Pizzocherri

I don't know why, but I got obsessed with this recipe a while back and kept searching for different recipes until I finally settled on one and took the plunge and made it.  It's a recipe from northern Italy where it borders the Swiss alps and really is hearty and warming comfort food if ever I have known it. I think I first got intrigued when I saw that this dish was a pasta that included potatoes and cabbage, but not only that, the pasta was made with buckwheat flour. I'm always a sucker for novel and different recipes so it hovered around my meal-planning until one Saturday morning when I decided enough was enough..

Pizzocheri

We always have pasta on Saturdays'.  It's the day traditionally you take off the practice of Ashtanga Yoga, so we figure that it is also the day we take off cooking what we would consider more healthy options and just go straight to the Pasta which we both love. We generally make our own pasta, rendering it a lot fresher and, of course, this time there is also a mix of buckwheat which is pretty much one of the most healthful and protein full wholegrains you can come by. I can't really defend the cheese though and I would say you're better off not to skimp on this part. It definitely benefits from a creamy edge to balance the ever so slightly bitter flavours of cabbage and buckwheat.

I don't know whether the recipe for this dish is in "made In Italy", I found it  surfing the net and it was attributed to Locatelli. But get this book anyway; it's one of the most beautiful cookbooks I am in possession of. One of those that has a lot of really interesting information on (Italian) food too so you can read it like a book. Which is what I did for a whole day when I was sick in bed shortly after receiving this one Christmas. One thing is though, as great as this book is, it is also in the same proportions one of the heaviest books I have ever owned. Due to all the traveling Theresa and I have done over these past years I haven't been able to carry this with me and it is languishing at my mum's currently where I'm quite sure she isn't using it. So if you're passing Swavesey, a village just north of Cambridge, UK, please pop in and collect it. Tell the Old Dear that I said better that someone actually makes use of it.

Pizzocherri (serves 4)

For the Pasta
1 cup buckwheat flour
3/4 cup white flour
 1 tbs gluten flour (optional)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2-2/3 cup warm water
1 tbs olive oil

1. Mix the flours and salt together in a large bowl. Make a well in the centre and add the olive oil and 1/2 cup of the water. Start to gather the dough together, adding more water if you need in order to achieve a very stiff dough. Kneed for about 3-5 minutes until the dough is smooth.
2. Leave to rest for 20 minutes covered, then divide into 3 balls and keeping the remaining ones covered, roll out each ball into a thin rectangular sheet roughly 3mm thin. Dust the sheet well with flour and roll up like a jelly roll. Cut into tagliatelle noodles about 1/4 inch thick.
3. Dust these noodles again with flour and roll up into little nests on a clean work-surface to dry out until you need them.

For the rest of the dish 


2 medium potatoes peeled and cut into 1cm cubes
3 cups cabbage chopped into thin ribbons
1 stick celery
3 tbs butter
1/3 cup grated parmigiano cheese
3/4 cup grated fontina cheese

1. Bring a large pot of water to the boil.  Bring another smaller pan to the boil and cook the potatoes until just tender. 
2. In a third pan blanch the cabbage in boiling water for 3 minutes then drain and refresh under cold water immediately.
3. As the potatoes and cabbage are cooking melt the butter and add the celery. Saute until it softens then add the drained cabbage, saute for a few minutes more then add the potatoes and season well with salt and pepper. 
4. Cook the buckwheat noodles in the large pan of boiling water for 5 minutes or until tender. Add these to the vegetable and on a low heat warm through. Add the cheeses and, stir to combine briefly and then cover for another 5 minutes to allow the cheese to melt.