Chef Ali Laraias Corn Agnolotti Food

AGNOLOTTI WITH SAUSAGE AND RICOTTA FILLING AND BURST CHERRY TOMATO & PANCETTA SAUCE

Steps:

• Put the flour onto a clean dry work surface. Make a hole (this is also called a well) in the center of the flour pile that is about 8 inches wide (bigger is definitely better here). Crack 5 eggs into the hole and add 2 tablespoons of olive oil and 2 teaspoons of kosher salt. Using a fork, beat the eggs together with the olive oil and salt. Using the fork, begin to incorporate the flour into the egg mixture; be careful not to break the sides of the well or the egg mixture will run all over your board and you will have a big mess! Also, don't worry about the lumps. When enough flour has been incorporated into the egg mixture that it will not run all over the place when the sides of the well are broken, begin to use your hands to really get everything well combined. If the mixture is tight and dry, wet your hands and begin kneading with wet hands. When the mixture has really come together to a homogeneous mixture, THEN you can start kneading. When kneading, it is VERY important to put your body weight into it, get on top of the dough to really stretch it and not to tear the dough. Using the heels of your palms, roll the dough to create a very smooooooth, supple dough. When done the dough should look VERY smooth and feel almost velvety. Kneading will usually take from 8 to 10 minutes for an experienced kneader and 10 to 15 for an inexperienced kneader. Put your body weight into it, you need to knead! This is where the perfect, toothsome texture of your pasta is formed. Get in there and have fun! When the pasta has been kneaded to the perfect consistency, wrap it in plastic and let it rest for at least 1 hour. If using immediately, do not refrigerate.
• Heat a large saute pan over medium-high heat with 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add the onion, a pinch of crushed red pepper and kosher salt to taste. Saute the onion until translucent, 5 minutes. Add the sausage and break it up with a spoon. Cook, stirring occasionally, 7 to 8 minutes or until the sausage is browned. Add the sage and stir to combine, then deglaze the pan with the white wine and reduce until the wine has cooked off, 5 minutes. Turn off the heat and let it cool down slightly.
• Add the ricotta, 1 cup of Parmesan and the remaining egg into a large bowl. Mix well to combine. Add the sausage mixture into the ricotta and mix to combine. Scoop the ricotta and sausage mixture into a pastry bag and set aside.
• Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil into a large saute pan and turn on the heat to low. Add the pancetta and gently cook to slowly render the fat, stirring occasionally, until the pancetta is crispy and most of the fat has rendered out, 10 minutes. Add the cherry tomatoes, 1/2 cup of chicken stock, a pinch of crushed red pepper and kosher salt to taste. Cook on a gentle simmer until the cherry tomatoes have softened and burst and the sauce has reduced, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the remaining 1/2 cup of chicken stock and continue to cook until the sauce has slightly thickened, another 5 or so minutes.
• Unwrap the pasta dough and cut off one third, keeping the larger piece covered. Using your hands, flatten the dough and sprinkle it with a little flour. Pass the dough through the pasta roller on the widest setting (mine is #1), then fold each end towards the center in thirds, like an envelope. Dust with more flour, then pass through the machine again. Repeat this process 3 to 4 times, folding the dough and flouring each time. Decrease the width to #2 and pass through the machine. Fold again and dust with flour. Continue to #3 and repeat, just folding and flouring once until you've reached #5. Lay the pasta sheet onto your board and arrange some basil leaves on one half of the sheet. Fold the dough in half to cover the basil leaves, dust with more flour, then pass through the machine one more time on the thinnest setting (mine is #6), so the basil leaves become part of the pasta dough sheet. Set aside and cover. Repeat with the remaining dough and basil leaves.
• Place the sheets of dough onto a floured surface. Lightly brush the lower half of each strip (the part closest to you) with water. Snip the corner off the pastry bag. Pipe 1-inch mounds of filling, 1 inch apart, onto the middle to lower half of each strip. Fold the dough over the filling to meet the bottom edge that's brushed with water. Press around each ball of filling with your index fingers, making sure there are no air bubbles. Cut out the agnolotti using a fluted pasta wheel. Transfer to a baking sheet dusted with semolina.
• Set up a large pot of boiling water and generously season with kosher salt. It should be as salty as the sea. Add the agnolotti and cook for 2 to 3 minutes.
• Add the cooked agnolotti directly from the boiling water into the sauce along with 1/4 cup of the pasta water. Toss to combine until the pasta is nicely coated. Add 1/4 cup of the Parmesan, most of the sliced basil (leave a bit for garnish) and a big fat drizzle of nice extra-virgin olive oil and toss to combine.
• Plate, then garnish with more Parmesan and sliced basil.

