serves
4
prep
2 hours
cook
10 minutes
difficulty
Mid
serves
4
people
preparation
2
hours
cooking
10
minutes
difficulty
Mid
level
Ingredients
For the pasta
- 400g ‘00' Flour
- 4 eggs
For the filling
- 300 g ricotta
- 200g fresh spinach (or 100 g frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed to remove excess moisture)
- 50 g grated Parmesan (Parmigiano Reggiano)
- 2 tbsp cream
- 1 lemon, zested
- ¼ tsp nutmeg
- Salt and pepper to taste
For the sage butter
- 200 g unsalted butter
- 10 – 12 sage leaves
- Grated Parmesan for serving
- Roasted hazelnuts, crushed for garnish (optional)
Resting time: 30 minutes
You will need a pasta machine and a crinkle pasta cutter for this recipe.
Instructions
- To make the pasta, place the flour on bench creating a well in the centre at the bottom of the bowl, ensuring are no cracks in the wall of flour surrounding the well. Crack eggs in the centre and using a fork to slowly whisk and incorporate your flour and eggs gradually, forming a scrambled texture.
- Once the mixture is dry enough to handle, continue kneading the dough by hand for another 10 minutes, or until smooth and elastic. Wrap the dough tightly in plastic wrap and rest at room temperature for at least 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, if using fresh spinach, bring a pot to boil and blanch the spinach for 30 seconds and strain. Set aside to cool.
- Add your ricotta, grated Parmesan, cream, lemon, nutmeg, salt and pepper to a large mixing bowl. Once the spinach has cooled, squeeze any excess water and roughly chop. Mix the spinach with the ricotta mixture and set aside.
- Divide your dough into quarters, wrapping the rest until needed. Flatten the quarter using your hands or a rolling pin, and continue to roll the pastry through a pasta machine according to manufacturer's instructions. Continue until it is thin enough to see the outline of your hand through the pasta (usually the second thinnest setting).
- Pipe (or, if you don’t have a piping bag you can use two teaspoons to scoop) dollops of filling in a row with a 2-3 finger gap in between. Fold pasta sheet over the filling removing as much air out as you can. Pinch firmly in an upwards motion removing as much air as possible. Using a crinkle pasta cutter, cutting in between the pinches to form pillow like shape.
- Repeat this process with remaining dough. Lightly dust a tray and the agnolotti with flour to avoid sticking (see note).
- To cook the pasta, bring a large pot of water to the boil and generously salt (see note). Cook the pasta for 5-7 minutes or until al dente.
- While the pasta is cooking, melt the butter in a large frypan over medium heat. Add the sage leaves and continue to cook, swirling pan to ensure even cooking. Brown the butter for another 3-4 minutes for the milk solids to form on the bottom. Once brown and emanating a nutty aroma, remove from heat.
- Place the cooked agnolotti in the saucepan and toss to ensure that burnt butter coats the pasta evenly.
- Arrange the agnolotti on a plate with the crisp sage leaves and sauce, and finish off with some grated Parmesan and crushed hazelnuts (if using).
This recipe is part of our SBS Food social video series, . Follow the series on our and . Interested in more recipes and videos? Why not try making empanadas or kimchi at home?
Note
• Once you've made the agnolotti, you can either dry the lightly-floured pasta out in the fridge to use later that day, or you can freeze it on a flour-dusted tray in a single layer and cook from frozen.
• The ideal salted water ratio for pasta is 1 litre of water per 100 g of pasta and 2½ teaspoons (10 g) salt.
Cook's Notes
Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.
