Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Pasta machine or long rolling pin
• •Large wooden board or clean work surface for rolling
• •Mortar and pestle or food processor for walnut sauce
• •Spider or slotted spoon for lifting pasta
• •Large pot for cooking pasta

Instructions

1. 1

   Make the pasta dough

   Mound the flour on a wooden board or clean work surface. Create a well in the center. Add the eggs, wine, and salt to the well. Using a fork, beat the eggs while gradually pulling flour from the inner walls of the well. When the mixture becomes too thick to stir, use your hands to bring the dough together. Knead vigorously for 10 minutes, until the dough is smooth, elastic, and springs back when pressed. Wrap tightly in plastic and rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.

   The wine is traditional in Ligurian pasta. It makes the dough more supple and easier to roll thin. Do not omit it.
2. 2

   Cook and chop the greens

   Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the borage and chard leaves. Cook until completely tender, about 5 minutes. The greens must be fully cooked, not just wilted. Drain and run under cold water to stop the cooking. Squeeze the greens in your hands, pressing out every drop of water you can. Chop very fine. You should have about one and a half cups of chopped greens.

3. 3

   Make the filling

   In a bowl, combine the ricotta and Greek yogurt. Stir until smooth. This approximates prescinseua. Add the chopped greens, egg, Parmigiano, marjoram, and nutmeg. Season with salt and mix thoroughly. The filling should hold together when pressed. If it seems wet, add another tablespoon of Parmigiano. Taste and adjust the salt.

   True prescinseua is a Ligurian fresh cheese with the tang of yogurt and the richness of ricotta. The combination I give you is not authentic, but it is as close as you will come outside Liguria.
4. 4

   Prepare the walnuts

   Bring a small pot of water to a boil. Add the walnuts and blanch for 2 minutes. Drain immediately. While still warm, rub the walnuts between a clean kitchen towel to remove as much of the papery brown skin as possible. This step is tedious but essential. The skins make the sauce bitter and muddy-colored. You want the pale inner nut.

5. 5

   Make the walnut sauce

   Soak the bread in the milk until completely soft, about 5 minutes. Squeeze out excess milk. In a mortar and pestle or food processor, pound or pulse the skinned walnuts with the garlic and a pinch of salt until you have a thick paste. Add the soaked bread and continue pounding or processing. With the machine running or while stirring constantly, drizzle in the olive oil gradually until the sauce is creamy and smooth. Stir in the Parmigiano. Taste for salt. The sauce should be the color of pale ivory, smooth but with slight texture, and pleasantly rich without being heavy.

   The garlic here is restrained. One small clove for the entire sauce. This is Ligurian cooking, not American-Italian. The walnuts should speak, not the garlic.
6. 6

   Roll and cut the pasta

   Divide the rested dough into four pieces. Work with one piece at a time, keeping the rest covered. Roll each piece through a pasta machine, starting at the widest setting and working down to the second-thinnest setting. The sheets should be thin enough to see your hand through, but sturdy enough to hold the filling. Cut the sheet into 3-inch squares.

7. 7

   Fill and shape the pansoti

   Place a generous teaspoon of filling in the center of each square. Moisten two adjacent edges with water. Fold the square diagonally to form a triangle, pressing firmly around the filling to seal and push out any air. The edges must be completely sealed or they will open during cooking. Press the tines of a fork along the sealed edges if you wish. Arrange the finished pansoti on a flour-dusted baking sheet without touching. You should have about 48 pansoti.

   The pansoti should look plump, like little bellies. Do not overfill them, or they will burst. Do not underfill them, or they will be disappointing.
8. 8

   Cook the pansoti

   Bring abundant salted water to a gentle boil. Reduce to a simmer. Stuffed pasta requires gentler treatment than dried pasta. Add the pansoti in batches, stirring carefully to prevent sticking. Cook until the pasta is tender and the edges are no longer raw, about 4 minutes. They will float when nearly ready. Lift out with a slotted spoon or spider and drain briefly.

9. 9

   Dress and serve

   Thin the walnut sauce with 3 to 4 tablespoons of the hot pasta cooking water. The sauce should flow but still coat a spoon. Toss the drained pansoti very gently with the walnut sauce, adding more pasta water if needed. The sauce should coat each triangle without pooling. Serve immediately on warmed plates. Once the pasta is sauced, invite your guests to put off talking and start eating.

Chef Tips

• •Borage has a distinctive cucumber-like freshness that chard cannot replicate. Seek it at farmers markets in spring and early summer. If unavailable, increase the chard and add a few leaves of fresh mint to approximate the brightness.
• •The walnut skins must be removed. I know it is tedious. Blanching and rubbing takes time. But the difference between a pale, sweet sauce and a bitter brown one is this step. Do not skip it.
• •Pansoti can be frozen on the baking sheet, then transferred to bags. Cook directly from frozen, adding one minute to the cooking time. The sauce should be made fresh.
• •Some Ligurian cooks add a spoonful of pine nuts or a few basil leaves to the walnut sauce. This is acceptable but not traditional. The purest version contains only walnuts, garlic, bread, oil, and cheese.

Advance Preparation

• •The filling can be made one day ahead and refrigerated. Bring to room temperature before filling the pasta.
• •Shaped pansoti can be frozen for up to one month. Freeze in a single layer on a baking sheet before transferring to bags.
• •The walnut sauce can be made several hours ahead and kept at room temperature, covered with plastic pressed directly onto the surface. Thin with warm pasta water just before serving.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 250g)