Ricotta tortellini with lemon and tomato juice

The first time I made homemade pasta and saw how easy it was (for some reason I had imagined it to be much more complicated), I decided to make my own pasta all the time. I didn't even have a pasta machine, I would roll it out with a rolling pin, roll it up and cut it to make noodles. My roommates and I would experiment with cuttlefish ink, spinach, turmeric etc. to give it different colours and aromas.

Then a friend joined us and we started making stuffed pasta. We would meet once a week around midday, and chat over a glass of red wine we would get to work. We would finish making the pasta at five in the afternoon, starving and already more than a little drunk. And we would enjoy it like the children that I now think we were. What good memories!

I won't deny that preparing handmade stuffed pasta, one by one, filling it and shaping it, is hard work. But if you find a partner so you don't get bored and also treat yourself to a glass or two of wine while you prepare it - then you will enjoy the preparation as much as the final result.

And eating pasta that was made one by one always makes me stop and think a lot more about the moment of eating it. Knowing how much work goes into each tortellini, I concentrate a lot on perceiving the texture, the mix of aromas and tastes. I eat it very slowly, savouring each bite.

And this recipe, because it is filled with pasta, is one of the simplest . You don't need to cook the filling, you just need to mix the ingredients . And yet it is one of my favorites. Because the filling is soft and creamy, but at the same time surprising with the touch of lemon and the tomato juice has very few ingredients, but it is spectacular when tomatoes are in season.

Grades:

• The recipe is for 4 people, but I think you can make hand-stuffed pasta for up to two people without running out of juice. If you want to make this recipe for more than two, I recommend inviting the guests to participate in the preparation (it's really fun!).

• If you want to make this recipe for two, you can store the rest of the dough in a Tupperware, waxed cloth or damp cloth in the fridge and make tagliatelle the next day (or more tortellini, I know they are so good that they make you want more right away ;-).

INGREDIENTS

For the pasta dough:

• 280g / 2 cups spelt flour or special pasta flour (type 00)
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ¼ cup + 1 tablespoon water

For the filling:

• 1 Ricotta (250 g)
• 1 organic lemon (zest and juice)
• 1 handful of fresh basil (optional)

For the tomato juice*:

• About 400 g cherry tomatoes
• ½ teaspoon balsamic vinegar
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup (you can substitute with coconut or brown sugar)
• 1 teaspoon salt

*If you want to save yourself the trouble of making it at home and replace the juice with a natural tomato sauce, in the pantry section we have an authentic tomato sauce from Italy that is extremely natural and healthy (it is 100% squeezed tomato juice, nothing more).

To serve (optional):

• Sage leaves fried in oil or butter
• Parmesan cheese

PREPARATION

1. Let's start with the pasta dough. Mix the flour and salt in a bowl . Make a mould in the middle of the flour and add the egg and, little by little, the water. Mix with your hands until you obtain a homogeneous dough. Let it rest for 20 minutes to allow the gluten to develop and the dough to become more elastic.
2. Meanwhile, mix the ricotta with the lemon zest and juice . If using basil, chop it and add it. Mix with a fork.
3. Once the dough has rested, divide it into 4 equal portions. Shape it into a rectangle with your hands, flattening it a little so that it fits well into the pasta machine (if you don't have a pasta machine, roll out the dough with a rolling pin. It won't be as thin, but it works just as well).
4. Dust the dough lightly with flour to prevent it from sticking. Roll the dough through the machine at the thickest setting. Repeat with the next thinnest setting and so on until you reach the second-to-last setting (I usually go in twos, it works very well). If you find that the dough is getting too long, cut it in two. Once you have the dough the thickness you want, make sure to leave it on a well-floured surface so that it doesn't stick. Continue with the rest of the dough until you have several strips. Using a round cookie cutter about 7cm in diameter (or a glass), cut out as many circles as you can.
5. Gather the scraps of dough together, form a ball, and roll and cut again until you have all the dough in circles.
6. Put half a teaspoon of filling on each circle. It is important not to overdo it, otherwise the filling will end up oozing out and it will be difficult to shape it the way you want. Have a bowl with a little water next to you so you can wet the edges and stick the tortellini together.
7. Fold the tortellini in half and gently press the edges together to seal.
8. Place the tortellini - which should now be shaped like a half moon - so that the straight edge is facing you. Pull the two corners towards you and slightly upwards and glue the tips together. Repeat! Place the tortellini on a plate or floured surface.
9. For the tomato juice, cut the tomatoes in half.
10. Add butter, oil and syrup to a pot and heat over high heat.
11. Once the butter is melted, add the tomatoes, cover and cook on high heat for 5 minutes.
12. Add the salt and balsamic and continue cooking for another 5-10 minutes over high heat, stirring occasionally.
13. For the pasta, bring salted water to a boil. Once boiling, add the tortellini (carefully, one at a time) and boil until they rise to the surface. I leave them for another minute once they have risen.
14. Mix with the tomato juice and serve hot. Enjoy!

Ricotta tortellinis prepared with the Imperia SP150 pasta machine