1 egg beaten with a pinch of salt for egg glaze
Semolina for sprinkling
Panna (traditional cream sauce)
Tomato sauce
Pesto sauce
Pasta
2 cups all purpose cake flour plus a little for dusting ½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon white pepper
½ teaspoon cayenne or red pepper
4 oz. unsalted butter, cut into pieces
4 eggs
Filling
¼ lb. fresh spinach
3 oz. top quality cooked ham
3 oz. Ricotta cheese
1 tablespoon parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon olive oil
Salt and fresh black pepper
Method: Prepare the pasta. Place dry ingredients and butter in a food processor that has been fitted with a pastry blade, and run machine for 1 minute, or until butter is cut up and mixture feels sandy. Add eggs and run machine in quick spurts for 2 minutes or until dough forms a compact ball. Cut dough into 4-5 small pieces. Lightly flour each piece and roll it through a pasta machine (set rollers at widest gap). When dough is smooth, reduce gap between rollers and roll the dough again. Continue in this fashion until rollers are at their narrowest setting. As dough sheets come out, dust them lightly with flour, and spread them out on the table.
Prepare filling. Steam spinach for 30 seconds or until tender, rinse it under cold water, and squeeze it tightly to extract all the water. Place the spinach and remaining ingredients for filling in the food processor and grind until smooth.
Fill and shape the Agnolotti: Brush 1 sheet of pasta dough with the egg glaze. Spoon filling into a pastry bag (fitted with a 1.2 cm round tip). Pipe walnut-sized mounds of filling onto the pasta, leaving 2 inches between each mound. Lay a second sheet of pasta on top. Gently press top sheet around mounds of filling with your fingers. Use an Agnolotti cutter or 2-inch round cookie cutter to cut out individual circles. Repeat until all the pasta and filling are used up. You should wind up with approximately 36 pieces. Sprinkle each piece with semolina. Keep chilled until ready to cook. Meanwhile, prepare sauces. Cook the Agnolotti in rapidly boiling, lightly salted water for 3 minutes, or until they rise back to surface. Place 3 Agnolotti on each plate. Spoon cream sauce over one, red sauce over the second and green pesto sauce over the third. Serves 4