Tag Archives: CAST Alimenti

Pasta with Manuelina Culinary, Day 3

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Extruded Pasta at CAST Alimenti

I waddle into class on day 3 – pasta (and Italian pastries) can take their toll on a girl. This morning, we shift from hand-shaped pasta to watch a machine-extruded pasta demonstration.  There’s not much art in pasta prepared this way, but it’s a necessary evil, I suppose.  After the demo, we resume our hand work and finish our training in classic shapes.  Below is Maestro Walter’s version of Brescian style meat casoncelli.  Can’t you envision these gondolas of goodness with sage butter pooling in those divots? Nom. Nom.

Next, we prepare cappelletti and tortellini, starting with the largest at about an inch and moving towards the teeny, tiniest Barbie-doll version for brodo. So cute.

Tortellini en Brodo

After lunch, we work on innovative, modern pastas like caprese ravioli (one of my favorites) with a filling of candied tomatoes, basil cream and mozzarella, as well as chocolate toblerone-shaped pasta with ricotta, and squid ink tortelli with baccala, capers and a ginger oil drizzle.  It’s only day 3 and I’m already pondering a pasta business for my future.

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Pasta with Manuelina Culinary, Day 2

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Fresh Pasta

Day 2 begins with a hasty espresso from the cafeteria.  When I return to the states, I’m lobbying for an espresso bar and barista in our office.  That little cup is more effective than Wellbutrin when an instant attitude adjustment is needed.  Today, we’re tackling colored and filled pasta in countless varieties.  Our first assignment involves producing the raw material needed for today’s class – colored pasta dough. My classmate and I are assigned yellow and green.   Do you need turmeric or saffron to get that highlighter yellow color shown below?  Neither, that’s just yolks from hardy, free-range Italian chickens.  The other teams contribute dough in red, hot pink, cocoa, black, and chestnut.

Fresh Pasta Manuelina Culinary

Our instructor, Maestro Walter, is the most immaculately clean chef I’ve met and we tease him about his tidiness.  He’s not a stereotypical, hot-blooded throwing pans chef.  He exhibits an unruffled manner and quiet sense of humor.  Melina, Manuelina’s Director, stands at his side, on hand to translate any tricky concepts.  Maestro’s lessons are easy to follow except for an occasional and endearing confusion between the translation for “red” and “green”, which could result in a perplexing Paglia e Fieno (straw and hay pasta).

Tagliatelle Paglia e Fieno with fresh porcini

Tagliatelle paglia e fieno with fresh porcini

While the dough rests, we shift to producing a plethora of pasta fillings including pumpkin, pork and two versions of spinach.  After lunch, we’re rolling, cutting and filling pasta for the balance of the afternoon.  We request risotto for dinner.