Difficult
4 people
240 min
Chef Valentina Previdi
“Anolini” are a stuffed pasta, a bit like tortellini, typical of Piacenza, a town in Emilia Romagna, and are prepared especially for Christmas lunch, served in a rich and tasty broth. In the original recipe, the filling is made of beef stew (“stracotto” in Italian), Grana Padano, eggs and breadcrumbs but each family has its own recipe and there are also other variations of stuffing with only Grana Padano, breadcrumbs and eggs.
Here we present you the original recipe, to let you enjoy a taste of Italian Christmas spirit. It takes quite long time to prepare…but well worth the effort!
Ingredients
- For the stew (to be used for the stuffing):
- 500 g beef
- 1 carrot
- 1 celery stalk
- 1 onion
- 2 cloves garlic
- Extra virgin olive oil
- ½ glass red wine
- Salt & pepper
- For the filling:
- 200 g stew
- 200 g Grana Padano “over 16 months”
- 100 g breadcrumbs
- 1 egg
- Salt & pepper
- Nutmeg
- beef broth (as necessary)
- For the pasta:
- 300 g flour
- 3 eggs
- 1 pinch of salt
- To serve:
- 2 litres homemade beef broth
Preparation
For the stew:
Fry the vegetables cut into small pieces with a little oil in a saucepan. Add the meat tied with 2 cloves of garlic and brown it on all sides. When it is well browned, add the red wine and, once the alcohol has evaporated, add salt and pepper and cover with plenty of water. Cook for around 3 hours, turning the meat from time to time, until “overcooked” (which means “stracotto” in Italian, hence the name).
For the stuffing:
Mince the stew very finely and put it in a bowl, add the Grana Padano, eggs and breadcrumbs. Add a little of the broth to have a firm yet moist consistency. Mix everything well and season with salt, pepper and nutmeg.
For the pasta:
Place the flour on a pastry board and form a well. Add the eggs and a pinch of salt into the centre. Work the mixture first with a fork, then kneed with your hands until it forms a smooth, springy, ball of dough. If you haven’t got a pasta machine, roll out the pasta into thin strips wide about 10cm. Place a teaspoon of filling every 2,5 cm. Fold the long side over to cover the filling and lightly press the dough around each little mound, to make sure all the air comes out. Cut the “anolini” with a pastry cutter into squares and arrange them on a tray, lightly dusted with flour.
To serve:
Heat the broth, when it starts to boil, add the “anolini” and stir gently.
Simmer for about 10 minutes and serve hot with plenty of grated Grana Padano.
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