Stuffed Tagliatelle

To make the stuffed tagliatelle, first clean the vegetables and chop them finely 1. Then move on to the pancetta: Remove the rind and then cut the rest into dice 2 using a knife. Heat a glug of oil in a pot and add the pancetta 3.

Let it sizzle, and once it’s nicely browned, add the chopped vegetables as well 4. Let them sweat for 5 minutes before adding the ground beef 5to the pot. Give a good stir to break up the meat and let it brown well. Deglaze with the red wine 6.

Once the alcohol has evaporated, add the tomato paste 7. Add a little water, just enough to dilute the tomato paste, season with salt, and let this cook until the ragu has reduced 8. Leave to cool and then place in the fridge for at least an hour: This is essential to make the filling dense. In the meantime, prepare the egg pasta by pouring the eggs into a bowl with the flour 9. 

Stir first using a fork 10, and then once the dough has become more consistent 11, transfer it to a pastry board and work it for a few more minutes 12 until it’s nice and even.

Wrap the dough in plastic wrap 13 and leave it to rest for 30 minutes. Next, take one piece of the dough and flour it lightly with semolina 14. Put it through a pasta machine from the widest to the narrowest thickness; as you put the dough through successive times, you might need to dust it with a little more semolina 15.

Cut the sheets of dough into rectangles measuring 12x6 inches (30x15 cm) 16. Only make a few at a time, otherwise, they’ll dry out; also make sure to keep the dough you’re not working with always wrapped in the plastic wrap. Next, divide each rectangle in half lengthwise (giving you two rectangles measuring 12x3 inches (30x7.5 cm)) 17 and place the ragu in the middle using your hands, which you will need to have moistened: Create a snake of ragu no thicker than ? inch, being sure to leave a gap of ¾ inch from the edges 18.

Moisten the pasta around the ragu 19, then fold the upper part down so that the filling is covered. Press the pasta down around the filling to seal it in well and make sure all the air comes out 20. Using a fluted pasta cutter, remove any excess pasta around the edges to give your tagliatelle a nice look 21.

Repeat these steps until you’ve used up all the dough; as your stuffed tagliatelle are ready, arrange them on a tray covered with a dish towel dusted with semolina 22. Once all the stuffed tagliatelle are ready, put a pot full of water salted to taste on the stove, which you’ll use to cook them. Meanwhile, add the butter to a frying pan, season with sage and pepper 23, and let it melt. As soon as the water in the pot is boiling, cook your stuffed tagliatelle for just a few minutes 24.

In the meantime, pour a little of the cooking water into the melted butter 25, and once it starts to brown, turn off the heat. Drain the tagliatelle, add to the pan with the butter 26, and flip to heat through. Serve with some shavings of Parmigiano Reggiano cheese 27.