The drawing room sofa was in need of some real TLC.
The drawing room sofa was in need of some real TLC. Having been used for a little over six years it had seen its days of glory and was now on the wane. My wife had been persistent with the idea of getting new upholstery and even I had begun to agree with her. So one Sunday, we did the inevitable. We managed to go to a drapery and bought some really fancy upholstery material. The upholsterers took all of two days and by midweek we had changed the drawing room conversations.
Everyone wanted to know where we had bought it and how we managed to get such a wonderful fabric. It had almost become the topic of the news hour debate! The country wanted to know how we had managed to pull this off. And even though this takes a precious line of my article here, I must admit that our sofa did look smashing.
A week later, on a warm Sunday afternoon, while we were readying ourselves for a dinner party at home, our 2-year-old son came running into the kitchen calling us out. He promised to show us something really beautiful. We went out half expecting a mini traffic scene on the floor made by his neat array of dinky cars, or a tower of empty shrikhand matkas, which he often liked to make, or our collection of shoes and chappals, which he would meticulously arrange under each chair around the dining table. But nothing prepared us for the work of art he had on display.
We stood gobsmacked as he proudly presented his ‘art’. Crayons gifted by an indulgent aunt had finally found expression.With twinkling eyes he looked at us and said, ‘Isn’t it beautiful? I made it specially for you’. Five metres of the finest upholstery a junior chef’s money could buy had been turned into a canvas of epic proportions!
Tears welled up in our eyes and we are yet to determine the actual emotions behind them.
We went into a family hug and agreed that it was indeed really beautiful. Creative expression needs unbridled enthusiasm and a sense of fearlessness and children display these in ample measure. I secretly admire them for this one trait and wish I could listen to my inner child more often.
In creativity you can only get so near when you’ve gone so far. Tortellini are my ‘sofas’. The concept is clear and beautiful. A little bit of practice can go a long way. The pasta dough is the upholstery. The fillings are the crayons. Try this recipe and then go paint your own sofa.
Pasta dough for filled pastas (For about six people)
Ingredients
- Refined flour: 500 gms
- Whole eggs: 4
- Egg yolks: 1 or two
Method
Break the eggs and the yolks into a bowl and whisk together. Sift the flour and make a well in the centre, pour in the eggs and bring everything together really fast. Knead well to get a soft and smooth dough. Rest in a cool area covered with a damp (not wet) kitchen cloth.
Making Tortellini
Tortellini are made by rolling the dough out into thin sheets. For this you can use a pasta rolling machine (easier) or flex your muscles and roll out thin using a rolling pin and a som flour. Cut the pasta dough into squares. Using a wet finger, lightly dampen two adjacent sides of the square. Place the filling in the centre using a spoon of the appropriate size. Fold the tortellini diagonally over and seal the ends and sides. Bring the opposite corners of the tortellini together and gently pinch them together.
A tight pinch makes it hard for the pasta to get cooked.
Lower the tortellini in boiling water and retrieve when they float to the top — in about two or three minutes. Gently slide them into the sauce of your choice, toss, season and serve.
Making the filling
Here’s where the crayons come in! Let me explain some traits so that I don’t curtail your creativity! After all you’re gonna need a family hug too once you are done making your piece of art.
- The filling needs to be moist and not wet. This is to ensure that it doesn’t tear through when cooking.
- Since the tortellini cook real fast, use a filing that is already cooked or that will cook itself in about 2-3 minutes. This ensures that the pasta and the filling cook together.
- Good examples of fillings are minced chicken breast, minced sausage meat, minced fish or prawns or a combination of seafood.
- Vegetarians can make fillings with the numerous types of kura. Make sure they are cooked, squeezed and chopped before being seasoned.
- Parmesan and processed cheese serve as lovely binding agents for most fillings, a little touch of egg or egg yolk works for the non-veg ones.
- Keep the spice subtle, using very little, nutmeg or cinnamon or even black pepper are great with western style fillings.
- Any filling should be adequately minced so that none of it can ‘poke’ or protrude through the pasta (think of poorly minced spinach stalks).
- A touch of cream always adds a luxurious dimension.
- If adding butter, make sure you chill the filling before stuffing the pasta.
