L'Italo-Americano

www.italoamericano.com 12 THURSDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2014 L'Italo-Americano It's fall, time to plan for Thanksgiving. Get a jump on your family's feast by making these delightful cappellacci, pasta hats. Start with sheets of Emilia-Romagna's famous pasta sfoglia, egg dough rolled so thinly you can see through it. The tender dough is cut with a fluted rotella, or pasta cutter, and formed into frilly edged pil- lows filled with one of autumn's signature foods, pumpkin. This is one versatile pasta; you can use any squash you like - Hubbard, Kabocha, or the classic Butternut. Parmigiano- Reggiano in the filling and atop the pasta adds its unique nutty flavor, and the addition of nut- meg and white pepper, both war- ming spices, enhances the pumpkin's flavor. Cappellaci are a delight bathed in burro nocciola, or brown butter, its complexity and depth of flavor unmatched by plain butter. Topped with crispy sage leaves, this will make a perfect primo for your family's holiday feast. Get your family together in the kitchen, and in a couple of hours your Thanksgiving primo will be taken care of. These freeze beautifully for up to eight weeks, perfect timing for Thanksgiving. Adjust the amount of butter and sage leaves up or down according to the quantity of cappellacci you are serving. Cappellacci filled with Pumpkin and Served with Brown Butter and Sage Cappellacci di Zucca con Burro Nocciola e Profumo di Salvia makes about 50 Filling •1 Sugar Pie Pumpkin, about 2 ½ pounds •3 tablespoons grated Parmigiano-Reggiano •1 tablespoon dry bread crumbs, plain •1 large egg yolk •½ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg •¼ teaspoon finely ground white pepper •2 teaspoon fine sea salt Pasta •3 cups tipo 00 flour or unblea- ched all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling •½ teaspoon fine sea salt •4 large eggs Sauce •4-8 oz. unsalted butter •10-20 sage leaves •Parmigiano Roast the pumpkin: preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Cut the pumpkin in half. Scrape out the seeds and filaments. Rinse the seeds and save to toast for use as a snack or garnish. Discard the fila- ments. Place the pumpkin hal- ves, cut side down, on a baking sheet, and roast about 40 minutes Welcome the Fall with Cappellacci di Zucca ADRI BARR CROCETTI on the middle rack until soft. Cool pumpkin for 15 minu- tes. Scoop the flesh from the shell, and puree the flesh in the food processor fitted with the metal knife. Measure 1 pound of the puree (generous 1¾ cups) for the filling. Freeze or refri- gerate any pumpkin puree for another use, such as pie, soup, or pasta dough. Make the pasta: place flour and salt in the workbowl of a food processor fitted with metal knife. Pulse twice to combi- ne. Crack the eggs into a mea- suring cup and use a fork to lightly mix. Remove the pusher, and with the processor running, add the eggs in a steady stream until the dough comes together, about 30 seconds, scraping all egg mixtu- re from the measuring cup. If the dough is too wet or too dry, add flour or water, as needed. Remove dough from processor and knead about 1 minute. Wrap in plastic and set aside to rest 30 minutes. Make the filling: combine pumpkin puree, Parmigiano, bread crumbs, egg yolk, nut- meg, white pepper, and salt. Cover, and set aside. Form the cappellacci: work with one quarter of the dough at a time, and keep the remainder covered. Roll the dough with a pasta machine to the last setting, thin enough that you can see the shadow of your hand through the pasta. Roll the pasta into sheets about 6 ½ inches wide. Place a sheet of pasta on a lightly floured counter. Use a fluted pastry cutter and a ruler or a template as a guide, and cut the sheet of pasta into 3-inch squares. Place a scant teaspoon of fil- ling in the center of each square. Use a pastry brush dip- ped in water to lightly dampen the edges of the pasta. Fold the pasta over to form a triangle, pressing to expel any air. Join 2 opposing corners together, pres- sing gently to form a circle of pasta. Place the cappellacci on towels dusted with flour to dry for about forty-five minutes. Refrigerate, between layers of parchment, if serving within a few hours. To freeze for longer storage: arrange the cappellacci in one layer on a baking sheet, and place in freezer for 4 hours. Transfer to a Zip-Lok bag, and freeze for up to 8 weeks. To cook and serve: place but- ter in a 10-inch skillet. Over a medium flame, heat the butter and sage leaves until the milk solids take on a light brown color and the butter exudes a nutty perfume, reminiscent of hazelnuts. Be careful not to burn the butter. Set aside as you cook the pasta. Drop the cappellacci into 4 quarts of salted, boiling water. Reduce the heat to a gentle boil, and cook about 4 minutes. Carefully add about 2 tablespoons of pasta water to the warm butter, whisking well. Be careful as the mixture will sput- ter and bubble up. Use a long handled strainer or spider to transfer the cappellacci to the skillet containing the browned butter. Toss well, and serve topped with sage leaves. Pass Parmigiano. Questions? Email me at adri@AdriBarrCrocetti.com or visit AdriBarrCrocetti.com Cappellacci filled with Pumpkin

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