Fresh Egg Pasta
(Makes about 1 pound)
4 large eggs
2 ½ to 3 cups all-purpose flour
With a fork, beat the eggs in a large mixing bowl. Gradually add 2 to 2 ¼ cups of flour, beating continuously, to make a soft dough. One tablespoon at a time, gradually add flour from the remaining ¾ cup, until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
Spread the remaining flour on a work surface, pushing most of it to the side. With a pastry scraper, turn the dough onto the work surface. Sprinkle lightly with some of the flour. Start kneading the dough, using the pastry scraper in one hand at the beginning.
Knead, adding scant amounts of flour as needed, about 5 minutes, or until the dough is as smooth as modeling compound but not quite as stiff. All the flour may not be needed. Check the dough for air bubbles, lumps, or streaks of flour by cutting it down the middle with a sharp knife. Shape it into a ball, dust lightly with flour, and cover with a bowl for 30 minutes.
To roll and stuff pasta:
Cut the dough into eighths. Work with one piece at a time while keeping the others covered. Set the pasta rollers at the widest opening. Press the dough with your palm to flatten. Dust lightly with flour. Run through the rollers. Dust lightly. Fold one short side of the dough strip two-thirds over. Fold the other short end over the first fold. Feed the narrow end through the widest roller setting. Dust lightly. Continue rolling, closing the rollers one notch at a time and dusting with flour as needed. Roll to the narrowest setting, until the dough is at 4 inches and 1/16-inch thick.
Place dollops (about ½ teaspoon) of the filling, about 1 inch apart, down one side of the dough strip. Fold the dough strip over to cover the filling. With fingers, press down to squeeze out air and seal the two sides together. Seal with a bit of water if dough doesn’t stick. With a serrated cutting wheel, knife or scissors, cut into ravioli. Separate the ravioli and place on a cotton-towel lined tray. Repeat with the remaining dough and filling. Dust lightly with flour. Cover with a cloth. Allow to rest for up to 2 hours.
To cook the ravioli:
Bring a large covered pot of salted water to a boil. Gently add about one-third of the ravioli, a few at a time. Stir with a wooden fork. Boil for about 2 minutes, or until ravioli are tender. Remove with a large slotted spoon and place in the skillet. Toss gently.
Repeat cooking the remaining ravioli in two stages. Add to the skillet. If needed, add a few tablespoons of the cooking water to loosen the sauce. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve garnished with Parmesan.
Cheese Ravioli with Sage Butter Sauce
(Makes 100 ravioli, serves 8-10)
Cheese Filling: 2 cups whole or part-skim ricotta cheese 1 large egg 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus extra for garnish ½ cup lightly packed shredded Swiss Gruyere cheese 2 Tablespoons chopped parsley Salt and pepper
In a bowl, whisk the ricotta and egg until smooth. Stir in the Parmesan, Gruyere and parsley. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Sage Butter Sauce:
1 stick unsalted butter2 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil¼ cup fresh sage leavesSalt and pepper
In a large skillet, cook the butter, oil and sage over medium heat until the butter is bubbling. Keep warm over low heat.
Serve with a Pietrafitta Vernaccia di San Gimignano (a Tuscan white wine)
Luganega Sausage Ravioli with Porcini Cream Sauce
(Makes 100 ravioli, serves 8 -10)
Luganega Sausage Filling: 1 pound pork shoulder, trimmed of any connective tissue, cut into 1-inch chunks 2 Tablespoons dry red or white wine ½ teaspoon salt ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper 1/8 teaspoon ground coriander 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg 1 Tablespoon olive oil 1 small onion, minced ¾ cup grated Grana Padana or Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese ¼ cup fine dry breadcrumbs 1 ½ Tablespoons chopped parsley 2 eggs, beaten
In a meat grinder or food processor, grind the pork to a fine coarseness. Transfer to a large bowl. In a small bowl, whisk together the wine, salt, pepper, coriander and nutmeg until the spices dissolve. Drizzle over the pork. With clean fingers, rake the wine mixture into the pork taking care not to compress the mixture. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 to 24 hours for the flavor to develop.
Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring, for about 2 minutes or until softened. Crumble the pork mixture into the pan. Increase the heat to medium-high and cook for about 5 minutes, or until opaque. Do not brown. Remove and allow to cool.
Transfer the mixture to the bowl of a food processor. Process until finely chopped. Return to the pan. Add the cheese, breadcrumbs and parsley. Toss to combine. Add the eggs and toss gently to mix.
Porcini Cream Sauce: ½ oz. (about ¾ loose-packed cup) dried porcini mushrooms 2 cups chicken broth, divided 1 Tablespoon butter 1 Tablespoon olive oil 1 small onion, minced 12 ounces fresh brown mushrooms, sliced Pinch of ground nutmeg ½ teaspoon salt 1 carton (8 ounces) whipping cream or half-and-half ½ cup (2 ounces) grated Parmesan cheese 2 Tablespoons chopped parsley 1/8 teaspoon pepper
In a microwavable glass container, combine the porcini with ½ cup broth. Cover with plastic wrap leaving an air vent. Microwave on high power for about 90 seconds, or until steaming. Remove and set aside to cool.
Drain the porcini through a fine sieve lined with a coffee filter. Save the broth. Rinse the porcini and chop. Warm the butter and oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add the onion. Cook about 2 minutes or until golden. Add the fresh mushrooms and nutmeg, sprinkling with ½ teaspoon salt. Stir. Increase the heat to medium-high. Cover and cook about 3 minutes, or until the mushrooms start to give off liquid. Remove cover. Cook, stirring, about 2 minutes, or until golden. Add the reserved porcini broth, 1 cup of broth, whipping cream, the remaining ½ teaspoon of salt. Reduce the heat to medium-low.
Serve with Banfi Centine, a super-Tuscan red wine