The magnificently named Aurora Baccheschi Berti is the chatelaine of a glorious castle in Tuscany. Castello di Vicarello, dates back to the 12th-century and is set in the wild south of Tuscany – the Maremma. After years of painstaking restoration, Aurora and her husband have turned it into a luxury hotel. If you can afford to stay there, then you’ll be able to sample the food from their castle kitchen in person. However, if your budget won’t run to that, you can still get a taste of castle living by trying your hand at the recipes in Aurora’s cookbook My Tuscan Kitchen (pub. Rizzoli IP, £22.50, written with Anne Hanley, pictures Beth Evans). This recipe, which appears here with permission, shows you how to make fresh pasta stuffed with pheasant. Aurora says the recipe for the filling was given to her by two friends from London.
Pheasant Tortelli with Butter and Rosemary – Recipe
Tortelli di Fagiano al burro e rosmarino
Ingredients – Serves 6
- 1 young pheasant
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 ounces pancetta, minced
- 2 shallots, minced
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 2 tablespoons grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
- 1 egg
- ¾ cup heavy cream
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Tortelli dough (see below)
- 3 tablespoons butter
- Leaves from 1 sprig rosemary, minced
For the tortelli dough:
- 1½ cups all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup semolina flour
- 3 eggs
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- Salt
Method
To make the tortelli dough:
- Place the two flours in a mixer and add the eggs, oil, and a pinch of salt. Work the dough until it is smooth and starts to come together into a ball.
- Place it in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap, or wrap the dough itself in plastic wrap. Leave it in the refrigerator for 1 to 24 hours.
- With a rolling pin or a pasta-making machine, roll out strips 3 inches wide by 3 feet long.
To make the pheasant pasta:
- Preheat the oven to 375?F. Bone the pheasant and remove the drumsticks. Cut off the breast.
- Heat a large ovenproof dish on the stovetop over a medium-high heat. When it is very hot, add the oil. Add the pheasant drumsticks and breasts, placing the breasts skin-side down. Cook without stirring until the pheasant turns a golden colour.
- Add the pancetta and shallots, turn the pheasant, and continue cooking for another minute or two. Add the wine and allow it to evaporate, stirring.
- Transfer the dish to the oven and cook until the meat is done: the flesh inside should be pink and the outside should not be dried out; cooking times vary depending on the bird.
- Remove from the oven, cool slightly, then transfer to a food processor, discarding any bones, and blend to a smooth paste.
- In a large bowl, combine the pheasant mixture, the Parmigiano-Reggiano, egg, and cream, and season with salt and pepper to taste. Mix well, cover, and refrigerate for 1 hour.
- Roll out the tortelli dough and cut into circles of about 2 inches in diameter. You want about 30 tortelli, 5 per person.
- Place 2 teaspoons of filling on 30 pasta circles, then cover with 30 more pasta circles. Crimp edges with a fork to seal.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil and cook the tortelli for about 8 minutes, until they float to the surface. Drain.
- In a small skillet, melt the butter with rosemary over a low heat and pour it over the tortelli.
Rebecca Ford - I'm a UK based freelance travel writer and photographer - and the country I most like to visit is Italy. That's not just because of the ...
