Culurgiones, Sardinian Potato-Stuffed Pasta

For strategic use of time, steep the garlic and mix the dough while the potatoes are boiling. You can also prepare the dough and/or filling a day ahead and store in the refrigerator.

Filling

For a mild garlic flavor, steep the crushed garlic cloves in the olive oil while you boil and peel the potatoes. You'll then strain out the garlic before adding it to the filling. For a stronger garlic flavor, you can do this steeping but not strain out the garlic, or just add the oil and garlic separately.

Boil the potatoes, skin on, until fork tender. Drain and peel. To protect your fingers from the heat, you can hold each potato with a fork while you peel with a knife.

In a large bowl, mash or rice the potatoes.

Grate or break apart any solid cheese choices.

Add the cheeses, olive oil, optional crushed garlic, and chopped fresh and dried mint.

Thoroughly mix the filling. I found this easiest to do by hand.

Taste and add salt if needed. Cover and set aside.

Dough

Mix the dough ingredients by hand, in a stand mixer, or in a food processor. If using a different flour, hold back some of the water and add it as needed. The dough should be low hydration and an effort to knead. Transfer to a clean work surface and knead until smooth.

Cover in a small bowl or wrap with plastic and let the dough rest at least 30 minutes.

Sauce

At least 30 minutes before you plan to serve the culurgiones, prepare the tomato sauce. Saute diced onion in olive oil until it is translucent and tender.

Add a can of immersion-blended whole tomatoes and several basil leaves, either chop the basil to leave in the sauce, or add the leaves whole to be removed before serving.

Let simmer on low heat for about a half hour.

Salt to taste.

Assembly

Working in small batches and keeping the rest of the dough covered so it doesn't dry out, roll a portion of the dough into a sheet, 1/8 - 1/16th inch thick. This was #3 on my pasta roller.

Use an English muffin or biscuit cutter or drinking glass to cut circles in the dough (diameter of 2.75-3.75 inches). Gather and knead together the scraps and put the ball with the rest of the covered dough.

With a dough circle in the palm of one hand, place a tablespoon or so of filling in the center of the circle. Pat the filling down a bit and fold the sides of the circle inward like a taco. Poke an edge of dough inward to make an M shaped fold, then alternating right and left, pull folds of dough back to pinch inward. Use this video to see these instructions in action (same video as above).

Place each shaped culurgione on a baking sheet that has been floured or is lined with a tea towel.

Repeat until all of the dough and filling is used. It is fine if the shaped culurgiones begin to dry a bit, they will rehydrate when boiling.

Cooking

Assess how many culurgiones you'd like to prepare immediately and follow the storage instructions below for the rest of them.

Bring salted water to a boil. Try to use enough water so they're not overcrowded or work in batches.

Lower the culurgiones into the boiling water. Stir a few times so they don't stick to the bottom. They should simmer for 2-3 minutes after they have floated to the surface of the water. This is about 5 minutes in total.

Scoop them out of the water with a slotted spoon and place on a clean tea towel.

Serve with the tomato sauce, grated cheese, and fresh basil.

Storage

You can store uncooked culurgiones on parchment or wax paper in a sealed container in the refrigerator for a day or two.

For long term storage, put the culurgiones in the freezer uncovered on a floured or tea towel-lined baking sheet for several hours or overnight. Once they are frozen solid, transfer to a freezer bag or sealed container.

Frozen culurgiones can go straight into boiling water. They will need longer to cook than 5 minutes. Once they begin floating, set a timer for 2-3 more minutes of simmering.