GNOCCHETTI & CAVATELLI FROM A CORN-AND-WHEAT PASTA

Gnocchetti & Cavatelli from a Corn-and-Wheat Pasta image

This pasta dough is made from a mix of corn flour and all purpose flour. It's has a tasty mild sweetness and a hearty texture. It's traditionally eaten in a chickpea and tomato soup from the Abruzzo region of Italy, but here I'm serving it as a standalone pasta dish, shaped both as traditional gnocchetti and as cavatelli. I've also added the option of a sourdough fermentation to enhance digestibility and flavor.

Provided by Melissa Johnson

Categories Recipes

Time 1h10m

Yield 4

Number Of Ingredients 7

Ingredients

250g organic all purpose flour (approx. 2 cups)
250g corn flour or home milled corn, such as heirloom white bolita corn (approx. 2 cups)
~250g water (approx. 1 cup)
Optional: 20-40g sourdough starter (approx. 2 Tbsp)
A pinch of salt
For the boiling water: 1 Tbsp salt
For serving: marinara or another sauce of your choosing, or simply olive oil/butter and grated cheese

Steps:

Mix the ingredients together, holding back some of the water. Add more water as needed to incorporate the dry ingredients. Mixing can be done by hand in a bowl, on a wood board, or in a stand mixer with a paddle attachment.
Knead the dough for 5-10 minutes by hand, adding water or flour as needed. The dough should be stiff but not breaking when it bends.
Put the dough in a clean bag or a covered bowl and let it ferment for 6-12 hours. This long rest can be skipped, and it can also be done even if you haven't included sourdough starter in your dough. The bran/husk will still soften.
Set 4-6 quarts of salted water to boil, and prepare a large generously floured baking sheet.
Roll the dough out into a rectangle that's about ½ inch thick.
Cut thin strips in the dough, also about ½ inch thick. A bench knife works well for this.
Roll each strip to be a smooth tube about as thick as a pencil for gnocchetti, about twice as thick for cavatelli. Cover the dough that is not being rolled.
When you have about five tubes, flour them generously and line them up side by side. Cut the tubes in pieces, about as big as chickpeas for gnocchetti and as big as raspberries for cavatelli.
Toss the pieces around in more flour, making sure they are not stuck together.
If making gnocchetti, transfer the pieces to the floured baking sheet with your bench knife, and continue until all the dough is rolled and cut.
If making cavatelli, press and roll the pieces down gnocchi stripper with your thumb as in this video. Toss the cavatelli in more flour and transfer them to the floured baking sheet with your bench knife. Continue until all the dough is rolled, cut, and shaped.
Boil the gnocchietti or cavatelli for 10 minutes, then drain the water.
Place in a serving dish and add your sauce of choice.