Cavatelli by Michael Dearth of Baduzzi

Cavatelli by Michael Dearth of Baduzzi

Cavatelli - from Baduzzi Photo: Michael Dearth / Baduzzi

One of my all time favorite comfort foods my mother would make us is also a very simple recipe that is super fun to make with your children. 

The dish is a pasta called Cavatelli.  This shape originally is from Puglia in Southern Italy. Cavatelli is similar to gnocchi. Recipes will vary but our family recipe is flour & ricotta with a pinch of salt. That's it...

Cavatelli is traditionally made by rolling the dough into long ropes or snakes and then cutting them into 5cm in length. The cavatelli are then formed by pressing the three middle fingers of one hand into each piece of dough to create a cavity.  

The ragu or sauce you can make could vary from a simple marinara with pesto or seasonal summer vegetable like asparagus or broccoli with chili, olive oil & garlic finished with freshly shaved pecorino & parmigiana cheese.