PIZZOCCHERI

PIZZOCCHERI

#SIAintheKitchen

When I was kicking off 2020, I had left Zurich, Switzerland and was off to Italy. My first stop was in Lake Como. I wanted to find a regional dish that was the Lombardy region was known for so I did my research prior to getting there and learned that pizzoccheri was one of the dishes that I just had to try. Buckwheat pasta, cabbage, potatoes and mountain fontina cheese? Yes, please!

I was missing my time there (and traveling in general!) so the only way I was able to have this food was to make it myself. To my surprise, a pasta maker is actually not needed for this pasta. The dough is made from buckwheat flour and comes together quickly after some kneading and is cut with a knife.

The result? A toothsome pasta, nutty and unique in flavour, and very rich and heavy - perfectly reminiscent of what I had during my time in Italy just one year prior.

PIZZOCCHERI - serves 6 - 8 (adapted from Great Italian Chefs)

• 250g light sprouted buckwheat flour

• 150g 00 flour

• 200g warm water

• all-purpose flour, as needed

• 1 large green cabbage, roughy 8 cups, sliced

• 2 large waxy potatoes, like Yukon Gold, diced into 1/2” cubes

• 280g fontina cheese, sliced thinly

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter

• 1 head garlic, sliced

• freshly ground pepper, as needed

1. Mix the the buckwheat flour, 00 flour, and the warm water in a KitchenAid stand mixer with the dough hook attachment. Knead on setting “4” until the dough comes together completely and no crumbs or dry bits remain, about 5 - 7min. Form the dough into a ball and wrap it in plastic wrap and allow for the dough to rest for 1 hour.

2. After the hour is up, unwrap the dough and divide the dough into two pieces. Set one piece of dough aside.

3. On a heavily-floured surface, begin to roll out the dough as close as you can to 3mm thick. Ensure that you are frequently dusting the pasta dough and rolling pin as you flatten the dough. You want to aim for a rectangle shape if possible.

4. Once you achieve the desired thickness, cut the dough with a sharp knife into 3” wide strips. Try to cut the dough as evenly as you can. Once all the dough is cut, dust with flour and layer them on top of each other (I wouldn’t recommend more than 3 strips at a time) and cut the noodles width-wise by hand, 1/3.- 1/4 of an inch, depending on how thick you want your noodles. The noodles should be medium-length at most. Transfer to a plate and dust with additional flour and repeat with the other ball of dough. Cover with a towel to prevent the fresh pasta from drying out.

5. Meanwhile, begin to boil a large pot of water and heavily salt it with a copious amount of kosher salt. The salt is the only flavouring agent for the vegetables and pasta so be liberal!

6. Once the water is boiling add the potatoes and cook for 5 minutes. Add the sliced cabbage and cook for another 4 minutes. Lastly, add the pizzoccheri noodles and cook until al dente, about 3 minutes. Drain and set aside.

7. Before you add the pizzoccheri in, begin to melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Once the butter is completely melted, add in the garlic and sauté until fragrant, about 2 minutes, until the butter is foamy. Remove from heat.

8. In a large serving dish, layer one mix of the vegetable and pizzoccheri mix. Next, layer some of the fontina cheese. Continue alternating between the vegetables and pizzoccheri and the cheese until it is all used up. Pour the hot, melted butter-garlic mixture over top - this will help melt the fontina cheese. Sprinkle with freshly -ground pepper as needed and serve immediately.