Tortellini in Brodo
There are many reasons to visit Bologna, but I go for Emilia Romagna’s traditional dishes, especially tortellini, inspired by Venus’s navel—according to legend. Bologna’s classic tortellini in brodo features those dainty goddess-inspired dumplings filled with three different types of pork floating in a meaty broth.
My Bolognese friend Francesca Tori and I became the tortellini queens when I invited her to teach Italian cooking with me in Oklahoma and we spent days rolling homemade pasta dough and forming our gorgeous dumplings. I still chuckle at the thought of driving to a class with a stockpot of broth in my car. I crept slowly so the liquid wouldn’t slosh all over the carpet. And every time I turned a corner, we shouted, “There goes the broth!”
Please try your hand at this out-of-this-world recipe. The process can feel endless, but it’s worth the effort (once you get the hang of it). It’s a labor of love, so prepare it for (or with) someone special.
Ingredients
Serves 6-8
Broth:
2 pounds beef bones
2 carrots, cut into 2-inch pieces
2 celery stalks, cut into 2-inch pieces
1 large yellow onion, cut into quarters
2 pounds chicken wings 4 quarts water
1 tablespoon kosher salt
2 teaspoon black pepper
Filling:
1 teaspoon olive oil 1 boneless pork chop
(about 1⁄3 pound)
1⁄2 pound mortadella, cut into 1⁄2-inch pieces
1⁄3 pound prosciutto, cut into 1⁄2-inch pieces
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
3 large eggs
1⁄2 teaspoon kosher salt
1⁄4 teaspoon black pepper
1⁄8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Pasta:
5 large eggs
About 4 cups all-purpose flour (more, if needed)
Grated Parmesan for serving
Process
Make the broth:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking pan with aluminum foil and arrange the beef bones, carrots, celery, and onion in a single layer. Roast until the bones and vegetables are lightly browned, about 35 minutes. Transfer the bones and vegetables to a stock pot or Dutch oven. Add the chicken wings, water, salt, and pepper. Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Using a slotted spoon, skim off any foam from the surface. Simmer gently for at least 2 hours, or up to 4 hours. The longer the broth simmers, the richer it will taste. The broth will slowly reduce by half during cooking. If it gets too low, add more water. Strain the broth through a sieve into a large bowl and discard the solids. Let the broth cool, skimming off any fat that comes to the surface. (You can put the broth in the refrigerator overnight, if you prefer, and the next day remove any solid fat from the surface.) You should have about 2 quarts of broth.
Make the filling:
Heat the olive oil in a small skillet over medium-high heat. Add the pork chop and cook until lightly browned, about 3 minutes. Turn and cook on the other side, until the pork is browned and cooked through, about 4 minutes. Let cool completely, then chop into 1⁄2-inch pieces. Using a meat grinder or food processor, grind together the pork chop pieces, mortadella, prosciutto, and Parmesan. It should look nearly like a paste. Stir in the eggs, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Refrigerate the filling until you are ready to form the tortellini, up to 3 days.
Make the pasta dough:
Combine the eggs and flour, either on your countertop or in a standing mixture. The dough may require more or less flour, depending on the size of your eggs, the humidity, and the type of flour you are using. So, start with less flour, adding more as you are developing a nice soft dough. Begin kneading the dough by pushing it down and outward, using the heel of your hand. Fold the dough in half toward you and press down, spreading it out and repeating with pushing with the heel of your hand. Knead the dough for 5 minutes, until it is slightly tacky. Wrap in plastic wrap and let rest at room temperature for at least 30 minutes.
Using a pasta rolling machine (or rolling pin), roll out dough until it is thin enough that you can see light through it. Working quickly, lay out dough on a floured surface and cut into 1-inch squares. Place a small amount of filling onto each square and fold in half from corner to corner in a triangle shape. Wrap around your pointer finger to close two points, forming a slight pleat. It should look like a little hat! Form all the tortellini, placing them on a surface dusted with flour so they don’t stick. If you plan to freeze them, place on a parchment-lined baking sheet, but do not let them touch. Put in freezer for 2 hours, then transfer to freezer bag to store in the freezer until needed, up to 6 months. You may have filling left over, which can be frozen or formed into 1-inch meatballs to be fried for a tasty snack!
To serve:
Bring the broth to a simmer in a large pot. Add the tortellini and cook until they float to the top, about 5 minutes. (If cooking frozen tortellini, do not thaw before cooking; they will take a bit longer to cook.) Ladle broth and tortellini into bowls and serve with grated Parmesan.
