RICOTTA & WILD GARLIC TORTELLINI WITH TOMATO WATER AND COMPRESSED CUCUMBER
2 hours, plus overnight Serves 4
INGREDIENTS
Tomato Water
900g of plum tomatoes
28g bunch of basil
1 garlic clove
1 tsp of sugar
1/2 tsp of vinegar
1/2 tsp of salt
Compressed Cucumber
1 cucumber, peeled and deseeded with the skin reserved
1 tbsp of grain mustard
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp of honey
3 tbsp of rapeseed oil
Pasta Dough
500g of pasta flour
1 pinch of salt
6 egg yolks, lightly beaten
4 eggs, lightly beaten
1 tbsp of olive oil
Pasta Filling
1 handful of wild garlic leaves, blanched and chopped
Salt (to taste)
1 large egg
1 cup ricotta cheese, drained
2 tbsp Parmesan cheese
Black pepper, to taste
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg, grated
Garnish
cherry tomatoes, halved
Basil leaves
METHOD
Begin the day before with the tomato water. Place all the ingredients in a blender and blitz to form a loose purée. Pour into a muslin cloth suspended above a bowl to catch the strained liquid dripping through. Leave to hang in the fridge overnight
The next day make the compressed cucumber, dry the skin of the cucumber in a cool oven and grind to a powder. Mix the mustard, salt, honey and oil together. Cut the cucumber into long strips and put in a vacuum bag with the dressing and seal
Leave in the fridge for 2 hours, then take the cucumber out of the bag, cut into squares, then roll in the cucumber powder
Sieve the flour and salt onto a large, clean work surface and create a mound
Make a well in the middle and pour in the egg yolks, eggs. Mix slowly with clean hands to create a dough
Knead for 5–10 minutes until it becomes smooth and elastic then form into a ball, wrap tightly in cling film and rest in the fridge for an hour
While the pasta rests make the filling. In a medium bowl, combine the wild garlic with the egg, ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese, pepper, and nutmeg. Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary.
Use to fill the pasta immediately, or refrigerate for up to 1 day before using.
Unwrap the dough and cut it into smaller portions (so it’s easier to work with); dust with flour and cover the rest with a moist tea towel
Take a piece and flatten it between your hands until it’s the thickness of a pound coin then feed it through a pasta machine on the thickest setting. Fold the dough in half and pass it through the machine a few more times until the dough is smooth
Once you have a smooth dough, gradually decrease the setting on the pasta machine, rolling the dough through twice on each setting until you achieve the desired thickness ideally 1-2mm thick
Use an 8cm pastry cutter to cut out circles of the pasta. Keep the pasta you are not using covered by tea towel
To make the tortellini, place a teaspoon of your filling in the centre of a circle and moisten the edge with a very small amount of water using a pastry brush
Gently fold the pasta over and seal at the top. Work your fingers down the edges to seal, pushing out any air bubbles as you go
Take the corners of the pasta and bring together around your little finger and press together to seal
Repeat until have used all the pasta and filling, storing them on a floured tray until you are ready to cook them
To cook the tortellini, bring a large pan of salted water to the boil, gently stir the water to create a whirlpool and drop in the tortellinis. Don’t overcrowd the pan and cook in batches if you need to
Cook for 3–4 minutes then drain and toss in a little olive oil to prevent them from sticking
While the pasta cooks warm the tomato water to 80oC and char the cherry tomatoes with a blowtorch
To place, place the tortellini in a bowl topped with the compressed cucumber, scatter with basil and cherry tomatoes. Pour over the warm tomato water.