goat cheese, chard and porcini mushroom tortelli

tortelli caprini, erbette e porcini

4 servings

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Ingredients

For the pasta:
3/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 large egg
1 1/2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
Fine sea salt
5 ounces soft goat cheese, at room temperature
For the sauce:
Fine sea salt
1 bunch Swiss chard (about 3/4 pound), stems and center ribs reserved for another use and leaves coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
8 small porcini mushrooms, sliced
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons chestnut honey

Instructions

To make the pasta: In a medium bowl, mound flour and form a well in the center. Add egg, oil and pinch salt to the well. Using a fork, gently break up yolk and slowly incorporate flour from inside rim of well. Continue until liquid is absorbed, then transfer dough to a floured work surface and knead until smooth, about 4 minutes. Wrap dough tightly in plastic wrap and let rest for 30 minutes.

Divide dough into 2 pieces. Wrap 1 piece in plastic wrap. Flatten dough so that it will fit through the rollers of a hand-cranked pasta machine. Set rollers of pasta machine at the widest setting, then feed dough through rollers 3 or 4 times, folding and turning dough until it is smooth and the width of the machine.

Roll pasta through machine, decreasing the setting, one notch at a time (do not fold or turn pasta), until pasta is smooth, thin and 24 inches in length. Dust pasta sheet with flour and transfer to a lightly floured work surface. Cut out 16 (3-inch) squares from pasta sheet. Put about 1/2 teaspoon goat cheese in the center of each square. Fold squares into triangles, enclosing filling. With a finger dipped in cold water, press down edges of triangles to seal. Pick up 1 triangle and, with the triangle’s peak facing up, bring the 2 long corners of the pasta together around your forefinger; seal edges of corners to form tortelli. Form remaining triangles into tortelli, then repeat with remaining pasta and cheese to make a total of 32 tortelli.

To make the sauce: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add chard, return water to a boil and cook for 2 minutes. Using tongs, transfer chard to a colander to drain. Reserve water, maintaining boil.

In a large skillet, heat butter over medium-high heat until melted. Add mushrooms and cook, turning once, until golden, about 2 minutes per side; season with salt and pepper. Transfer mushrooms to a plate. Add chard to pan and cook just to heat through; season with salt and pepper. Arrange chard and mushrooms on serving plates. Add honey to pan; heat over low heat until honey is just viscous.

To serve: Cook tortelli in boiling water until tender, about 2 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer tortelli to colander to drain, then transfer to serving plates; drizzle with honey. Serve immediately.

November 2009