As I said in my previous post I had the privilege of learning how to make cappelletti from my daughter-in-law’s nana who was in for a visit from out of town. This women is in her 80’s and is a spitfire in the kitchen! Not a strip of dough was wasted that day. She took over the kitchen like it was a military procedure, every scrap of dough left over was made into something edible. She put all of us “younger” ones to shame as she kept saying, ” Come on girls we still have more dough here!”She has the best personality, I want to be like her when I grow up!
Making cappelletti is a labor of love, I didn’t realize it until I made them myself, you’re working with small disc’s of dough each one stuffed individually and then shaped into a little hat, it’s very time consuming but so much fun when you’re doing it with a bunch of people, there were 5 of us actively making them.
It didn’t take me too long to catch on, I think after about 15 tries I became an honorary cappelletti maker.
The dough was cut from a handmade disc the size being around 2 inches, then a savory filling of meat and cheese was piped right into the center..
After you sit doing them for a while you start to pick up speed and by the time we were finished we ended up with 800!They were then placed in the freezer single layer on baking sheets until frozen, then into freezer bags.
We each went home with our own goodie bags, I couldn’t wait to taste these, but such a labor of love requires homemade broth to place them in, so that is what I did. The day before we ate them I made a rich chicken stock with leeks, onions, carrots and herbs, when it was finished simmering I strained it twice so it was nice and clear, because after all the cappelletti is really the star here.
The next day I warmed up the broth and gently placed the frozen cappelletti into it and avoiding a rolling boil, you don’t want them to break open!Less than 5 minutes later they were finished cooking.
Scooped out with a slotted spoon and gently placed in a bowl, now it’s time to ladle your broth over them.
I added freshly grated parmesan cheese on top and savored every bite!
Scrumptiously good to the last drop! Thank you Lena!
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I’m Marie, a wife, mother, mother-in-law, and gramma of two beautiful girls. My passion is food, clear and simple but especially Italian food, hence the name of my blog, Proud Italian Cook. I want you to feel right at home here so grab a cup of coffee, I’ll get the pastries, take a look around and enjoy your visit! {
I love this post, and was hoping to get the recipe but I can’t find it. I see the pics, and comments, but no recipe. Could you please let me know where it can be found.
Thank you
Rosemarie Virone
I just recently started making fresh pasta. It took me a while to get the right recipe for the dough but I think I’ve finally got it. Your recipe ideas are truly inspirational and I can’t wait to give some of them a try. When I was little, my great grandmother made her own pasta and ravioli. I sat with her and “helped” her every time. I have her cheese filling memorized but I would love to have your meat filling recipe! I would love to try to make tortellini in brodo, as well as tortellini carbonara using home made pasta! Thanks for all of your great ideas and reminding me about how important it is to pass on our recipes and traditions for generations to come.
Made this, this weekend. I make cheese cappelletti along with the meat (next time using chicken) and it was a huge hit! Thank you so much for the idea. And for all eating it, they recognized it as a labor of love!
That’s wonderful Denise!
Looks amazing! My Nana never made these, but I wish she did! Thanks so much for sharing the story and how to make them. I’ll have to try this sometime!! 🙂
I can just imagine the scene…must have been an amazing day. I want to be like nana when I grow up too!
There is nothing like learning at the elbow of a practiced near-professional. What a lovely day you must have had… and what great goodie bags!
I was so excited to read your post. My family has enjoyed this labor of love for years. My grandmother was born in Rimini, Italy and came to the US when she was 2. Her mother taught all six of her children to make this and it has been passed down for 3 generations since. You can read about our family tradition here: http://blog.todomphotographics.com/?p=772
Che belli! Cappelletti made just like they would in Emilia-Romagna! I’m assuming that is where Lena is from? I’d love to know the town in Italy in particular . . . I have a similar recipe for anolini from the same region. http://italyinthecity.blogspot.com
Hi Marie!
