R29's executive food editor, Elettra Wiedemann traveled to Italy for a behind-the-scenes look at some of her favorite ingredients. Along the way she picked up some new cooking skills to apply back at home. Read about her adventure and get more authentic Italian recipes, here.
Ingredients
Pasta
1 egg
About 1 cup soft wheat flour
2-3 quarts chicken broth Filling
1/4 pound ground pork loin
1/4 pound ground Parma ham
1/4 pound ground mortadella
Butter
About 1 cup of freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano Instructions
1. Make the filling: Over medium heat, melt the butter and add the pork loin. Fry it until it’s cooked through, without over-browning. Thoroughly mix in the ham and mortadella, then remove from heat. Mix in the Parmigiano. 2. Make the pasta: Make a well with the flour on a large cutting board or other surface. Crack the egg inside the well and begin to mix the egg with a fork, bringing in more and more four as you do. Keep stirring until the flour-egg mixture is well-combined. Fold and knead the dough until it’s pliable, then roll it out. Roll like hell: the pasta “leaf” needs to be almost as thin as construction paper. 3. Using a knife, cut a grid of 2-inch squares on the leaf. Then, place a fingertip-sized lump of filling in the center of each. 4. Taking one square at a time, fold each over into a triangle and pinch the edges together. Then, pinch the two points of the triangle together, making a small, belly-button-like pasta shape. Repeat until done. 5. Set a pot of chicken broth to boil. When it’s ready, drop in the tortellini through your fingers — you don’t want to dump them all in at once. When they float, you’re done! 6. Serve with a little chopped Italian parsley and a more Parmigiano.
Ingredients
Pasta
1 egg
About 1 cup soft wheat flour
2-3 quarts chicken broth Filling
1/4 pound ground pork loin
1/4 pound ground Parma ham
1/4 pound ground mortadella
Butter
About 1 cup of freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano Instructions
1. Make the filling: Over medium heat, melt the butter and add the pork loin. Fry it until it’s cooked through, without over-browning. Thoroughly mix in the ham and mortadella, then remove from heat. Mix in the Parmigiano. 2. Make the pasta: Make a well with the flour on a large cutting board or other surface. Crack the egg inside the well and begin to mix the egg with a fork, bringing in more and more four as you do. Keep stirring until the flour-egg mixture is well-combined. Fold and knead the dough until it’s pliable, then roll it out. Roll like hell: the pasta “leaf” needs to be almost as thin as construction paper. 3. Using a knife, cut a grid of 2-inch squares on the leaf. Then, place a fingertip-sized lump of filling in the center of each. 4. Taking one square at a time, fold each over into a triangle and pinch the edges together. Then, pinch the two points of the triangle together, making a small, belly-button-like pasta shape. Repeat until done. 5. Set a pot of chicken broth to boil. When it’s ready, drop in the tortellini through your fingers — you don’t want to dump them all in at once. When they float, you’re done! 6. Serve with a little chopped Italian parsley and a more Parmigiano.