Tuscan pasta tordellata with ragu, Swiss chard and ricotta
This delicious double sauce pasta recipe from Tuscany is an unusual and tasty way to use up leftover ragu.
- Prep time
- 20 min
- Cook time
- 1 hr 30 min
- Yield
- 4 servings
- Difficulty
- HARD
Ingredients
Quantities are shown as originally provided.
- 400 g gigli or campanelle pasta ((14oz) You can also use other types of pasta such as pappardelle or penne)
- 200 g minced/ground beef ((7oz))
- 200 g minced/ground pork ((7oz))
- 1-2 Italian pork sausages (skin removed and chopped)
- 1-2 onions (peeled and finely chopped)
- 2-3 carrots (washed and finely chopped)
- 1-2 celery stalks (washed and finely chopped)
- 2 garlic cloves (peeled and finely chopped)
- 1 glass red wine
- 2 sprigs fresh rosemary (washed and chopped)
- 400 g fresh sauce tomatoes or tomato passata ((14oz) Fresh tomatoes need to be peeled. blanch them in hot water then peel.)
- 2-3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- salt (to taste)
- black pepper (to taste)
- 400 g fresh Swiss chard ((14oz) washed and stalks removed)
- 250 g fresh ricotta ((9oz))
- 1 knob butter
- 1 tsp nutmeg (freshly grated)
- 50 g Parmigiano Reggiano ((2oz) grated)
- salt (for pasta)
Instructions
- 1
Heat the olive oil in a frying pan or skillet. Add the chopped onion, carrot, garlic and celery; cook and stir until the onion becomes translucent.
- 2
Add the rosemary, sausage meat, ground beef and pork and cook and stir until browned.
- 3
Add the red wine, stir, and let it evaporate. When the alcohol has evaporated, add peeled tomatoes or passata, stir and season with coarse salt and black pepper.
- 4
Cover and let the ragu simmer at a low heat for at least an hour or more.
- 5
Prepare the chard by washing the leaves and cutting off the hard white stalk. Chop or tear the leaves into large pieces.
- 6
Cook the chard in a pan with only the liquid that has stuck to the leaves when washed. Like cooking spinach. But if it dries out too much you can add a little more water. It takes about 10-15 minutes on a low heat.
- 7
When the chard is ready, drain it and chop as finely as possible. Return it to the pan and cook for a couple of minutes more with a knob of butter.
- 8
Let the chopped chard cool and then combine it with the ricotta in a bowl. Generously grate some fresh nutmeg over the mixture and blend with a wooden spoon.
- 9
Bring a pot of water to boil for the pasta. Add salt once it starts to boil and bring to the boil again. Cook the pasta al dente according to the instructions on the packet.
- 10
Save a cup of the pasta cooking water then drain the pasta and mix it with the ricotta and chard. If the sauce seems dry add a little of the pasta cooking water.
- 11
Mix the pasta and ricotta well together and plate. Serve with a generous helping of ragu. You can do this as one layer or make 2. First pasta with ricotta and chard, then ragu and then more pasta with chard and finally some more ragu.Serve with grated cheese.