Agnolotti With Sage Butter Trattoria I Bologna Italy Recipes

AGNOLOTTI WITH SAGE BUTTER - TRATTORIA I BOLOGNA, ITALY

Steps:

• Heat oil in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add beef and pork; saute until brown, about 3 minutes. Add spinach and saute until wilted and liquid has evaporated, about 3 minutes. Cool.
• Finely chop mixture in processor. Tranfer to medium bowl. Mix in cheese. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Mix in egg.
• Lightly flour baking sheet. Arrange 12 wonton wrappers on work surface. Spoon 1 teaspoon filling in center of each. Brush edges with water. Fold each wrapper in half, forming triangle. Press edges together. Using 2-inch diameter ruffled cookie cutter, cut edges to form half-moon shape. Transfer to baking sheet. Repeat with remaining wrappers and filling. (Can be made 8 hours ahead. Cover; chill.).
• Melt butter in heavy medium skillet over low heat. Add sage; keep warm.
• Meanwhile, working in batches, cook agnolotti in large pot of boiling salted water until just tender but still firm to bite, about 3 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer agnolotti to shallow soup bowls. Spoon sage butter over and serve.

AGNOLOTTI BOLOGNESE

Steps:

• For the pasta dough: Whisk the 00 or all-purpose flour and the semolina flour in the bowl of a stand mixer to combine. Make a well in the center.
• Combine the whole eggs, yolks, milk and olive oil in a small bowl and pour it into the well. Using the dough hook, mix on low speed until the dough just starts to come together, then increase the speed to medium and mix for 5 minutes.
• Lightly flour your work surface and turn the dough onto it. Knead the dough by hand until it is smooth and elastic, and springs back when you press it with your finger, about 10 minutes. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.
• For the filling: Combine the ricotta, mascarpone and Parmesan in a small bowl. Put the mixture in a pastry bag and refrigerate until needed.
• For the ragu: Put the beef stock, red wine and porcinis in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce the heat and let the mixture simmer.
• Heat the olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the beef, hot and sweet Italian sausages and prosciutto and cook, breaking up the beef and sausage with a whisk, until well browned, about 10 minutes. Season with some salt and pepper.
• Stir the tomato paste into the meat, then stir in the rosemary, thyme, garlic, bay leaves and onions and cook, stirring, until the onions soften slightly, about 5 minutes.
• Strain the beef stock mixture into the meat. Add the tomatoes and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat so the mixture simmers and cook, stirring occasionally, until thickened, about 45 minutes. Add the cream and continue to simmer another 15 minutes or so. Stir in the parsley. Taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary.
• To fill and finish the agnolotti: Cut the dough into 4 pieces. Set a pasta roller at the widest setting.
• Pass the first piece of dough through the roller, fold it in half and run it through again. Fold the dough in half again, dust it with flour, and run it through the roller again. Reduce the width setting on the roller and run the dough through. Continue to run the dough through, reducing the width with each pass, until the pasta is thin enough so that you can see the shadow of your hand through the other side. Lightly flour your work surface and lay the pasta sheet on top.
• Pipe 1 teaspoon of filling about 1 inch from the edge. Continue to pipe additional teaspoons of filling 1 inch apart, from one end to the other. Fold the dough over so that it extends about an inch past the filling (it won¿t extend to the opposite edge), press to seal the long edge and then trim the excess dough from the sealed side. With your fingers perpendicular to the table, pinch between the mounds to seal the filling in. Then use the cutter to cut between each mound, through the pinch, creating little purses. Dust the finished agnolotti with flour. Refrigerate until ready to cook. Repeat the process with the 3 remaining pieces of dough and the filling.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the agnolotti, stir and, when they float to the surface, leave them in the water for an additional minute. Use a spider or slotted spoon to transfer the agnolotti to a large bowl. Ladle over some ragu, toss, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with grated Parmesan. Serve immediately.

GORGONZOLA AND PEAR AGNOLOTTI WITH SAGE & WALNUT BROWN BUTTER SAUCE

Steps:

• Add the flour and eggs to the bowl of a food processor. Blend for 30 seconds until the mixture is sandy but holds together when pressed between your fingers. Turn out the dough onto a floured work surface. It will be crumbly, but once you start kneading, it will all come together. Gather the dough and begin to knead with the heel of your hand until it's supple and shiny, 1 to 2 minutes. If the dough feels too dry and not springy enough, add a touch of water and continue to knead until it reaches the right consistency. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and allow it to rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.
• Add the pink peppercorns to a small saute pan over medium heat. Toast the peppercorns until fragrant, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer into a spice grinder and blend. Set aside.
• Heat a large, high-sided saute pan over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon of the butter and the pear and saute, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 5 minutes. Transfer the sauteed pear to a small sheet tray to cool.
• Add the garlic and stick of butter into the same pan and gently melt over medium heat. Add the walnuts and sage. Cook the butter, swirling occasionally, until the milk solids have separated, and the butter is nutty and browned, but not burned, 7 to 8 minutes. Add the apple cider vinegar, then remove the garlic and discard.
• Stir together the mascarpone and Gorgonzola dolce in a large bowl, beating well with a rubber spatula until fully combined. Add the cooled sauteed pears and 1/4 teaspoon of the toasted pink peppercorns and gently stir to combine. Season to taste with salt. Set up a pastry bag with a large round tip. Fill the bag with the mascarpone and Gorgonzola filling, then set aside.
• To roll out the pasta, cut the dough into 6 equal pieces. Working with one piece at a time (keeping the others covered with plastic wrap so they don't dry out), flatten the dough with your palm. Feed the dough through your pasta roller on the widest setting. Fold the dough on either end to create an envelope, then feed through the pasta roller a second time. Fold the dough into an envelope again, decrease the pasta roller setting to make it thinner and run the dough through again. Repeat this process of folding and running through the pasta roller two times before decreasing the thickness of the roller, finishing with the thinnest setting.
• Lay the sheets of pasta on a parchment paper-lined sheet tray and cover with a damp towel while you repeat with the remaining pieces of dough.
• To fill and shape the agnolotti, lay a pasta sheet on a floured board with one of the long edges closest to you. Brush the edge closest to you with water. Pipe a line of filling down the center of the dough. Fold over the top portion of the dough to meet the edge that's been brushed with water. Pinch the dough on either side of each mound of filling to seal the dough and to ensure there are no air pockets. Using a fluted pasta wheel, trim the edge of the dough where it's folded to create a clean edge. Pinch the line of filling into 1-inch mounds. Cut between each mound of filling and pinch the sides. Transfer the agnolotti to a sheet tray dusted with flour and repeat with the remaining dough sheets and filling.
• Set up a large pot of boiling water and season generously with kosher salt. Add the agnolotti and cook for 2 to 3 minutes; they will cook quickly.
• Transfer the agnolotti directly into the brown butter sage sauce and toss gently to ensure they're fully covered. To serve, plate and garnish with more ground pink peppercorns, Parmigiano-Reggiano and pecorino.