Layered and Stuffed Pasta

Baked layered and stuffed pasta dishes such as cannelloni and lasagne, and little filled parcels of pasta such as ravioli and tortellini, offer enormous scope for different ingredients and treatments.

The dough for filled pasta shapes should be fairly moist so it seals easily. Spinach pasta usually stays moist but if you are using egg pasta add a little oil to the dough. Roll out the dough thinly so the shapes will not be heavy, but not so thinly that they will tear when stuffed. You must not overfill them either or they may burst while cooking. After forming the little parcels arrange them spaced apart on a floured clean dry tea towel for an hour or so, turning them over once so they dry on both sides.