WHITE CORN AGNOLOTTI

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. In a heavy saute pan, add chicken stock, chopped sage, and butter. Boil until mixture emulsifies. Season with salt and pepper.
• Cook the agnolotti in the water until al dente, about 2 to 3 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and toss gently in the sage butter. Serve in soup plates and shave white truffles on top.
• To take advantage of the wonderful truffle aroma, cover each individual bowl of agnolotti with another plate. When brought to the table, remove the top plate so that the truffle aroma escapes just as the guest takes the first bite.
• In a medium saute pan, bring the cream to a boil. Reduce until only 1/3 cup remains. Stir in the grated corn, salt, pepper and sugar. Bring the mixture to a slow boil, stirring constantly. Continue to cook until the mixture reduces and thickly coats the back of a spoon.
• Transfer mixture to a medium bowl. Stir in the cheeses and thyme and mix until well blended. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Place bowl over ice bath to allow filling to set.
• Make the agnolotti: Roll out the dough very thin. Brush with eggwash. Mound little heaps of filling about 1-inch apart. Fold over and squeeze dough together in between filling mounds. With a serrated pasta cutter, cut agnolotti. Cut away excess dough lengthwise; there should be no more than 1/4-inch around the edges.
• Yield: about 2 cups of filling, makes about 100 agnolotti
• In a food processor fitted with the steel blade, combine the flour, egg yolks, salt, olive oil, and 2 tablespoons of the water. Process until the dough begins to hold together, then stop the machine and pinch the dough to test it. If it's too dry, add up to 1 more tablespoon of water and process until it forms a moist ball. Turn out onto a lightly floured smooth work surface and knead by hand, until a smooth ball is formed. Loosely wrap in plastic and let rest at room temperature for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
• Cut the dough into 4 equal pieces. Keep the other pieces covered in plastic while you roll out one piece at a time, by hand with a rolling pin or through the rollers of a pasta machine, stretching the dough to the desired thickness.
• If using a pasta machine, set the rollers at the widest opening. Flatten the first piece of dough into a thick strip no wider than the machine, to enable it to pass through the rollers. If necessary, dust the pasta very lightly with flour. Run the pasta through the machine. Fold in thirds, crosswise, and run through the machine again. Repeat this procedure 2 more times, until the dough is smooth and somewhat elastic.
• Set the machine to the next smaller opening and run the dough through the rollers. Continue rolling and stretching the dough, using the smaller opening each time, until the next to the last or the last opening is reached, dusting lightly with flour only as necessary. (The strip of dough will be long. If you don't have enough space on your worktable, halfway through the rolling process, cut the strip of dough in half and continue to work with each piece separately, keeping the unused dough covered).

CORN AGNOLOTTI WITH TARRAGON BUTTER

Steps:

• Sprinkle baking sheet with some cornmeal and set aside. Cut the ball of pasta dough into 8 equal pieces. Shape each piece into a rectangle about the size of a deck of cards. Corver the dought with plastic wrap while you are working. Roll a rectanle of dought through the widest setting of a pasta machine 3 times, until it is smooth. Continue rolling it through, decreasing in setting each time until you have reached the thinnest setting. Sprinkle the sheet light with cornmeal, gently fold it and set it on the cornmeal-lined baking sheet. Cover with plastic wrap. Continue rolling out the rest of teh pasta until all 8 pieces have been rolled out.
• In a medium bowl, mix together the drained cream corn, mascarpone cheese, goat cheese, taraagon and pepper. Stir to combine and set aside. In a small bowl, beat the egg with 1 Tbsp water.
• To form the agnolotti, place a sheet of pasta on a dry work surface. Using a pastry brush, brished the entire sheet of fresh pasta with egg wash. Place rounded teaspoons (abotu 1 oz) of corn filling on the pasta sheet, about 2 inches apart. Carefully places another sheet of pasta over the mounds, smoothing out any air pockets and firmly sealing the pasta around the filling. Using a scalloped pasta cutter (or a sharp knife), cut the pasta into small squares. Transfer the agnolotti to the cornmeal-lined baking sheet. Continue forming the remaining agnolotti.
• To serve, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until they float, about 2 minutes. While the pasta cooks, gently mix together all the tarragon butter ingredients in a medium serving bowl. Drain the pasta, using a large mess strainer or slotted spoon, and stranger them to the serving bowl with the tarragon butter. Toss to coat. Sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese and serve immediately.