Sacchettoni with asparagus, wild onion and ricotta

Sacchettoni (also known as beggar’s purse) is a popular type of pasta at Art Café Odeon. It is similar to ravioli but slightly different. It is shaped like Georgian khinkali, moulded by swirling and twisting the dough between fingers. On the inside, however, their filling is juicy and always surprisingly different from the usual ingredients.

Sacchettoni dough:

• 1 kg flour (you can mix regular flour with wholemeal but not too much)
• 400 ml lukewarm water
• salt, olive oil
• strong hands

Start by deciding the »theme« of the sacchettoni and, of course, counting the guests at the table. You can feed ten people of average size and average hunger with a kilo of flour, to which you add a teaspoon of salt, a bit less than half a litre of lukewarm water, and a few tablespoons of olive oil. Use your strength to knead the ingredients into a smooth ball. Divide the ball-shaped dough into 5 pieces to make it more manageable. Cover the dough with a cloth and let it sit for at least half an hour.

For the »wild« filling:

• a bunch of wild onions and a bunch of wild asparagus
• garlic, salt, a few tablespoons of water
• 1 kg ricotta or albumen curd

Let us continue with the theme, which is one of spring's wildness. Chop the wild onions – they are healthy and delicious. You can also use any other type of onion, shallot, beetroot, or leek. Heat the onion in olive oil for a few minutes; add hand-chopped asparagus (break the soft parts into approx. 2 cm long pieces. You can use the harder stems for soups) and chopped garlic. Add a few tablespoons of cold water, season with salt, and let it slowly soften.

Start with the ricotta or homemade albumen curd and mash it with a fork. Add the wild mix and combine everything into a smooth mixture. Let us have a taste – it must be yummy!

And here is the fun part, in which you can include everyone you love. Roll out the dough into a square, and cut it into a grid of approx. 4x4 cm. Additionally, roll out each square until you can (there shouldn’t be any holes). Put a spoonful of filling in the middle of the square, pinch the ends between your fingers, and lift them as if you were making a little sack. Press the dough together and cut off any excess. Cook the sacchettoni in salted boiling water or on steam for a few minutes.

We like to eat them right away because they are so tasty, but you can also coat them with herb oil, butter etc.