Ravioli alla CapreseCapri-Style Cheese and Marjoram Ravioli

Knead the boiling-water pasta matta

• 1 Sift 200g durum semolina and 100g type 00 flour into a bowl and make a well.
• 2 Boil 190ml water, measure 165ml into a jug and dissolve 5g fine salt completely.
• 3 Place 15g room-temperature softened lard in the well and pour in all 165ml hot salted water at once.
• 4 Mix quickly with a wooden spoon from the centre outwards, allowing all the flour to absorb the water into coarse crumbs.
• 5 Once cool enough to touch, turn onto an unfloured worktop and knead for 10–12 minutes, repeatedly pushing with the heel of the hand and folding back.
• 6 Round and wrap tightly.

Rest at room temperature to hydrate

• 1 Meanwhile(While it rests) begin the filling in step 3 and tomato sauce in step 5.
• 2 Rest the wrapped dough at 20–25°C for 60 minutes.

Make the caciotta and marjoram filling

• 1 Meanwhile(While the dough rests) prepare the filling.
• 2 Cut 350g fresh caciotta into 5mm cubes or coarsely grate and place in a bowl.
• 3 Pick and coarsely chop the leaves from 12g marjoram.
• 4 Add 80g Parmigiano Reggiano, 2 room-temperature eggs, marjoram, 2g salt and 1g black pepper.
• 5 Fold from the bottom with a spatula for 60–90 seconds until the cheese particles are evenly coated with egg.
• 6 Cover the bowl closely with wrap.

Chill the filling until firm

• 1 Meanwhile(While chilling) make the tomato sauce in step 5.
• 2 Refrigerate the tightly covered bowl for 30 minutes.

Make a briefly cooked ripe-tomato sauce

• 1 Meanwhile(While the filling chills) make the sauce.
• 2 Bring 2L water to the boil over high heat, then maintain boiling over medium heat; prepare a bowl of iced water at the same time.
• 3 Score crosses in the bases of 800g ripe San Marzano tomatoes, blanch for 20–30 seconds, transfer to iced water and peel.
• 4 Halve, scoop out seeds and jelly with a spoon and roughly dice the flesh to 1.5cm.
• 5 Warm 40ml extra virgin olive oil and 2 garlic cloves crushed with the flat of a knife over low heat for 3–4 minutes to release their aroma.
• 6 Remove the garlic when pale golden, add all the tomatoes at once and raise to medium heat.
• 7 Add 4g salt and simmer over medium heat for 8–10 minutes, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon.
• 8 Turn off the heat, tear in 10g basil leaves and let infuse in the residual heat for 30 seconds.

Roll the dough into thin strips

• 1 Divide the rested dough into 4 pieces of about 120g each; wrap the unused 3 against drying.
• 2 Dust the worktop lightly with semolina and flatten 1 piece into an oval with a rolling pin.
• 3 Roll from centre to edge, turning 90 degrees at a time, into a strip 14cm wide, about 55cm long and 1.2mm thick.
• 4 Brush or rub off surface semolina.

Shape and seal 32 ravioli

• 1 Meanwhile(When shaping the 3rd piece) put 5L water in a pot at least 28cm across and 6L in capacity over high heat.
• 2 Treat a line 7cm from the near edge as the fold line. Place scant 1 heaped tablespoon, 17g, of filling on the near half: each centre 3cm in front of the fold line, the first 1 centre 4cm from the strip end, and 8 mounds spaced 7cm centre-to-centre.
• 3 Brush a thin film of water around the filling.
• 4 Fold the far half towards you over the mounds and press from beside the filling outwards with finger pads, expelling air and sealing.
• 5 Cut each 1 raviolo with a 6cm round cutter placed directly over the filling, its top edge touching the fold line.
• 6 Press every edge with the back of a fork and arrange without overlapping on a semolina-dusted tray.
• 7 Roll the remaining 3 pieces to 14cm by about 55cm and shape 8 from each, making 32 total.

Boil together and coat with sauce

• 1 Meanwhile(While waiting for the water to boil) pick 10g finishing basil leaves and warm 4 plates.
• 2 Dissolve 50g coarse salt in the boiling 5L water.
• 3 Reduce to a gentle boil with a quietly moving surface and slide all 32 ravioli rapidly down the pot edge within 30 seconds.
• 4 Gently turn once from the bottom with a wooden spoon, then boil for 4–5 minutes.
• 5 (Just before they are ready) warm the tomato sauce over low heat and loosen with 80ml pasta water.
• 6 Lift out 8 at a time with a slotted ladle, drain well and transfer all 32 to the sauce pan.
• 7 Shake the pan backwards and forwards over low heat for 60–90 seconds to coat.
• 8 Turn off the heat, drizzle in 20ml extra virgin olive oil and shake once more to combine.

Plate and serve

• 1 Arrange 8 per 1 person in a fan without overlapping on warmed plates and spoon over the sauce left in the pan.
• 2 Tear and scatter the 10g finishing basil leaves.
• 3 Grate 30g Parmigiano Reggiano and offer in a small bowl for diners to add.