Turn Broccoli and Cheddar Soup into Cappellitti

One of my favorite aspects of cooking is taking my favorite foods and reformatting them into something else. Pasta is an especially great format for this, particularly stuffed pastas because you can process just about any food into some kind of pasta filling. To no one's surprise, I’m here with another pasta blog, and I think this one is a lot of fun so stay tuned to learn how to make this cappelletti with roasted broccoli and Pangrattato.

If it’s not obvious enough, this pasta is inspired by an American classic: Broccoli and Cheddar Soup (preferably in a bread bowl). If you’re thinking of reformatting other foods into pasta fillings, soups are a really great place to start as they are packed with flavor and can almost always be tightened up to suit a stuffed pasta. For example, I could caramelize some onions, add a small amount of beef stock, fold in some gruyere and I've created a French onion soup-themed pasta filling. That is essentially what I did with the broccoli and cheddar filling, so let's go through that process. 

I'm starting off with a bunch of broccoli stems. I just happened to have these, but you can use an equal amount of crowns, or a combination of both. After cleaning the waxy exterior off the stems, I ended up with about 10 ounces. 

Cut them into 1/4-inch slices, if using crowns just break up into florets, and add them into a pan with 3 tablespoons of melted butter. I want to develop some color on the broccoli and cook it until it's completely soft since it will be blended. 

After about 8 minutes, the broccoli has some color and is about 90% cooked. At this point, add one small diced shallot, 3 cloves of minced garlic, and 1/2 teaspoon of dried chili flake (optional). These aromatics need to be cooked for one minute, then add 1/2 cup of chicken stock and reduce the liquid by half.

Transfer this mixture to a food processor and blend until smooth. Transfer the mixture to a mixing bowl and fold in two ounces of finely grated cheddar once the mixture has cooled for about five minutes. I’m using a smoked white cheddar, but go with your favorite. Season this mixture to taste and allow to cool in the fridge for an hour before putting in a piping bag. 

This is a great time to make your pasta dough; this recipe from a previous blog will work great. Once the dough has rested and the mixture is cool, it’s time to start forming pasta. Roll the pasta into a thin sheet. If using an Atlas Marcato roller, I recommend rolling to #7. Use a 3-inch ring cutter to cut circles out of the pasta. On each circle, pipe one tablespoon of the filling, then fold into a semicircle and seal around the edges. While folding, it is important to push as much air out as possible. From here, take the two corners and fold them together until they are just overlapping and press firmly until they stick together, reserve these on a floured tray. This amount of filling made about 25 cappelletti.

Now that the cappelletti are made, it’s time to make the garnishes. First, the pangrattato (toasted breadcrumbs)  is super simple. Take 1/2 cup of panko breadcrumbs and add the zest of one lemon and 1/2 teaspoon of fresh thyme. Mix in a bowl with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Bake on a sheet tray at 375 for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown. 

Next, the roasted broccoli. Take 4 oz of broccoli florets and mix in a bowl with three tablespoons of olive oil and season with salt. Roast on a sheet tray in the oven at 425 for 10 to 12 minutes. 

Now that all of the garnishes are complete, it’s time to cook the pasta. Bring a large pot of seasoned water to a boil. Place 1 cup of chicken stock in a large sauté pan and bring to a boil as well. Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook for 1-2 minutes or until they float. Using a spider or slotted spoon, scoop out the pastas directly into the pan of chicken stock. Continue cooking pasta in chicken stock for 1-2 minutes, remove from heat and mix in 3 tablespoons of cold, unsalted butter. Place the pasta in bowls and top with the roasted broccoli, Pangrattato, some more freshly grated cheddar, and enjoy! 

Broccoli and Cheddar Cappelletti

Yield: 4-5 servings

Prep time:

Cook time: 

Total time:

For the filling:

10 oz broccoli stems (or an equal amount of broccoli crowns or combination)

3 Tablespoons unsalted butter

1 shallot, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon dried chili flakes

1/2 cup chicken stock

2 oz cheddar

For the pasta dough:

1 batch of fresh pasta dough (refer to this blog for recipe)

For the Pangrattato:

1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs

Zest of 1 lemon

1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme, chopped

2 Tablespoons olive oil

Salt and pepper, to taste

For the roasted broccoli:

4 oz broccoli florets

3 Tablespoons olive oil

For cooking:

1 cup chicken stock

3 Tablespoons cold, unsalted butter

Salted water

For the filling:

1. Clean the broccoli stems (or crowns) and slice into 1/4-inch slices (or break crowns into small florets).
2. In a large pan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the broccoli and cook for about 8 minutes until it develops color and softens
3. Add the diced shallot, minced garlic, and chili flakes. Sauté for 1 minute.
4. Add the chicken stock and reduce the liquid by half.
5. Transfer the mixture to a food processor and blend until smooth.
6. Allow the mixture to cool for 5 minutes and fold in the grated cheddar. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
7. Let the filling cool in the fridge for 1 hour before placing it into a piping bag.