Such a great story and that cappelletti looks delicious. I just wanted to say hello. I’ve been away from the blog world for a while, sadly, but yours is one that I check in on regularly. I always enjoy seeing what’s cooking. I’ve been on a pasta kick lately myself. I bought an early xmas present for myself, the Kitchenaid pasta press. Wow! I love it! And couldn’t help but think of you and remember how much pasta you make at xmas time. Hope you and your family have a safe, warm and Merry Christmas.
XO
800 cappelletti! You are amazing, Marie. It must have been so much fun working together like that. I would have loved to have been in your kitchen with Lena.
they look amazing….I don’t know if I would have the patience but I do love to eat them!! nothing like homemade pasta!!
When I moved to Italy I discovered that this is one of the traditional Christmas Day dishes. It has always been a favourite of ours and for Christmas we use red and green dough (I just can’t help myself) to make them even more festive!
Wow! This is really something that I should try! Beautiful and looks delicious.
Marie – You have become an expert at cappelletti. These look perfect. I made them only once many years ago and they were time-consuming, but you’re encouraging me to try again. It helps to have tiny hands, don’t you think? Every one should have a nana like your daughter-in-law’s.
It’s so great that you make your own Cappelletti. It takes a special person. The filling sounds wonderful.
for some reason I like the word Brodo… dunno why maybe just for the good memories I have a bout the brodo della nonna 😉
Perfect! This looks sooo good! I wish I had a big bowl right now for lunch.
I love these and how you make pasta making such a family affair. I want to be like “nana” when I grow up, too!
Don, Send me an email at prouditaliancook@hotmail.com.
This looks absolutly wonderful! Can you post the recipe for the Cappelletti (pasta dough & filling)and the Brodo.
We have maybe 20 inches of snow coming this weekend. I am baking and maybe I shall take a stab at doing some fresh pasta. This is I think the most comforting meal in the world. What a grand time you had and you are so lucky with your tutor!
I haven’t had this dish in AGES! And I never had it hand-made. Looks wonderful and it brings back memories (even if they weren’t authentic).
Oh, how fabulous your cappelletti look. I can almost taste them in that beautiful rich broth. I liked seeing how they were made; that is really something. Great story about the nana. “C’mon, girls!” I can just see it. 🙂
I have always loved tortellini in brodo. What a wonderful soup you made. I am amazed at the patience you had to make the cappelletti.
I think it’s so wonderful that you have a tradition of making ravioli together as a family. That’s such a wonderful thing. I have a friend who gets together with his family and they spend a weekend canning tomatoes. Everyone who participated gets to go home with jars of a great, homemade tomato sauce base. I refuse to ever make sauce for this guy because I know mine will never measure up.
What beautiful cappilini, Marie! This looks so delicious!
CONGRATULATIONS!! You are my Jacques Torres “Big Daddy” dark chocolate bar winner! Pease send your name and address to me so I can get it out to you as soon as possible.
These look amazing and remind me of the ones my grandmother used to make!
Judy, email me at prouditaliancook@hotmail.com
I discovered your web site recently and love it. Thank you for sharing all your ideas and experiences. I especially LOVED the sections on ravioli and capeletti. But are there recipes for the fillings/dough? Are the capelleti’s filled with raw meat? I just finished reading The Lost Ravioli Recipes of Hoboken by Laura Schenone – more of a travelogue/geneology search than a cookbook, but it was truly a wonderful search for a lost family recipe for ravioli. Anyway – are the recipes here and I am lost of the web page? THANK YOU!!!!
They are just so pretty! Thank you for sharing this with us!
You made a great job!!!Brave…. ciao Flavia…I usaully make tortellini Bologna Style…that’s my town..where they were bcreated first!!!
This is gorgeous. Truly it’s beautiful. I saw something like this in a recent Fine Cooking Magazine. I’m so impressed with how beautiful these are. I’d love a few bowls of this. I’m such a soupaholic.
Cappellettis are indeed a labor of love, and I would refuse to make them unless I had friends or relatives with me in the kitchen!
Thank you for sharing this moment and now I am tempted to make some and round up the candidates.