On Sundays, we cook! Last week we were inspired by this season's Food Network Star show to make Dominick Tesoriero's Agnolotti Bolognese. Agnolotti is a type of pasta typical to Piedmont, where we are going next fall, so it seemed like a fun recipe to try.
We have made fresh pasta many times before, but we usually stick to easy sheets for Lasagna or fettucini. This was our first attempt at shaped and filled pasta. We did not let Food Network's warning on the bottom of the recipe stop us. "This recipe was created by a contestant during a cooking competition. The Food Network Kitchens have not tested it for home use and therefore cannot make any representation as to the results."
We made a few modifications. I couldn't find mascarpone cheese at my local grocery store, so we substituted cream cheese and I didn't have an pancetta, so I just replaced that with extra Italian sausage. I was initially a bit alarmed about the amount of eggs required to make the pasta, but it was one of the best pasta dough recipes I've ever tried and we will be using it from now on!
Making the agnolotti was a bit tricky and ours did not look as perfect as Chef Dom's. But I have a feeling we will be making this again and will have a chance to perfect our technique. It was delicious, if not perfectly shaped.
We paired this rich meat sauce and pasta dish with a 2006 Poggio Rubino Brunello di Montalcino (picked up on our 2014 trip to Tuscany).
Want to learn how to make home made pasta from an expert? Join us on our 2016 trip to Piedmont, which will include an authentic Italian cooking class!