Make the pasta dough:

1. Refer to this blog.

Form the Cappelletti:

1. Roll out the pasta dough to a thin sheet, aiming for a thickness of about #7 on an Atlas Marcato pasta roller.
2. Use a 3-inch ring cutter to cut out circles from the pasta sheet.
3. Pipe about one tablespoon of the broccoli and cheddar filling onto each pasta circle.
4. Fold each circle into a half-moon shape and seal edges.
5. Bring the two corners of the half-moon together, overlapping them slightly, and press firmly.

Make the Panagratto:

1. In a bowl, mix the panko breadcrumbs, lemon zest, fresh thyme, olive oil, salt, and pepper.
2. Spread the mixture out on a sheet tray and bake for 8-10 minutes at 375, or until golden brown and crispy.

Roast the Broccoli:

1. Toss the broccoli florets with olive oil and season with salt.
2. Roast on a sheet tray for 10-12 minutes at 425 degrees F.

Cook the Cappelletti:

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
2. In a separate large sauté pan, bring 1 cup of chicken stock to a boil.
3. Once the water is boiling, add the cappelletti and cook for 1-2 minutes, or until they float.
4. Using a spider or slotted spoon, transfer the cooked pasta into the pan with the boiling chicken stock.
5. Continue cooking the cappelletti in the chicken stock for another 1-2 minutes, remove from heat.
6. Stir in the cold, unsalted butter. 

I hope you give this recipe a shot and try thinking of other soups you can transform into pasta! If you want some hands-on experience with pasta making, join our next hands-on Pasta and Gnocchi Workshop on Friday, March 7 at 11am. 

For the ultimate lesson in handmade pasta, don't miss our hands-on Pasta Boot Camp on Saturday, March 15 at 10am. 

Yield: 4-5

Author: Alex Heugel

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Broccoli and Cheddar Cappelletti

Prep time: 2 H & 15 MCook time: 45 MinInactive time: 1 HourTotal time: 4 Hour

Ingredients

For the filling

• 10 oz broccoli stems (or an equal amount of broccoli crowns or combination)
• 3 Tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 shallot, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon dried chili flakes
• 1/2 cup chicken stock
• 2 oz cheddar

For the pasta

• 1 batch of fresh pasta dough (refer to this blog for recipe)

For the Pangrattato

• 1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
• Zest of 1 lemon
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme, chopped
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• Salt and pepper, to taste

For the roasted broccoli

• 4 oz broccoli florets
• 3 Tablespoons olive oil

For the cooking

• 1 cup chicken stock
• 3 Tablespoons cold, unsalted butter
• Salted water

Instructions

For the filling

1. Clean the broccoli stems (or crowns) and slice into 1/4-inch slices (or break crowns into small florets).
2. In a large pan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the broccoli and cook for about 8 minutes until it develops color and softens
3. Add the diced shallot, minced garlic, and chili flakes. Sauté for 1 minute.
4. Add the chicken stock and reduce the liquid by half.
5. Transfer the mixture to a food processor and blend until smooth.
6. Allow the mixture to cool for 5 minutes and fold in the grated cheddar. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
7. Let the filling cool in the fridge for 1 hour before placing it into a piping bag.

For the pasta

1. Refer to this blog.

For the Cappelletti

1. Roll out the pasta dough to a thin sheet, aiming for a thickness of about #7 on an Atlas Marcato pasta roller.
2. Use a 3-inch ring cutter to cut out circles from the pasta sheet.
3. Pipe about one tablespoon of the broccoli and cheddar filling onto each pasta circle.
4. Fold each circle into a half-moon shape and seal edges.
5. Bring the two corners of the half-moon together, overlapping them slightly, and press firmly.

For the Panagratto

1. In a bowl, mix the panko breadcrumbs, lemon zest, fresh thyme, olive oil, salt, and pepper.
2. Spread the mixture out on a sheet tray and bake for 8-10 minutes at 375, or until golden brown and crispy.

For the broccoli

1. Toss the broccoli florets with olive oil and season with salt.
2. Roast on a sheet tray for 10-12 minutes at 425 degrees F.

To cook the Cappelletti

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
2. In a separate large sauté pan, bring 1 cup of chicken stock to a boil.
3. Once the water is boiling, add the cappelletti and cook for 1-2 minutes, or until they float.
4. Using a spider or slotted spoon, transfer the cooked pasta into the pan with the boiling chicken stock.
5. Continue cooking the cappelletti in the chicken stock for another 1-2 minutes, remove from heat.
6. Stir in the cold, unsalted butter.

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