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There's more to Italian stuffed pasta than ravioli. Infact as you travel south through the country stuffed pasta can be found in dozens and dozens of different types and shapes.
From the unusual Sardinian culurgiones to Pusterese mezzelune, here are five less common types of stuffed pasta worth knowing about as well as how to cook them.
For more types of stuffed pasta click here.
Cappelletti (pictured above)
Easily confused with tortellini, Cappelletti are in fact a stuffed pasta with a very particular shape.
Their unique form is obtained by cutting sheets of egg pasta into squares, into the center of which a filling is placed. The dough is then folded in two, to form a triangle, and the corners joined by wrapping the pasta around a finger, so as to obtain the classic "small hat" shape.
Typically from Romagna, cappelletti are also widespread in parts of Emilia (for example in Reggio Emilia) and Marche, where they are cooked in a meat broth (usually capon or mixed cuts) or served without a broth but different seasonings like pork.
The difference between tortellini and cappelletti is in the dough, which is slightly thicker, but also in the filling: In Emilian tortellini it's usual to find pork loin, Bologna mortadella, prosciutto crudo, Parmigiano Reggiano, eggs and nutmeg; however the cappelletti filling is usually a meat patty (beef or pork), eggs and vegetables (celery, carrots, onions ...).
Here's a great recipe to make these little hats - cappelletti
Curlurgiones - Stuffed pasta from Sardinia
Culurgiones are the classic "ravioli" from Sardinia, also known as angiulottus. Culurgiones are usually stuffed with potatoes, pecorino cheese, onions and mint which a speciality of the Ogliastra area, while in the rest of the region there are several recipes, including that of Gallura, which use lemon or orange peel.
The team at ChefSteps show how to culurgiones below:
Schlutzkrapfen
Schlutzkrapfen, also known as schlickkrapfen, schlierkrapfen or schlipfkrapfen are a type of stuffed pasta typical to Val Pusteria in northern Italy, but are also popular in other mountainous areas like Tyrol, Trentino Alto Adige and even Austria.
In Italy they are known as mezzelune (half moons) and the filling is based on ricotta and spinach.
Here's how to make schlutzkrapfen, it's remarkably simple.
Anolini
Anolini are a type of stuffed egg pasta typical of Piacenza and Parma, where they are traditionally eaten on Christmas Eve.
They are prepared by placing small balls of stuffing between two layers of dough, then cutting the pasta, using a circular metal pasta cutter, ensuring there is one ball of stuffing inside each as they are cut out, also ensuring that the edges are well sealed.
The recipe was created as far back as the sixteenth century.
Here's an anolini recipe to try at home.
Pansoti
Pansoti are a type of vegetarian stuffed pasta, typically from the seaside town of Liguria although they are widespread throughout the area. While they are very similar to ravioli they have two significant differences: their size and the absence of meat in the filling.
Pansoti are triangular (sometimes roughly cut), rather large and low in calories; which makes them very popular during Lent. Their name refers to their "pot-bellied" appearance.
Among the tastiest and simplest dishes of from Genova is pansoti with walnut pesto.
