Italian chef, Andrea Chin, shares a very special ricotta cappellacci recipe (a fusion of tortellini and ravioli) that has been passed down through generations. A speciality on board, you can sample this delicious dish as well as a number of Venetian delicacies aboard luxury hotel barge, La Bella Vita.
Read more about master chef Andrea Chin here >
Method
1. To prepare the pasta dough, combine the flour and egg. Work until it becomes elastic by adding, drop by drop, some cold water if necessary. At the end, it is very important to obtain a dough that is not sticky. Cover with plastic wrap and keep it at room temperature
2. Wash the bell pepper and the remove seeds and stalk. Cut into very small and regular cubes
3. In a pan, sear the Parma ham slices with a little bit of extra virgin olive oil if you choose to remove the fat from the ham. Cook until brown and crunchy, then place them on top of some paper towel to absorb the excess fat
4. In the same pan, gently fry the garlic and the bell peppers. Add salt, pepper and some fresh marjoram leaves. Cook for 5 minutes and keep stirring often. When the vegetables are cooked, remove the garlic and add the ricotta cheese. Keep this mixture in the fridge, stored in a piping bag
5. To form the cappellacci, roll the dough out into a thin sheet (about 1.5 mm). Cut some discs using a 8-10 cm ring. Wet the pasta surface with a little bit of water using a brush. In the centre of every disc, add a small quantity of filling. Fold the discs in half and then pinch both the sides together to obtain the classic shape
6. In a pan, melt the butter with some marjoram leaves and fry gently for few seconds. Cook the ravioli in boiling salted water for 3 minutes, then strain, before adding to the pan. Continue cooking for 1 minute more, keep stirring…
7. Place the capellacci on a plate, add the Parma ham and some parmesan cheese flakes. Garnish it with some fresh herbs, rosemary flowers and black olive powder if you have some.
Serves 2