Vegetarian Recipes

Homemade Cavatelli

I spent most of the past four months in Northern California at my dad’s house. After my mom died everyone converged on the house, and in short order a lot of other things fell apart. No one went home for a long time. I made some strange decisions about what to bring when I loaded the car that initial morning – watercolors, a stack of cookbooks, my camera, a favorite knife, a huge bin full of spices. I thought about bringing my favorite donabe, but was worried it could break and grabbed my pasta machine instead. Not a bad call – a lot of pasta was made! My nephew is especially enthusiastic about it, so I decided to branch out to a new shape – cavatelli.

The move to cavatelli was partially out of necessity. My workhorse, the Atlas pasta machine, has issues at my dad’s house. There is nothing to clamp it on to. Every countertop and table is too thick. It’s maddening. I noticed the clamp on the cavatelli maker seemed like it might be wider, so I thought we’d try it instead. It is also worth mentioning, I’ve been meaning to buy a cavatelli maker for years. Ragazza, a sweet little Italian spot, was just up the street from where we lived in San Francisco. The owner Sharon tipped me off to how she made their cavatelli from scratch with a little hand-cranked machine (something like this one) – and I’ve meant to get my hands on once since. This seemed like the right time.

About this Cavatelli Recipe

After a good amount of experimenting, I’ve settled on the following as my basic cavatelli dough and technique. Once you master it, the variations you can explore are endless (see below). The cavatelli machine likes pasta dough that’s not-too-wet and not-too-dry. If you hit the sweet spot, you’ll be able to crank out a pound of cavatelli incredibly quickly. If your dough is getting stuck in your machine, pat it with flour, dust off any excess, and try again. You’ll eventually get a feel for it!

What if I don’t have a Cavatelli Machine?

Not a big deal! You can make it by hand a number of other ways. Here’s a page that demonstrates how to shape cavatelli with a ridged board, fork, or grater. I’ve also seen it shaped traditionally in Puglia using something like a butter knife.

What Flour Should I Use?

Cavatelli is traditionally made with durum wheat semolina flour. But, if you don’t have that on hand, don’t let it stop you. Last week I was out of semolina flour, so the cavatelli you see pictured here was made with “00” flour. “00” is powder-fine and made with low gluten, soft wheat flour. If you don’t have “00” you can certainly use all-purpose flour. A long way of saying, make cavatelli with 100% semolina flour if you have it, or use equal parts “00” and semolina, or just “00″….go for the all-purpose flour if that’s what you have.

How To Freeze Cavatelli

Freezing is my preferred method of storing any cavatelli I’m not cooking immediately. Arrange freshly made, uncooked cavatelli across a floured baking sheet. Try to make sure they’re in a single layer. Freeze for a couple of hours, and then transfer to double layer plastic bags. You can freeze for up to a couple of months. And you can cook straight from the freezer. No need to thaw, just dump the cavatelli into boiling salted water, and increase the cooking time a bit.

Cavatelli Variations

In the recipe below you can see how you can tweak basic cavatelli pasta dough by adding different seasonings and spices. I wanted to make a bright, sunny plate of pasta with lots of roasted yellow and orange vegetables and ingredients like cauliflower, golden yellow beets, and winter squash (pictured above). I added turmeric and black pepper to the pasta dough for a little flavor, color, and boost. The possibilities are endless here.

You can also play around with the water. In place of water you can use vegetable juices, purees, stocks or broths, anything of that sort is fair game.
Making fresh pasta is one of my favorite things to do. It’s even better when you have others around to help, taking turns in shifts. I did a basic primer on making homemade pasta a while ago, if you love fettuccine noodles or anything along those lines, start there. You can also try making gnocchi (it’s perfect with this pesto), here’s a beautiful beet fettuccine, and a favorite simple tomato sauce. And all my pasta recipes live here. Enjoy!

Homemade Cavatelli

See the notes in the post above related to flour choices. Basically, semolina flour is traditional, but you can use “00” flour, semolina flour, or a combination of the two.

INGREDIENTS

Pasta Dough:

160 g water
300 g semolina flour, “00” flour, or a combination of the two
4 g / scant teaspoon fine grain sea salt
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric (optional)
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper (optional)

Roasted Vegetables:

- 1 medium yellow beet, peeled, cut 1/2-inch cubes
- 1 small head of cauliflower florets
- 1 medium delicate squash, halved lengthwise and deseeded
- Extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

To serve: sliced scallions, lots of lemon zest, and juice

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat oven to 400F.

Make the Cavatelli:

Combine the flour, water, and salt in a large bowl. Add the turmeric and black pepper as well, if using. Stir until combined. If you added the turmeric, knead in the bowl to avoid staining your counters. If you skipped it, then turn out onto a lightly floured countertop. Use your hands to bring the dough together into a ball and knead for 7-10 minutes, until the dough is silky smooth and elastic. Keep in mind, some flours are thirstier than others. You can add a bit more water as you go if you feel like your dough is too dry. Or dust with more flour if it is too wet. I’ve found that a spray bottle is my favorite way to add water to pasta dough without adding too much.

Make the Dough

Form the dough into a ball and place in a plastic bag, alternately or plastic wrap. Allow the cavatelli dough to rest for 30 minutes at room temperature. Use immediately, refrigerate for up to a day, or freeze for up to a few months.

Shape the Cavetelli

Unwrap the dough and, use a rolling pin to roll the dough to 1/4-inch thickness on a lightly floured surface. Cut the dough into 3/4-inch wide strips. Use a cavatelli maker to shape the pasta. Alternately you can shape the cavatelli by hand. Spread the pasta onto a baking sheet in a single layer and dust generously with more flour. Keep refrigerated or frozen until ready to cook.

