Handmade cavatelli pasta with ragout bolognese sauce

Preparation steps

• Paste instructions: Cavatelli are made with hard flour and water (without eggs) which gives them a distinctive golden yellow color (if you want to enhance the yellow color just add a few pinches of saffron). The recipe is not difficult, but you may want to have helpers in the kitchen, especially if you make a larger quantity!
• For the dough, make a flock of flour on a flat surface, with a well in the middle. Pour a little water in the middle. Add with and start lowering the flour towards the middle. Continue to add the rest of the water. Knead lightly, adjusting the amount of water and flour until the dough becomes smooth and elastic. Wrap in cling film and refrigerate for at least 15/20 min.
• When cooled, divide the dough into quarters or more for easier rolling. Roll the dough into long ropes about 1cm thick. Cut each rope into smaller "pillows"
• Then press each piece of pasta with your thumb on a fork (or a wooden mold with grooves), pull the dough away from you over the fork, so that when you press on the dough, a trace remains. This should add the characteristic grooves to the pasta. Patience is very important here!
• Either cook the pasta immediately, or flour it and leave it covered until it's time to cook. The pasta is cooked in a bowl with salted boiling water, the cavatelli will float on the surface when they are done, it takes no more than 4-5 minutes to be "al dente". Put a large pot of water on the hob that is set to the strongest. When the water boils, add the cavatelli pasta. Stir to prevent sticking and cook until pasta appears on water surfaces.
• Instructions for the sauce: In a large pan over low heat, stir in the "soffritto" - chopped carrot, celery and onion with olive oil and simmer until it starts to brown.
• Then add the minced meat and let it cook for about 10 minutes until the meat turns brown. Increase the temperature to medium heat, and add dry white wine and let it cook until it evaporates. Now add the previously chopped tomato and cook the sauce over low heat for about 1 hour and 30 minutes, up to 2 hours (depending on the amount of sauce).
• Add fresh herbs (remove herbs before mixing sauce with pasta). When the cavatelli pasta is cooked, strain it and add it to the pan with the sauce. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the cavatelli paste to a plate.