Cooking from Romagna: Main courses

Ingredients for 4 people: 1 kg fresh cannelli (white beans) (apprx. 1 can), 3 cloves garlic, 2 tbs. tomato paste, parsley, 1 small onion, olive oil, salt & pepper to taste.

Preparation:
Saute finely diced garlic and onions. Add tomato paste diluted in a ladle of water. Salt & pepper. Simmer slowly for 10 minutes. Add cannelli beans that have been hulled, washed and chopped and let cook another 30 minutes. Sprinkle chopped parsley. Boil pasta (Strozzaprete- “ Choke the Priest” – a hand rolled and twisted egg white pasta). Drain and sauté in sauce.

Ingredients for 6 people: 500 gr. of ricotta cheese, 100 gr. of Parmesan cheese, 500 gr. of soft cheese, a pinch of nutmeg, 2 eggs.
For the dough: 600 gr. of flour and 6 eggs.

Preparation:
Prepare Meat Filling; set aside. Divide Egg Noodle Pasta dough into 3 equal parts. If using pasta machine, roll out immediately. If rolling by hand, place dough in a plastic bag; let rest 1 hour before rolling on a lightly floured surface. Roll out 1/3 of the dough almost paper thin. Cut about thirty 2 1/2 inch circles. Put about 1/2 teaspoon Meat Filling in center of a circle. Dip your finger in water and moisten edges of circle. Fold the circle over until the edges almost meet; press edges. Roll the filled circle around the tip of your finger; overlap ends and press together. If ends do not hold, moisten and press again. Pinch filled top, shaping it into a little hat. Continue until all are finished, working quickly so pasta will not dry out. Let cappelletti stand 15 minutes before cooking. Bring water and salt to a boil. Add cappelletti. Bring water to a boil again. Cook gently until pasta is tender, about 8 minutes.

Ingredients for 4 people: 400 gr. flour, 4 eggs, salt to taste

Preparation:
Make a dough with the flour, eggs and salt. The dough should be rather solid . Roll out the dough to obtain nice and long thin “tagliatelle”.
Leave them to dry for a while and then cut them into strips.
Boil them in salted water. The typical seasoning is meat sauce. However they can be seasoned with butter and grated parmesan cheese.

Ingredients: 150 gr. beef, 100 gr. capon, ½ litre water per person, 1 onion, 1 carrot, 1 celery stalk, 1 tomato.

Preparation:
In a pot of cold, salted water add the meat and vegetables, bring to the boil and cook at a low heat for about 3 hours. Pass the meat and vegetables through a sieve and return to the broth.

Ingredients for 6 people: 300 gr. Flour, 3 eggs, ½ onion, 1 clove of garlic, 1 carrot, 1 stalk of celery, ½ glass of oil, 350 gr. dried beans or 800 gr fresh beans.

Preparation:
Make a dough with the flour and eggs. Roll out the dough into a thin sheet and cut into strips 2-cm.-thick. Then cut these noodles diagonally to obtain lots of uneven pieces of pasta. Cover these and leave them to dry for a few hours. Lightly fry the chopped onion, garlic, shredded carrot and celery in the oil. Then add the 300 gms. of dried beans (which have been left to soak overnight) or 800 gms of fresh beans and about 2 litres of salted water. Leave the beans to boil on a moderate heat, adding more water if necessary. When the beans are tender, add the “maltagliate” which only take a few minutes to cook. Taste and correct for salt. Serve hot with a few drops of oil and a sprinkling of pepper.

Ingredients for 6 people: 6 eggs, 100 gr. bread crumbs (optional), 150 gr. grated Parmesan cheese, a pinch of salt, a pinch of nutmeg to taste.

Preparation:
A typical dish for Easter lunch.
Mix all the ingredients together. Bring to the boil about 2 litres of meat broth, then add the prepared mixture to it, stirring continuously for a few minutes. The soup is ready when it begins to form lumps. Serve the soup hot with lots of grated parmesan cheese.