To Cook the Cavatelli

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the cavatelli for 2-3 minutes, or until tender. They’ll float to the top of the pot as they cook. Drain, reserving 2/3 cup of the pasta water. Serve immediately.

Roast the Vegetables

While the dough is resting, I typically roast or prep any vegetables or sauce I’m going to use with my pasta. In this case, arrange the beets and cauliflower on a large baking sheet. Slice the delicate squash into 1/2-inch thick crescents. Add them to the baking sheet as well and toss well with a couple big plugs of olive oil. Sprinkle with salt, and bake until golden – 30 minutes or so.

Assemble the Pasta

Immediately after cooking the cavatelli, transfer to a large serving bowl along with the reserved pasta water. Add most of the Parmesan cheese and toss well. Add the roasted vegetables, lots of scallions and lemon zest. Toss again and serve topped with the remaining Parmesan, more scallions and lemon wedges to squeeze.

NOTES

Serves 4 – Makes 1 pound dough.

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Vegetarian Recipes

Lemon Ricotta Pasta

Here’s a quickie recipe for those nights when you just need something fast and delicious. This Lemon Ricotta Pasta is super fast, light, and fresh, which makes it perfect for an easy weeknight dinner during the summer. The bright lemon flavor perfectly compliments the light and creamy ricotta, and the little pops of sweetness from the peas make every bite a little more interesting. Simple, fresh, and easy.

Originally posted 3-4-2011, updated 6-8-2022.

Do I Have to Use Fresh Lemon?

This is one of those recipes where you really do want to use a fresh lemon instead of bottled juice. The zest from the lemon adds a ton of bright, summery lemon flavor to the pasta without making the sauce too sour. We add just a little of the juice to balance the creaminess of the ricotta, but the zest is where you’re getting all that gorgeous sunny lemon flavor!

Not All Ricotta is Created Equal

I find there is quite a bit of variation in the quality of ricotta from brand to brand. Some are smooth, mild, and sweet like fresh milk, while others are bland and grainy. My preferred brand is Galbani, but they didn’t have any at the store when I went, so I got the generic Kroger brand. It was definitely a bit grainy, but the pasta was still quite delicious despite that!

Also, make sure to get whole milk ricotta. Low-fat ricotta just doesn’t hit the same in this recipe.

What Else Can I Add?

This simple pasta is a great jumping-off point for making a more elaborate pasta, if that’s what you’re in the mood for. Try adding some sliced chicken breast, fresh basil, or fresh spinach. Garlic butter shrimp would also go great with this pasta!

What to Serve with Lemon Ricotta Pasta

This pasta is so light and fresh that I suggest keeping any side dishes really simple, light, and fresh as well. I would go with a super simple side salad, or maybe some roasted asparagus and tomatoes.

Lemon Ricotta Pasta

Lemon Ricotta Pasta is light, fresh, and quick to prepare, making it the perfect pasta for weeknight dinners in the summer.

Course Dinner, Lunch

Cuisine American

Total Cost $4.27 recipe / $1.07 serving

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Servings

Calories 400kcal

Author Beth – Budget Bytes

Ingredients

1 lemon $0.89
8 oz. pasta* $0.67
1 cup frozen peas $0.50
1 clove garlic, minced $0.08
1 Tbsp butter $0.11
1 cup whole milk ricotta $1.60
1/4 cup grated Parmesan $0.36
1/4 tsp salt (or to taste) $0.02
1/4 tsp freshly cracked black pepper (or to taste) $0.02
1 pinch crushed red pepper (or to taste) $0.02

Instructions

Zest and juice the lemon. You’ll need about ½ tsp zest and 1 Tbsp lemon juice.
Cook the pasta according to the package directions (boil for 7-10 minutes, or until tender). Before draining, reserve about 1 cup of the starchy water from the pot.
Place the frozen peas in the colander before draining the pasta so the pasta will thaw the peas as it drains.
Add the butter and minced garlic to a large skillet and sauté over medium heat for 1-2 minutes, or just until the garlic is fragrant.
Add the drained pasta and peas, and about ½ cup of the starchy pasta cooking water to the skillet with the butter and garlic. Stir to combine, then turn off the heat.
Add the ricotta, Parmesan, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, and ½ teaspoon lemon zest to the skillet. Stir until everything is well combined, the residual heat from the skillet and pasta have warmed the ricotta, and the ricotta has formed a creamy sauce. Add more of the warm reserved pasta water if needed.
Season the pasta with salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper to taste. Serve warm.

Notes

*Use any short shape pasta.

Nutrition

How to Make Lemon Ricotta Pasta – Step By Step Photos

Zest and juice one lemon. You’ll need about ½ tsp of zest and 1 Tbsp juice.

Cook 8oz. pasta according to the package directions (boil for 7-10 minutes, or until tender). Reserve about 1 cup of the starchy pasta water before draining.

Add 1 cup of frozen peas to a colander, then pour the boiled pasta over top to thaw the peas as you drain the pasta.

Add 1 Tbsp butter and 1 clove garlic to a large skillet. Sauté over medium heat for 1-2 minutes, or just until the garlic becomes very fragrant.

Add the still-hot pasta and peas to the skillet along with about ½ cup of the hot reserved pasta water. Stir to combine, then turn off the heat.

Add 1 cup whole milk ricotta, ¼ cup grated Parmesan, 1 Tbsp lemon juice, and ½ tsp lemon zest to the pasta. Stir until the ingredients are combined, the residual heat from the pasta and skillet have warmed the ricotta, and the ricotta has turned into a creamy sauce.