta is very soft, leave out the egg white and use just 2 yolks instead. If, on the other hand, the mixture is too stiff, add an extra egg yolk.)
• Make the Pasta
  
• Make a mound with the flour on your work surface and form a well in the middle.
• Crack the eggs into the center of the well and add the salt.
• Work the eggs and the flour together with your hands until you have a smooth dough, adding just a few drops of water, if necessary, and no more.Knead the dough for 10 to 15 minutes, until it is smooth, firm, and quite elastic. Don't skimp on the kneading or the dough will tear while you're rolling it out.
• Separate the dough into 2 pieces.
• Flour your work surface (marble countertops are ideal for this, though wood or Formica work as well) and start to roll out the dough, rolling out from the middle, flipping it over occasionally, and flouring it as necessary to keep it from sticking.
• Keep on flipping and rolling until you have a sheet that's almost transparent—as thin as a dime or thinner if you can manage it, as the pasta will almost double in thickness while cooking.
• Shape the Cappelletti
• Once you've rolled out a thin sheet of pasta on a well-floured surface, use a round cookie cutter (you could also use a round or square raviolo stamp or a fluted-edge rolling pasta cutter) to cut out 2-inch-diameter circles of dough.
• Place 1 level teaspoon of stuffing in the middle of each circle.
• Using your fingertip or a pastry brush, moisten the edges of the circle with a little water so they will seal.
• Fold the circles in half over the filling to form half moons, pressing down with your fingers to seal the edge.
• Then pull the two corners towards each other, overlapping one over the other, and press down on the tips to help them adhere together.
• Continue until all of the cappelletti are made.
• Boil the pasta in either broth or water for 3 to 5 minutes, depending on how you'd like to serve the cappelletti, and serve.