Ron Suhanosky's passion for pasta is obvious - he choose pasta as the subject of his first cookbook. Pasta Sfoglia highlights not only pasta's versatility, but Suhanosky's talent to create dishes that are sublime.  And part of what makes the book complete is that he not only presents great recipes for all forms of pasta, he also explains why specific ingredients, flavor combinations and even textures are used in the recipes giving away bits and pieces of his culinary life in the process.

Fresh pasta is the starting point of Pasta Sfogila with recipe after recipe of traditional Italian ingredients and dishes. If you don't have the desire to make fresh pasta that's ok, Pasta Sfoglia also has a hefty dose of recipes using dried pasta and risotto. I must warn you, however, that after reading about the fresh pasta dishes you may change your mind and decide you want to make your own fresh pasta.

One thing that might initially throw you, but shouldn't, is that many of the recipes in Pasta Sfoglia use fresh goat milk cheese.  This stems from what Ron uses in his restaurants. If you're like me and don't have access to fresh goat milk that's ok. Store bought goat's milk cheese can be used instead.  And whether or not you make your own goat milk cheese, if you love pasta this book will draw you in and hook you even more on its wonders.

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Cuscinetti, Black Olives, Green Grapes, Parsley

amazon.com

Serves 4-6

This is an example of why on my menus I like to use CUSCINETTI, little pillows, even more than ravioli. My cuscinetti always have the same goat's milk cheese-ricotta filling. The neutral, mildly tangy filling gives them a delicate flavor that contrasts with a variety of sauces.

Because grapes and olives grow near each other and are harvested at more or less the same time of the year, I consider them to be kindred spirits. When the briny olives and sweet grapes get together and exchange their flavors in this sauce, they give it just the kind of salty-sweet taste that I tend to go after. Even though the recipe calls for seedless green grapes, a more fragrant, intensely flavored green grape such as Niagara or Seneca may well be worth the effort to seed and use for the sauce.

• 1 recipe goat's milk-ricotta-filled Cuscinetti (see recipe below)
• 1 tablespoon grape seed oil
• 1 cup finely chopped red onions
• 1 1/2 cups pitted black olives, such as Kalamata, coarsely chopped
• 1 cup seedless green grapes, cut in half
• 1 cup coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black Pepper

1. Add the grape seed oil and onions to a 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the onions until tender, about 5 to 7 minutes. Agitate the pan from time to time to keep the onions from sticking to the bottom.

2. Add the olives, grapes, parsley, extra virgin olive oil, salt, pepper, and sautéed onions to a large mixing bowl and toss to combine. Add the pesto to a 10-inch skillet.

3. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the cuscinetti to the boiling water. Stir gently so that the cuscinetti cook evenly. After they float to the top, cook for 6 more minutes. Use a wire-mesh skimmer to remove the cuscinetti from the pot and place them directly into the skillet. Carefully stir the cuscinetti into the sauce to combine.

4. Serve immediately.

Cuscinetti

From Pasta Sfoglia by Ron Suhanosky, Colleen Suhanosky (John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2009)

Makes 24-30 Pieces Cuscinetti | Serves 4-6

This is the recipe that I've chosen to use for Sfoglia's signature ravioli. It is included here because I always make CUSCINETTI the same way- stuffed with our own house-made goat's milk cheese and cow's milk ricotta. These simple little pillows are a perfect contrast for more complex sauces. There are two recipes in this book that use cuscinetti. In addition, they are wonderful sauced with brown butter and sage, or with the simple tomato sauce.

• 1 recipe Fresh Egg Pasta, cut for filled pasta (see recipe and directions below)
• 1/2 pound Goat's Milk Cheese
• 1/2 pound whole milk ricotta
• Rice flour for dusting

1. Fold together the goat's milk cheese and ricotta in a mixing bowl until combined.

2. Line up the pasta sheets, 2 at a time, on a clean, dry work surface. Starting 2 inches up from the bottom and ½ inch in from the sides of the sheets, place a rounded teaspoon of the cheese filling. Continue to place the filling every inch along the sheets. Use a pastry brush dipped in water to moisten the edges of the pasta sheets between the mounds of filling. Fold the pasta sheets over from the top to the bottom. Seal the cuscinetti by pressing down with your fingers, working from the filling out to the edges. Use a sharp knife or pastry wheel to cut down between the mounds of filling. Store the cuscinetti on a rice flour-covered baking sheet until ready to use.

