TASTE OF THE LOT. The Lot-style tortellini recipe: our challenge to a cooking teacher

We already knew the common points between the Lot and Italy: good wine and pretty valleys. We suggested to Maxime Moreau, cooking teacher at the Cahors trade school, to combine the two gastronomies within the framework of a unique recipe. Our request has nothing to do with chance: Maxime Moreau and his 14 professional patent students have just returned from a gastronomic stay in Bologna. Suffice it to say that they came back with a lot of ideas. “This stay inspired me to create a recipe for tortellini in brodo, that is to say tortellini in broth. This is a very popular dish in Bologna, served in most restaurants. The stuffing is made mortadella and parmesan”, explains the teacher in the art of cooking and serving. He adapted the recipe with products from the Lot and invites us to make tortellini with pulled duck and goat cheese. Here is his recipe for four people.

To prepare the tortellini dough

You will need 4 egg yolks and 400 grams of flour. 4 cl of olive oil, 3 good pinches of salt and 4 cl of water. “We mix vigorously until you obtain a homogeneous dough,” advises Maxime Moreau. And we take inspiration from the Italian chefs that the cooking teacher saw “knead without stopping, for a good ten minutes to activate the elasticity”. In case of laziness: the robot can also do the trick. If you're feeling more lazy: ready-made fresh ravioli are often sold in Asian grocery stores. The teacher also recommends fresh lasagna noodles.

The bravest can let the dough rest for 30 minutes and pass it through a rolling mill, 3 mm thick. “This is the most technical stage,” warns Maxime Moreau.

Now the stuffing

You will need two duck confits and four heaping tablespoons of goat's curd cheese available at most dairies. Chives, a teaspoon of whole-grain mustard, salt and pepper. “Be careful with the dose of salt though because goat curd cheese is already salty, you should not overbid,” warns the specialist. Heat the duck confit in the oven then shred it and bind it with the curd cheese. When the stuffing is ready, place it in a piping bag and pour the contents onto the ravioli dough. “We only pour the equivalent of a one euro coin per ravioli. In Italy, the cooks only use a very small dot of stuffing as big as the tip of the little finger because the tortellini are really very small “, points out the cook. We then cut large squares around the stuffing point and pass a brush soaked in water around the edges. Next comes the folding, and it's no easy feat. If you haven't mastered the technique of Italian chefs: “You can simply fold in half and roll up the two small points of the triangle.”

And finally, the broth

“As with a classic broth, we immerse the poultry carcasses, the rest of the roast chicken from Sunday and the vegetables we have on hand: celery, carrots, onions, in boiling water…” explains -he again. Italians add a tomato to the broth. The Lotois can do without it. We then leave it to simmer for several hours so that the juice absorbs all the juices. On the other hand, the tortellini can be immersed in boiling water for 2 to 3 minutes. Once the broth is served in a deep plate, pour in the tortellini which will finish cooking. Drink with a glass of fairly light red wine, preferably Italian to stay on theme. Or a good Malbec, for the purists.