Beetroot cavatelli with radicchio and Provola cheese
A quick and comforting pasta dish that can be done with any short pasta shape you want if you don’t want to make your own. The bitterness of the radicchio is well suited to pair with the creamy cheesy sauce.
Serves 2 // prep time 1h
Ingredients:
1 large shallot, chopped
1 red radicchio, chopped and washed
30 gr of unsalted butter
1 tbsp of olive oil
10 ml of balsamic vinegar
150 ml of double cream
150 gr of grated Provola cheese (or your cheese of choice)
20 gr of toasted walnuts
Salt and pepper to taste
For the beetroot pasta:
250 gr 00 flour
50 gr cooked beetroot with itsjuice
80 gr of eggs
Extra flour to dust
Method
The crucial part is to blend the beets with the eggs and then use this mixture to knead the dough with the four.
Incorporate the flour gradually. When the ingredients start to bind together knead by hands with energy. Remember, during this step it is important to stretch and pull your dough while kneading to allow the flour’s gluten to start working and therefore obtain an elastic dough. After a few minutes of working, it will slowly come together and result in a smooth and homogeneous dough. Remember to check the humidity of the doughs, if too sticky to your hands, feel free to dust with flour, if too dry and not binding, you can add a touch of the wet ingredients or even a splash of water.
When ready, wrap your dough in film and leave to rest for about 30 minutes, this will allow the dough to ‘relax’ and not be too elastic when shaping your pasta.
Slice thick strips of pasta and then with the palm of your hands roll them on the table to thin them out. Press gently and while you do that also move your hands apart from each other.
Cut the strips obtained into 2 cm nuggets. Now press with your thumb each nugget and while doing go also let it roll under your thumb. This movement till make the little dough ball curl over your thumb creating a nice little groove. There you have it, you made your first cavatello. Proceed with all the dough and place the already shaped cavatelli on a floured tray.
To prepare the dressing, sweat the shallot in olive oil and butter with a pinch of salt. After 3 minutes add the radicchio and cook on medium heat for 2 more minutes. Season with salt and pepper and deglaze with the vinegar. Pour in the cream and heat gently. Now drop the cavatelli in salted boiling water and cook for about 4/5 minutes, you want a bit of bite and chewiness to them. Drain and toss the pasta directly into the dressing along with a ladle of pasta water. Turn of the heat, add the grated cheese and stir and toss with energy to allow the cheese to melt. Once the pasta is well coated, check the seasoning, plate up in shallow bowls and garnish with chopped toasted walnuts before you enjoy.