STORAGE: The cuscinetti can be kept frozen for up to 2 weeks. To prepare them for the freezer, place them, dusted with rice flour, in a single layer on a baking sheet and freeze. Once frozen, place them one on top of the other in an airtight container. There is no need to thaw before cooking. Cook according to the recipe directions.

Fresh Egg Pasta

From Pasta Sfoglia by Ron Suhanosky, Colleen Suhanosky (John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2009)

Makes About 1 Pound Dough | Serves 4-6

Sitting at the table in my great-grandmother's kitchen, watching her make pasta, is where my story begins. At her home every Sunday, instead of playing with my sisters, I gravitated toward the kitchen, fond of the comfort I felt being around Big Nonna-my mother's grandmother. I liked the way she moved around her kitchen.

I watched her make many pasta dishes, and for those that required fresh pasta, I watched her make that, too. I bought my first hand-crank pasta maker when I was sixteen, and it wasn't long before I started to experiment with making my own versions of her egg pasta. Over the years, I have refined my dough recipe until I finally settled on this one. I've also realized that an electric machine is the most expeditious way to roll and cut pasta. Because the electric machine works so quickly and precisely, the task of making fresh pasta becomes less intimidating.

I find that the food processor method works best when you're making a small amount of dough. The blade of the processor not only incorporates the ingredients, but also helps to knead the dough.

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3 eggs
• 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• Rice flour for dusting

1. Add the all-purpose flour, eggs, extra virgin olive oil, and salt to the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Pulse several times until the dough resembles medium crumbs.

2. Turn out the dough onto a clean, dry, rice flour-dusted work surface. Gather the dough together and knead it until it comes together and is smooth and elastic. Cover the dough with a kitchen towel or plastic film and let rest for at least 10 minutes or up to 2 hours.

STORAGE: The dough, tightly wrapped with plastic film, can be refrigerated for up to 2 days or frozen for up to 2 weeks. Defrost in the refrigerator. The dough will discolor slightly, but its flavor will not be affected.

THIS DOUGH IS USED FOR: pappardelle, tagliatelle, fettuccine, lasagne, rotoli, spaghetti, and filled pasta.

DIRECTIONS FOR FILLED PASTA

Filled pasta: cuscinetti, ravioli, triangoloni, tortellini, lasagne, cannelloni, and rotoli with an electric pasta maker

1. Divide the dough into 3 equal pieces. Flatten each piece into a disk and dust with rice flour.

2. Set the roller of the electric pasta maker at number 1. Feed the disks, one at a time, through the roller three times. Fold each end of the dough to meet in the middle and press down on the middle to seal. Feed the open side of the dough through the roller three times. Fold the ends to meet in the middle and press down to seal.

3. Adjust the setting to number 2. Feed the open side of the dough through the roller twice.

4. Adjust the setting to number 3. Feed the dough through the roller twice. The sheet will be quite long now. Cut it in half and feed each piece through the roller once more.

5. Adjust the setting to number 4. Feed the pasta sfoglie through the roller twice.

6. Adjust the setting to number 5. Feed the pasta sfoglie through the roller twice. For tortellini, feed the pasta sfoglie through number 5 three times. Dust each sfoglia with rice flour and layer one on top of the other. If you aren't going to use the pasta sfoglie right away, cover them with a slightly dampened kitchen towel to keep them from drying out. Do not refrigerate-the sfoglie will stick together.

7. Cut the pasta sfoglie according to the individual recipes.

FILLED PASTA WITH A HAND-CRANK PASTA MAKER: Proceed as directed for the electric pasta maker, except at number 5, feed the pasta sfoglie through three times. For tortellini, four times.

Win a copy of Pasta Sfoglia

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