MAKES ABOUT 1.5 KG [53 OZ], SERVING 6
1 RECIPE SFOGLIA ALL’UOVO (PAGE 38), AT ROOM TEMPERATURE
“00” FLOUR, FOR DUSTING
28 OZ [795 G] RIPIENO DI TORTELLINI (PAGE 178)
Roll one dough ball to a thickness of 4 Post-it® Notes on a lightly floured work surface (see page 50) and begin cutting immediately. Set an accordion pastry cutter to 11/4 in [3 cm]. Use firm and even pressure to cut the sfoglia into strips, moving from south to north. The edge of the pastry cutter should graze the west edge of the sfoglia. Beginning at the bottom edge of the sfoglia, use firm and even pressure to cut the sfoglia into strips, east to west. Clear away any irregular pieces and add them to your maltagliati pile (see page 100).
FILL THE TORTELLINI: Take a handful of ripieno, about the size of a ping-pong ball (about 3 Tbsp) and roll it into a snake about the thickness of a pencil and the length of your palm. Set aside any excess. Pinch off a piece of filling about the size of a pea and dab it in the center of a pasta square. Repeat until all the pasta squares have dabs of filling on them. Cover the sfoglia with a clean, unscented plastic trash can liner, leaving a single row exposed.
SHAPE THE TORTELLINI: Pick up a piece of pasta by the filling—not by the dough itself. Orient the pasta as a diamond on the index and middle finger of one hand. Using your other thumb and index finger, fold the southern tip of the diamond up and over the filling. Join it to the northern tip, forming a triangle. Using those same two fingers, seal the triangle, just at the top, pressing the pasta to a single thickness (see page 24).
With the same hand, use your thumb and index finger to connect and seal one edge of the triangle. Transfer the pasta to your other index and middle fingers and use the other hand to seal the remaining edge of the triangle.
Transfer the sealed triangle back to your other hand, gripping it with your index finger and thumb at the pressed tip. To make the fold, support the bottom of the filling with a hooked index finger. With your thumb, fold the sealed flap toward you, gently forming a crease on that side while running your thumb from the top of the triangle down toward the tip. Once at the tip, grip the crease delicately with your thumb and hooked index finger and allow it to hang.
Repeat on the other side and, in one motion, wrap the pasta around your index finger and connect the two tips, pressing the connection points to a single thickness (see page 24).
As each tortellino is shaped, place it on a clean work surface, taking care not to let it touch the other pieces. Repeat filling and shaping the remaining dough, working one row at a time. Allow the shaped pasta to dry, uncovered, on your work surface for about 15 minutes. The tortellini are ready to use now, or you can blanch them for future use (see page 136).
Meanwhile, repeat the process with the remaining dough ball and filling.
