Join me as I discover the origins of the very first pasta recipe, Testaroli is famous in the Lunigiana region of Tuscany, and although you might never have heard of it before, it has been a staple of the region for over two millenia.

I visit Alessandra, an artisanal testaroli producer, who appears in my cookbook 'At the Table of La Fortezza'. She makes around 100 testaroli per day using this incredible traditional process. Then we head to my friend Jacopo, who owns a castle at Verrucola, just outside Fivizzano, for a fresh and innovative pesto recipe to pair with our testarolo.

Watch me tour Jacopo's castle in this video:    • My Friend Owns This CASTLE IN TUSCANY...  



‍RECIPE‍
Testaroli
Serves 46

INGREDIENTS:
1 cup of type '00' flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 to 2 cups water
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 tablespoons olive oil

PREPARATION:

Mix the flour and the salt and baking powder in a bowl add the water. Place a cast iron skillet on your cooktop with 3 tablespoons oil, I like to wipe it down with a paper towel to coat the bottom of the pan. Once the skillet is hot, ladle in 1 cup and turn the batter like you are making a crepe with an oven mitt, swirl the batter around until evenly coated. Watch it cook, when the top is pale and filled with holes and the bottom is brown for 3 minutes, then flip it for 20 seconds, remove it from the pan. You can add more oil to the pan for additional testaroli.

Cut the testarolo into 2 inch squares and blanch in a pot of boiling water for 30 seconds, then drain, place back into the warm skillet and add ½ cup of fresh pesto (recipe below) Place into 4 bowls top with parmesan cheese serve warm with plenty of grated parmesan cheese.



‍Jacopo’s Pesto ‍

INGREDIENTS:

2 cloves of garlic, center removed
6 cups loosely packed basil leaves gently washed and dried.
1/2 cup + 3 tablespoons toasted pine nuts (reserve 3 tablespoons for garnish)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese (plus ¼ to ½ cup for serving)
1/2 cup Pecorino cheese
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
½ teaspoon salt
3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

PREPARATION:

In a mortar place garlic pressing with the pestle. Smash garlic, then add pine nuts, add basil leaves and cheese. Squeeze half of a lime into the mixture add salt and place the mixture into a bowl and add slowly to incorporate.

Serve on pasta at room temperature. Garnish with pine nuts and grated Parmesan cheese.



Chapters:

00:00 Intro
00:49 Meeting Alessandra
01:51 Recipe
02:24 Stoking the Fire
03:00 What is a Testo?
04:02 Preparing a testarolo
04:17 Tasting Fresh Testaroli
04:42 Meeting Jacopo for Lunch
04:56 I Hate Those Bells
05:25 Where Did You Get Your Testarolo?
06:06 Cutting the Testarolo
06:57 Making the Pesto
08:58 Blanching the Testarolo
09:26 Serving



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