Wildflower’s Tortellini de Brodo

Wildflower welcomes the cooler weather with expertly prepared homemade goat cheese tortellini in a tomato broth.

Photo by Lauren Defilippo Jackson.

Goat Cheese Tortellini

Yield: 50 pieces of tortellini

Tomato Water

INGREDIENTS:
2 ¼ lbs. heirloom tomatoes

DIRECTIONS:
Purée tomatoes in a blender. Place into a flat dish or bowl no thicker than two inches and freeze for 24 hours. Remove from the freezer, place into a cheesecloth lined colander, and thaw for 48 hours in the refrigerator. Discard the solids and use the water for the broth in the dish.

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Egg Yolk Dough

INGREDIENTS:
250 g. 00 flour
125 g. bread flour
225 g. liquid egg yolk
1 egg

DIRECTIONS:
Combine all ingredients and mix by hand, or in a KitchenAid, until the dough comes together, approximately five minutes until it isn’t tacky. Wrap the dough ball and let sit for at least an hour. Roll 1/4th of dough into long sheets with a pasta roller or rolling pin to 1/16th of an inch. You should be able to see the back of your hand through the sheet but it should not be so thin that it is tearing while you handle it.

Goat Cheese Mousse

INGREDIENTS:
¾ c. goat cheese
⅔ c. extra hold sour cream
½ tsp salt
1 lemon, zested

DIRECTIONS:
Combine all ingredients together in a food processor until homogenous and smooth. Place into a piping bag and chill in the refrigerator until the mixture is firm and holds its shape.

Tortellini

INGREDIENTS:
4 qts. water
1 ½  tsp salt
5 tortellini pieces
5 heirloom cherry tomatoes, grilled per dish
2 oz. tomato water
5 basil leaves
Drizzle of olive oil
Pinch of maldon salt for garnish   

DIRECTIONS:
Take the rolled out tortellini dough and pipe a quarter sized dollop of mousse at the start of the sheet, leaving a 1-inch gap at the end and a 2-inch gap in between each dollop. Spritz the entire sheet of dough with water and fold the bottom of the sheet up to the top. Then, using the back end of a cookie cutter or ring mold, the size of a quarter, gently press around the dollops while pressing away any pockets of air from around the mousse. Using a 2-inch cookie cutter or ring mold, cut out a half moon shaped piece of pasta that leaves ¼-½ inches of rim around the mousse filling. Take the halfmoon by the corners with the curve downwards, press gently with your index finger on the middle of the mousse bulge on the straight folded edge of the pasta to make a small crease—and bring the corners together, pressing them very firmly. Lay each tortellini on a semolina flour lined tray.

Put It Together

Bring four quarts of heavily salted water to a boil. Add tortellini pieces and cook for 30 seconds if fresh or two minutes frozen. Strain the tortellini.

Warm the tomato water in a pot until it gently simmers and pour into your favorite tea pot with a few leaves of fresh basil. Place five tortellini pieces in a ring and place the grilled tomatoes inside, garnish with a basil leaf, a drizzle of oil, and a sprinkle of maldon flake sea salt.

When ready to serve, steep the water with the basil for a few seconds and pour over each dish tableside.

Pro Tips

• Freeze the extra tortellini for up to a month.
• Cook in boiling, heavily salted water for 30 seconds if fresh, or two minutes if frozen.