making tortellini {video}

I had always read about how passionate people were about food in Emilia-Romagna. Specifically, while on the train to Modena,  I had just finished reading yet another article about one of the most famous chefs in the world, Massimo Bottura, whose Michelin-starred restaurant, Osteria Francescana, is located there. The main theme of the article? About how protective the Modenese are of their nonna’s cooking. Bottura made it sound like this was the most important thing in the world to them. I of course, thought he was probably exaggerating to add bit of drama to a magazine article.

Until, that is, I got in a taxi at the Modena train station and with absolutely no prompting on my part at all the driver began to talk about his nonna’s cooking. It was lunch time, and maybe he was hungry. But he got real specific real fast. Not only were his nonna’s tortellini the best there were, one of the reasons they were so good was because she didn’t use just any Parmigiano, but 30 month old Parmigiano Reggiano. Not 18 month old. Not 36 month old. But specifically 30 month old Parmigiano. “The kind from the red cows,” he specified.

All this and I hadn’t even picked up my rent-a-car yet.

I was on a mission to find out more about tortellini. My reason? Some of it had to do with the romantic story about the origins of this mini dumpling.

According to legend the tiny, belly button shaped, meat filled pasta sprang to life by someone peeping through a keyhole. It may have been an inn keeper in the 15th century in Castelfranco (near Modena) who spied a noblewoman (maybe Lucrezia Borgia) through the keyhole. The beauty of her navel made him run downstairs and recreate it in pasta form. Or it may have been another inn keeper, a couple of centuries earlier, nearer to Bologna, who was spying on Zeus and Venus (who somehow happened to be staying at his Inn). This time is was the beauty of Venus’s belly button that lead to tortellini inspiration.

Whatever its origins, as I began to do research on various types of stuffed pasta, tortellini, and finding the best ones, was at the top of my list. I asked a few people from the area, and even though all of them claimed that their mother produced the best ones, many of them also mentioned a small hotel, or restaurant, just south of Modena. (It turned out that the hotel and restaurant owners were relatives, each making their own version of tortellini)

And that is how I ended up at a small hotel in Settecani in the kitchen with Marisa, who (you will see) revealed her tortellini making magic. At least up to a certain point. While she showed me how she made the stuffing, (the most important part) she wouldn’t share the precise amounts. “A girl has to have some secrets,” she explained. But I was very grateful for the time she allowed me to watch her and her team whip up thousands of tortellini.

While they are always in high production, when I was there two years ago,  they were gearing up for the yearly Tortellini Festival in nearby Castelfranco Emilia. Yes, this is the town that, according to legend, gave birth to the first tortellino. This year I made it back there, and not only did I get to gorge myself on tortellini (3 meals worth thank you very much) I was also a guest of the city and got to play dress up with my friend Monica as we participated in the yearly reenactment of infamous tortelllini creation saga. (you can see the one from 2011 when Monica was the Noblewoman and Massimo 

Here are a few photos of that day, plus a video I made of Marisa working her magic. Enjoy!!

This post is partly and excerpt from my book Eating My Way Through Italy. For more information about tortellini, where to eat them, and for a recipe, please buy my book. And if you are particularly curious about stuffed pasta, there is more from the rich region around Modena and Parma in my next book, The Italian Table.

If you are planning on eating your way through Italy you might also like my app, EAT ITALY, available on iTunes and also for Android.

And if y0u’re TOTALLY dedicated in your pursuit of tortellini, then make sure you attend the next:

Festa del San Nicolo – Sagra dei Tortellini
Castelfranco Emilia, Italy
1st Week of September

This is the tortellini party to end all tortellini parties. It takes place in the supposed birthplace of tortellini, Castelfranco, the first week of September. Expert tortellini makers from all over the area descend to help produce a virtual river of tortellini in brodo, all carefully prepared by hand.